The week that was
Jim Rodriguez: Josh McDaniels saga makes a lot of headlines, little sense
Jim Rodriguez
Feb 8, 2018, 5:29 am
The Colts thought they had a head coach. Colts.com
So there was Josh McDaniels cleaning out his office at One Patriot Place. A five-time Super Bowl winner as member of the Patriots staff...the last two titles as offensive coordinator.
Like he did once before, it was time to leave the comforts of one road in, one road out of Foxborough to be a head coach in the National Football League.
His first venture didn’t go so well. 11-17 in not quite two seasons with the Broncos. But there was always a job waiting for him in the Belichick regime.
McDaniels is to the pro game what Lane Kiffin is to college. Young. Fiery. Great at his job. McDaniels also has Tom Brady’s ear. So much, if not all, of the team’s success is Brady’s right arm and how well he works with and trusts McDaniels.
That cache gives you something we all strive for in life, leverage.
Not surprisingly, the calls to be a head coach came again. This time it would be different for McDaniels. He wanted to go to a place he would feel comfortable. A place with an established quarterback. He found that with the Indianapolis Colts. Just one problem: the Colts may be Belichick’s greatest nemesis.
It was the Colts that complained to the league about pass interference rules after losing to the Patriots.
It was the Colts who erased a 21-3 AFC Championship game deficit to the Pats sending Peyton Manning’s to his first Super Bowl win.
It was the Colts who blew the whistle spawning deflate-gate.
There is no love lost between owners, Jim Irsay and Robert Kraft. And now Indy has the man who has Tom Brady’s ear.
So as McDaniels is packing up his desk with a plane waiting to take him to Indiana; McDaniels gets summoned to Kraft’s office.
You can only imagine what was in that room right... dancing girls? A nice seafood platter? Briefcases full of money?
Turns out it was Bill Belichick.
McDaniels got what he wanted all along. A long term contact. Assistants don’t get that luxury. Belichick would mentor him. Pull back the curtain to see how a roster is constructed. McDaniels is the heir apparent. And just like that.. Belichick’s defense beats the Colts.
Meanwhile all hell breaks loose in the heartland.
Ex-Colts head coach Tony Dungy crushes McDaniels via twitter: “There is NO excuse big enough to justify this. It’s one thing to go back on your word to an organization. But having assistant coaches leave jobs to go with you then leave them out to dry is indefensible.”
Colts GM Chris Ballard addressing the media at what should have been an introductory press conference and wanted nothing to do with McDaniels after his decision to stay in New England: “There was no persuasion. Let me make this clear: I want, and we want as an organization a head coach that wants to be all in.”
McDaniels’ own agent, Bob LaMonte, who by the way represents Ballard, terminated McDaniels as a client. "My word is my bond," LaMonte told Sports Business Journal “Once you break that, there's nothing left."
Is it comfort that caused McDaniels to stay? Is it a bigger paycheck? Is Andrew Luck’s shoulder really getting better? Or was it finally getting a seat next to the King?
Whatever it is, McDaniels will pay a heavy price. He’ll always be known as a weasel. Not sure if that’s what makes a leader of men. And as far as being a head coach again.. would you hire him?
So what is left? "The rivalry is back on," said Ballard walking away from the podium.
The Colts and Patriots play in Foxborough this coming season. Smells like a prime time game to me.
I wonder if the Colts could use a corner like Malcom Butler? I hear he’s available.
You can listen to my radio show, The Sports Bosses , weekdays at 10 a.m. ET on SB Nation Radio. Follow me on Twitter @mediarodriguez
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
Catch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) with Charlie Pallilo, Brandon Strange, and Josh Jordan. We drop two episodes every week on SportsMapHouston's YouTube channel. You can also listen on Apple Podcast, Spotifyor wherever you get your podcasts.