Whitlock: Tagliabue drops the ball

tk13 · 10-21-2005, 01:15 AM

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansas...s/12956860.htm

Tagliabue drops the ball by not moving this game
JASON WHITLOCK
Kansas City Star

After consulting Michael Brown’s FEMA playbook, NFL commish Paul Tagliabue decided the safest thing for everyone involved would be to hold a football game in the middle of hurricane evacuations.

Now, had one of Janet Jackson’s exposed breasts been headed for Miami, I’m sure Tags would’ve moved the Chiefs-Dolphins clash somewhere safe, away from a possible eye-gouging nipple.

I’m unhappy. And this is personal.

With Hurricane Wilma headed for southern Florida this weekend, the Chiefs and the Dolphins should be playing at Arrowhead Stadium this Sunday. Instead, the Chiefs will fly to Miami this morning and take on the Dolphins tonight. As I have for each Chiefs game the last 11 years, I’ll be in attendance.

This is the first time I’ll watch a Chiefs game in total disgust. (OK, well, there were the Elvis Grbac years when I wanted Jeff George to play quarterback.)

Perhaps Tagliabue was too busy to watch the Houston highway chaos created by the threat of Hurricane Rita. Maybe Tagliabue is unaware of the impact Hurricane Katrina and the Superdome disaster have had on Americans’ reaction to hurricane warnings.

Yes, Florida has experience dealing with hurricanes. But things are different now. If the storm projections are accurate, the whole Miami area will be wrapped in fear and potential chaos by this evening.

A football game at Dolphins Stadium is an open invitation for increased traffic problems. Local residents are concerned with evacuating or boarding up their homes, so you have to wonder whether the stadium will have enough employees to have regular security and a full staff of service personnel.

And why have law-enforcement officials concern themselves with a football game when I’m sure there are far more pressing concerns?

You have to wonder what is driving this decision. Is it greed? NFL games generate money for the local economy. Moving this game from Sunday to Friday already lessens the game’s profitability for local businesses. Moving the game to another city would be worse. Dolphins’ season-ticket holders would get cheated unless the Dolphins gave some sort of refund.

Whatever the case, money should not be the driving factor in this decision. Safety should be the only issue.

Is Tagliabue concerned about the criticism he received from the Saints because he made them play a “home” game at Giants Stadium? A commissioner has to have the courage to do what’s right.

The right thing here would have been to play in Kansas City. Yes, the Dolphins would have whined about the Chiefs gaining home-field advantage. So what?

Tonight’s game is likely to be sloppy. Neither team has had time to install its full game plan. You can’t prepare for a football game with just two days of practice — Wednesday and Thursday. Friday is generally a day for teams to lighten the workload on players and give their bodies a chance to recover.

In protecting Miami’s home-field advantage, Tagliabue’s decision has actually greatly accentuated the Dolphins’ advantage. The Chiefs are going to step off a plane from a three-hour flight about six hours before kickoff. Is this fair to the Chiefs, who have traditionally played poorly in Miami?

Dick Vermeil will have to perform magic for the Chiefs to be competitive tonight.

Hammock Parties · 10-21-2005, 01:17 AM

**** TAGLIABUE!

HolmeZz · 10-21-2005, 01:18 AM

Good job, Whitty.

**luv** · 10-21-2005, 01:18 AM

Wow! I completely agree with every word.

Mecca · 10-21-2005, 01:19 AM

Yep, we pretty much got hosed. Atleast Whitlock agrees with us and didn't call us whiners again.

**BigMeatballDave** · 10-21-2005, 01:37 AM

Whit nailed this. Agree completely. Tags is a ****ing moron...

**BigMeatballDave** · 10-21-2005, 01:38 AM

Why not play a Sat. game in the Georgia dome?

Dr. Chief · 10-21-2005, 01:43 AM

Tag's doesn't care and has no need to. He knows we all drink the kool-aid and will be back next week to watch.

Doesn't matter to me because I am still pissed off!!!

F**K You Tagliabue!!!

**luv** · 10-21-2005, 01:46 AM

That would suck for season ticket holders. I agree that the main issue here is safety, but that would still suck. How would Arrowhead sell tickets that fast? First come, first served?

Taco John · 10-21-2005, 02:03 AM

Screw this. No way should you guys get an extra home game. Move it to a neutral stadium if anything.

Tags is damned if he does, and damned if he doesn't. He made the wrong decision by giving NY a competitive advantage. This time, he made the right one.

