WALKING THE LINE
Why Astros, Rockets fans should take note of the Dolphins saga
Feb 3, 2022, 5:46 pm
Losing games certainly helped the Astros rebuild. Photo by Getty Images.
Altuve's walk-off slam lifts Astros over Rangers
Now the question is … did Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross really offer $100,000 bonuses to head coach Brian Flores for each game the Dolphins lost – on purpose – during the 2019 season?
"That was a conversation about not doing as much as we needed to do in order to win football games," Flores told ESPN this week. “Take a flight, go on vacation, I'll give you $100,000 per loss -- those were his exact words.”
If that’s true, as Flores formally alleges in a lawsuit against the NFL charging racial discrimination, what happens now?
Would NFL commissioner Roger Goodell order Ross to sell the Dolphins? Or allow him to keep the team but force him to withdraw from daily operations for a certain length of time or forever? Would the NFL fine Ross and punish the Dolphins by taking away draft picks?
Would NFL owners tell commissioner Goodell to clean out his office and resign? Will the FBI investigate to determine if Ross committed a crime? If the accusation is true that he offered money essentially to fix the outcome of games, it sure sounds like bribery and racketeering. Plus I’m sure there are several people with crooked noses in the illegal gambling industry who’d like to have a private word with Mr. Ross.
And what happens now with former Cleveland Browns coach Hue Jackson’s similar accusation that the Browns long-term plan included losing games on purpose, or at least not trying their hardest to win, in 2016 and 2017 in order to move higher in the draft?
The Browns went 1-31 those two years and sure enough landed the No. 1 overall draft pick after both seasons. They drafted Myles Garrett in 2017 and Baker Mayfield in 2018. Jackson was fired midway during the 2019 season.
Flores was fired by the Dolphins last month after two winning seasons in a row. Both Jackson and Flores are African-American.
We’re only at the beginning of what could explode into a major scandal and black eye for the NFL. If two – so far – NFL teams conspired to lose games on purpose, the integrity of the NFL, the most popular and powerful sports organization in the U.S., could be damaged, probably not beyond repair, but two giant steps back.
I’d forget about Goodell losing his job, at least over this. Baseball commissioner Bud Selig ran the Major Leagues during the steroid era, most believe he knew cheating was rampant, and Selig later was elected to the Hall of Fame. Team owners, who are Goodell’s boss, can look beyond scandal as long as their bottom line keeps soaring.
Remember, Flores and Jackson’s accusations are only that, accusations. We don’t know if they’re true. There’s a thin line between rebuilding and tanking.
Between not trying to win and hoping to lose.
Did the Houston Astros tank during 2011-2013 when they lost 100 games each year? Or were they developing young players who took their lumps with the promise of good things to come? In the Astros case, the gamble paid off big time with three consecutive years of 100 wins, playoff and World Series appearances and the Astros first championship in 2017.
With the Texans, maybe we shouldn’t confuse tanking with mismanagement, poor judgment, lousy coaching and just plain stupidity. The Texans are losing on the field, in the community and among their fan base. The organization from top to bottom isn’t a dumpster fire, it’s an out-of-control blaze that’s rendered NRG Park into 350 acres of smoldering despair on game days.
How would you describe the Rocket’s game plan? They sent John Wall, their highest-paid and best player who isn’t injured, to NBA Siberia because the coaching staff wants to give their young players a chance to develop. This at the expense of winning games that would lessen their chances of gaining a premium draft pick. Wouldn’t young players benefit and learn from playing with an experienced guard with All-Star pedigree? Rebuilding or tanking?
Brian Flores, a finalist for the Texans head coaching position and the fans’ clear choice for the job, says he informed Texans management that he was filing a lawsuit against the league before his interview. Will the lawsuit leave Flores toxic as a coaching pick? Or will teams feel pressure to hire him now? Flores also is a candidate for the New Orleans Saints coaching position.
If the Dolphins owner did attempt to bribe Flores to lose games, it wouldn’t be the first time a team out-and-out went into the tank. The most famous instance involved Chicago White Sox players taking money from a notorious racketeer to throw the 1919 World Series. The players, though found innocent in court, were banned from baseball a year later and brandished the Black Sox forever.
There have been several point shaving scandals in college sports. In some cases, the team didn’t necessarily lose the game, but just kept the margin of victory under a certain number of points.
Nobody has proof – or cares – but the Washington Generals have lost 10,000 games in a row to the Harlem Globetrotters. There is suspicion that the Generals coach is told to lose on purpose. You know, like certain NFL coaches are claiming.
