By Tom Rock
Man, I’m gone for one day and Darian Barnes gets the axe. I can’t help but feel I could have saved him had I been on Long Island.
Instead I’m down in South Florida (where it was a rub-it-in-your-face-New-York 86 degrees this afternoon) getting a jump on the big game between the Jets and the Dolphins (no one will dare label this baby Super Bowl XLI ½ ) and also following up on the sad Sean Taylor case. I attended a memorial service at Taylor's high school this morning. I’ll let you read the Taylor stuff in the paper tomorrow. Since this is a Jets blog, I’ll stick to the Little Green Men.
Barnes was booted. Not much of a surprise considering he hasn’t been active since forever as the Jets usually go with multiple tight ends and use Joe Kowalewski as their FB when they feel they need one (which isn’t often). About the only surprise is that it happened now and not at the end of the season, a humane way to rid yourself of veterans. Barnes was a popular player in the locker room, I’m sure he’ll be missed. Joey Porter will probably miss him on Sunday too. Porter and Barnes got into a heated exchange in the last Jets-Phins meeting in September. Barnes must have really been wagging his tongue to get the normally docile and introverted Porter to engage in uncharacteristic trash-talking.
Jerricho Cotchery was named the team’s Walter Payton Man of the Year for his work with the Cotchery Foundation and other local efforts. Then he didn’t practice with a finger injury. There are some injuries a receiver can play through and practice with, but a finger injury can easily be exacerbated by catching footballs so the Jets put him down for the day. We’ll have to keep an eye on him and his availability on Sunday. Laveranues Coles did practice, according to Newsday’s Erik Boland who is filling in for me in Hempstead.
And to bring things full-circle, Coles spoke about his relationship with Sean Taylor, who was a rookie when Coles was in Washington.
“He is a guy who I remember when he first walked through the doors (in Washington) and just being close with him,” Coles said. “He kind of reminded me of myself. He came in and didn’t trust very many people. He was a good guy once you actually got through the tough shell. He was a caring person, a fun guy and a great guy to be around. I know that I’m going to miss him. I was thinking of the other day when we played them and how he hugged me at the game. It is very touching.”
Coles went on: “In the sport that we are in, you don’t get the opportunity to tell people that you truly care about them, that you love them, because it doesn’t seem like such a macho thing to do. If I could say anything, it is to always tell people that you truly care about that you love them when you have the opportunity because you never know when they are going to be gone.”
Comments (1)
Question: Who will be the only team to lose to the fish this year?
After Pittsburg u can never say never but the fish will smell blood cause
it's there BEST chance not to make nagitive history. It seems they have way more to play for. We will just be playing not to lose. I hate to be so negitive but that's how I see it.