RedDread · 10-21-2005, 02:08 AM

I think the Alamodome is free this week

**luv** · 10-21-2005, 02:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Taco John

Screw this. No way should you guys get an extra home game. Move it to a neutral stadium if anything.

Tags is damned if he does, and damned if he doesn't. He made the wrong decision by giving NY a competitive advantage. This time, he made the right one.

I think he made the worst possible decision by holding the game in Miami. That's worse than giving a team an unfair home field advantage, imo.
If they move it to a neutral field, that would defeat the purpose for the Dolphins. They go from home field advantage to playing in a foreign stadium. It wouldn't be the first time, but still.

Hammock Parties · 10-21-2005, 02:17 AM

My only problem with the situation is that the NFL lied to the Chiefs.

Complete bullshit. The game should have been moved to Atlanta on Sunday.

tk13 · 10-21-2005, 02:25 AM

At first I was just fine with them moving it to a different day, but now looking at the situation, they're sending us into a city that everybody is gonna try to be getting out of by tomorrow. That's a tough call, maybe we should've moved it to a neutral site.

I think the worst part of it was that they decided on Thursday to play on Friday. That's the worst part, this decision should've been made farther in advance to allow everybody to prepare. I think Tags has eschewed some logic here to ensure the home team plays in it's own stadium, even though you might have two teams of players not mentally there because they're focused on getting the hell out, plus we have no idea how many people are gonna show up tomorrow night...

greg63 · 10-21-2005, 02:29 AM

Hate to admit it, but Whitlock nailed it! This is perhaps the dumbest decision Paul Tagliabue has ever made! Well no pre-game prognostication required here, jet lag equals defeat. I hope I'm wrong.

10-21-2005, 01:15 AM
tk13 ... Join Date: Nov 2001 Casino cash: $1672500	Whitlock: Tagliabue drops the ball http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansas...s/12956860.htm Tagliabue drops the ball by not moving this game JASON WHITLOCK Kansas City Star After consulting Michael Brown’s FEMA playbook, NFL commish Paul Tagliabue decided the safest thing for everyone involved would be to hold a football game in the middle of hurricane evacuations. Now, had one of Janet Jackson’s exposed breasts been headed for Miami, I’m sure Tags would’ve moved the Chiefs-Dolphins clash somewhere safe, away from a possible eye-gouging nipple. I’m unhappy. And this is personal. With Hurricane Wilma headed for southern Florida this weekend, the Chiefs and the Dolphins should be playing at Arrowhead Stadium this Sunday. Instead, the Chiefs will fly to Miami this morning and take on the Dolphins tonight. As I have for each Chiefs game the last 11 years, I’ll be in attendance. This is the first time I’ll watch a Chiefs game in total disgust. (OK, well, there were the Elvis Grbac years when I wanted Jeff George to play quarterback.) Perhaps Tagliabue was too busy to watch the Houston highway chaos created by the threat of Hurricane Rita. Maybe Tagliabue is unaware of the impact Hurricane Katrina and the Superdome disaster have had on Americans’ reaction to hurricane warnings. Yes, Florida has experience dealing with hurricanes. But things are different now. If the storm projections are accurate, the whole Miami area will be wrapped in fear and potential chaos by this evening. A football game at Dolphins Stadium is an open invitation for increased traffic problems. Local residents are concerned with evacuating or boarding up their homes, so you have to wonder whether the stadium will have enough employees to have regular security and a full staff of service personnel. And why have law-enforcement officials concern themselves with a football game when I’m sure there are far more pressing concerns? You have to wonder what is driving this decision. Is it greed? NFL games generate money for the local economy. Moving this game from Sunday to Friday already lessens the game’s profitability for local businesses. Moving the game to another city would be worse. Dolphins’ season-ticket holders would get cheated unless the Dolphins gave some sort of refund. Whatever the case, money should not be the driving factor in this decision. Safety should be the only issue. Is Tagliabue concerned about the criticism he received from the Saints because he made them play a “home” game at Giants Stadium? A commissioner has to have the courage to do what’s right. The right thing here would have been to play in Kansas City. Yes, the Dolphins would have whined about the Chiefs gaining home-field advantage. So what? Tonight’s game is likely to be sloppy. Neither team has had time to install its full game plan. You can’t prepare for a football game with just two days of practice — Wednesday and Thursday. Friday is generally a day for teams to lighten the workload on players and give their bodies a chance to recover. In protecting Miami’s home-field advantage, Tagliabue’s decision has actually greatly accentuated the Dolphins’ advantage. The Chiefs are going to step off a plane from a three-hour flight about six hours before kickoff. Is this fair to the Chiefs, who have traditionally played poorly in Miami? Dick Vermeil will have to perform magic for the Chiefs to be competitive tonight.
Posts: 55,009