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It’s been years since the Texans commanded the vast majority of sports interest in Houston this early in October. While the Astros’ early exit from the baseball playoffs was a downer, the good news is the Texans are mostly worthy of the increased focus (aside: the Rockets aren’t NBA title contenders, but that is an interesting squad starting its season next week).The Texans are no juggernaut, but a 4-1 record is never to be scoffed at in the National Football League.
The offense has thus far been more hype than performance. Only in the opening win at Indianapolis have the Texans put up more than 24 points. Last season they scored more than 24 only once in the last eight regular season games. The 45 points posted in the playoff victory over Cleveland (granted, 14 of them the result of interception returns for touchdowns) was no more impressive than the 10 mustered in the following week’s loss at Baltimore was pitiful.
C.J. Stroud has been largely excellent, but a mediocre offensive line and lackluster running game keep the attack from elite status. Joe Mixon being out since getting an ankle messed up in week two against the Bears obviously hurts, but missing Mixon isn’t like if the 1978 Oilers had to play without Earl Campbell. The Texans still don’t have a run longer than 18 yards this season, which is absurd five games in. I don’t think anyone believes the offensive line has been good so far. Anyone thinking the o-line hasn’t been a disappointment is just wrong. It doesn’t take particular expertise to know the o-line infrequently controls the line of scrimmage. Left guard Kenyon Green has been healthy in his third season, but his play is that of a first round bust. Veteran right guard Shaq Mason seems to be in decline. Rookie second round pick Blake Fisher isn’t halfway through his freshman year, but has not been good when filling in for either Laremy Tunsil at left tackle or Tytus Howard at right tackle. On the plus side, Tunsil did manage a penalty-free game against the Bills! To what extent coaching is a factor I don’t know, but the coaching is not getting more out of less from the offensive line to this point.
Now the Texans face playing at least four games without wide receiver Nico Collins, who was playing at first team All-Pro level as a follow-up to his huge breakout 2023 season. Over the last three seasons there was a clear first tier of wideouts in the NFL: in alphabetical order Ja'Marr Chase, Mike Evans, Tyreek Hill, Justin Jefferson, and CeeDee Lamb. Collins had burst into that tier. Despite missing the last three-quarters of the Bills game after popping his right hamstring, Collins still leads the league with 567 yards in receptions, 74 yards ahead of number two man Chase. Collins was making the three–year 72.75 million dollar contract extension he signed in the offseason look like a bargain for the Texans.
Where do explosive plays come in the passing game while Collins is out? Stefon Diggs is performing like a premium possession receiver. Diggs is on pace for 105 catches, but at just 10.2 yards per catch. Pass protection is an issue in allowing deep routes to unfold, but Tank Dell should be thrown a long ball at least once per half. Make it clear to defenses that Dell’s speed must be accounted for.
As for this Sunday at New England, the 1-4 Patriots stink because their offense is atrocious. The Pats turn to third overall 2024 draft selection Drake Maye for his first start at quarterback. The Texans' D should be able to confuse him and cause at least a couple of turnovers. The Pats’ defense has been generally solid, but is weakened by the loss of safety Jabrill Peppers who went on the exempt list this week as he faces drug and ugly domestic violence charges.
Meanwhile, in Cleveland
It is rather amusing that legal matters aside, Deshaun Watson looks to have largely wrecked his career by going on a Texans-tolerated paid de facto strike and not playing in the 2021 season. Remember that while things fell apart for the Texans in the 2020 season (tumbling from back-to-back AFC South first place finishes to a 4-12 record), Watson was generally outstanding. That he led the NFL in passing yardage (4863) was somewhat a product of having to throw so much with the team behind most of the time, but Watson that season threw 33 touchdown passes with just seven interceptions. Then he threw in the towel.
Whether his skills atrophied, vanity caught up with him, subsequent shoulder issues linger, and a shaky offensive line has hurt, Watson flat out stinks with the Cleveland Browns so far this season. Frankly, the Browns’ organization is getting what it deserves. The way it swore to having thoroughly vetted Watson’s character was laughable. Guaranteeing the entirety of a five-year 230 million dollar contract was sub-idiotic. What the Browns gave to the Texans in trading for him...
The Texans should have set up auto-delivery of a weekly thank you note to the Browns for the next, oh, 10 years. 15?
For Texans’ conversation, catch Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me on our Texans On Tap podcasts. Thursdays feature a preview of the upcoming game, and then we go live (then available on demand) after the final gun of the game: Texans on Tap - YouTube