10-21-2005, 01:17 AM	#2
Hammock Parties I'll be back. Join Date: Nov 2002 Casino cash: $4380478	**** TAGLIABUE! __________________ Chiefs game films
Posts: 278,850

10-21-2005, 01:18 AM	#3
HolmeZz i guess its bittersweet poetry Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: NeW HaVeN, CT Casino cash: $10004900	Good job, Whitty.
Posts: 16,520

10-21-2005, 01:18 AM	#4
luv MY LITTLE #15 Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Springfield, MO Casino cash: $6059600	Wow! I completely agree with every word.
Posts: 63,450

10-21-2005, 01:19 AM	#5
Mecca Hockey Town Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Kansas City, Missouri Casino cash: $2287050	Yep, we pretty much got hosed. Atleast Whitlock agrees with us and didn't call us whiners again.
Posts: 111,142

10-21-2005, 01:37 AM	#6
BigMeatballDave GBM 8-12-15 Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Dayton, Oh. Casino cash: $10052154	Whit nailed this. Agree completely. Tags is a ****ing moron...
Posts: 59,997

10-21-2005, 01:38 AM	#7
BigMeatballDave GBM 8-12-15 Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Dayton, Oh. Casino cash: $10052154	Why not play a Sat. game in the Georgia dome?
Posts: 59,997

10-21-2005, 01:43 AM	#8
Dr. Chief Probes issues and other things Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Joplin, MO Casino cash: $10004900	Tag's doesn't care and has no need to. He knows we all drink the kool-aid and will be back next week to watch. Doesn't matter to me because I am still pissed off!!! F**K You Tagliabue!!! __________________
Posts: 246

10-21-2005, 01:46 AM	#9
luv MY LITTLE #15 Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Springfield, MO Casino cash: $6059600	That would suck for season ticket holders. I agree that the main issue here is safety, but that would still suck. How would Arrowhead sell tickets that fast? First come, first served?
Posts: 63,450

10-21-2005, 02:03 AM	#10
Taco John Sapere Aude Join Date: Jun 2001 Casino cash: $3307937	Screw this. No way should you guys get an extra home game. Move it to a neutral stadium if anything. Tags is damned if he does, and damned if he doesn't. He made the wrong decision by giving NY a competitive advantage. This time, he made the right one. __________________ Ehyeh asher ehyeh. Donger's Razor: "The most establishment-friendly explanation that gives leftist and neocon politicians the most amount of cover is the only possible explanation, even when gaping holes and leaps of logic are required to get there."
Posts: 78,074

10-21-2005, 02:08 AM	#11
RedDread Veteran Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Back in KC Casino cash: $10007771	I think the Alamodome is free this week __________________
Posts: 4,167

10-21-2005, 02:17 AM	#13
Hammock Parties I'll be back. Join Date: Nov 2002 Casino cash: $4380478	My only problem with the situation is that the NFL lied to the Chiefs. Complete bullshit. The game should have been moved to Atlanta on Sunday. __________________ Chiefs game films
Posts: 278,850

10-21-2005, 02:25 AM	#14
tk13 ... Join Date: Nov 2001 Casino cash: $1672500	At first I was just fine with them moving it to a different day, but now looking at the situation, they're sending us into a city that everybody is gonna try to be getting out of by tomorrow. That's a tough call, maybe we should've moved it to a neutral site. I think the worst part of it was that they decided on Thursday to play on Friday. That's the worst part, this decision should've been made farther in advance to allow everybody to prepare. I think Tags has eschewed some logic here to ensure the home team plays in it's own stadium, even though you might have two teams of players not mentally there because they're focused on getting the hell out, plus we have no idea how many people are gonna show up tomorrow night...
Posts: 55,009

10-21-2005, 02:29 AM	#15
greg63 Homer go crazy!!! Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: SE Kansas Casino cash: $9134990	Hate to admit it, but Whitlock nailed it! This is perhaps the dumbest decision Paul Tagliabue has ever made! Well no pre-game prognostication required here, jet lag equals defeat. I hope I'm wrong. __________________
Posts: 17,619