November 2009 Archives

I just received a bulletin that the weigh-in for Saturday night's fight in Oakland between Andre Ward and Mikkel Kessler will be televised today at 3:10 pm PT on ESPNews.

This is an interesting fight. I can't pick a winner because I don't know Kessler but I know about him. And he should be Ward's toughest opponent. I can't cover the fight because I will be at Big Game. This is one time I wish I could be in two places at once.

I have one gripe about the weigh-in being today and the Cotto-Pacquiao weigh-in being a day before their fight and most weigh-ins taking place the day before the fight.

It used to be the weigh-in was on the morning of the fight. If a guy didn't make weight he had to sweat off pounds and that affected his performance that evening. There was a penalty for not making weight and that seemed proper.

Not now. A guy doesn't make weight. He sweats off the pounds and then get re-hydrated often from an IV the day before. No big deal.

Also bigger guys can make weight and then regain 10 to 15 pounds by fight night. This doesn't seem fair. They should have to make weight on fight morning.

Readers criticize me all the time. I'm opinionated and outspoken in my writing -- always have been -- and criticism is a natural byproduct.

Some readers say I'm a hack or untalented or stupid or unprofessional or I don't provide news. I'm prepared for all that and more. No problem.

Lately readers who don't like me and/or Ira Miller say we are old and should hang it up -- Ira is already retired.

Is being old a sin or a deficiency?

If I can't think logically or can't write a clear sentence, please tell me and I'll go away. But why is old or older or older than you a problem? Please inform me.

Both Red Smith and Jim Murray wrote until advanced ages -- and, no, I'm not comparing myself to them. Some cultures revere older people because through age you gain experience and sometimes wisdom. You have something to offer.

If you have criticized Ira or me for being older than you, understand that some day you will be old if you are lucky. Will you hate yourself then?

So sure criticize me all you want. But lay off the old stuff, if you don't want to come off silly. Being older than you is not a fault. It may even be a point of honor.

Tim Lincecum just held his conference call about winning the Cy Young. The moderator insisted at the top of the call that media questions should only be about the Cy Young. That meant no questions about Lincecum's pot post in Washington. The moderator said Lincecum would address the pot issue at the end of the call.

Everyone complied and no one asked about marijuana and Tim. The call was about to end and he didn't say anything about his legal problem. A Giants PR person jumped in and said Lincecum had a statement to read. Tim read it. He apoloized. He learned from his deed, the usual.

In the old days, no one would have respected boundaries in a Barry Bonds' call. They would have asked about BALCO and you name it. So why were they kinder to Lincecum?

1. People like Lincecum and they don't like Bonds.

2. Smoking marijuana is not perceived as nearly as heinous as taking whatever Bonds is alleged to have taken.

Do you agree?

Comcast says Tim Lincecum will be announced at noon as NL Cy Young winner.

That would make it two years in a row for him, not bad. The Giants will have a press conference at 2:00 if he wins.

If he does, he is the lone superb performer in the Bay Area. He is a gem in a fairly mediocre landscape. He is beginning to enter Sandy Koufax territory. If anyone currently performing in any sport in the Bay Area measures up to Lincecum, please tell me.

In the total context of things this is a small point. The big point is that JaMarcus Russell stinks as a quarterback and shows little hope of not stinking.

But I keep fixing on a minor point. After games he never says he did anything wrong. I stand there and listen to him in amazement. Last week when he stunk and Tom Cable yanked him he said he was surprised. He thought he played OK. Oh, there were a few bad passes. But he always had an excuse. On one he got his elbow tipped. Nothing is ever his fault. He lives in a world of denial.

This is bad for a quarterback who is supposed to be the leader, who is supposed to tell the truth. Joe Montana would admit when he had a bad game. That showed he could stand up to the truth and could get better. Russell doesn't seem able to stand up to anything. Now he can sit.

Good for Tom Cable or whoever made the decision to bench JaMarcus Russell. I don't believe this kid ever had what it takes and I think he will wash out of the league.

If there is any hope for him he will take this as a slap in the face and a wakeup call and devote himself to being a real QB. He is not that at the moment.

Some reader just ticked off Ira. He said Ira didn't research his comments for today's Cohn Zohn blog entry.

Big mistake. Ira does research and he's a football encyclopedia. Plus you don't want Ira angry at you.

Our first two years working together we couldn't stand each other, argued all the time. Some big rants, one in particular in the Candlestick Press Box at a 49er/Dallas game. Legendary fight.

Then we realized we like each other. I admire Ira's knowledge, judgment, feel for football. And I must tell you he is the most loyal friend in a profession where some people give you big smile to your face and stick the knife in your back.

Ira Miller and I spoke an hour ago about the upcoming game between the 49ers and Packers.

Cohn: Alex Smith and Aaron Rodgers play against each other Sunday. Did the 49ers make a mistake drafting Smith instead of Rodgers?

Miller: Yeah, but they would have made a mistake no matter who they drafted because they couldn't develop him. The big mistake wasn't which quarterback. It was not having a plan to get him developed. I thought at the time Rodgers was a much better choice for a number of reasons. He played in a pro-style offense so there was less to teach him and that was significant because he was coming to a crap team. His arrogance would have served him well because he would be better able handle the situation; he's tougher and thicker skinned than Smith. He's the fourth-ranked passer in league now but I'm not sure he could have survived the way Smith was handled. Obviously, the 49ers would have ruined whoever they had.

Cohn: Which is the better quarterback right now?

Miller: That's a silly question. Aaron Rodgers is a fine young quarterback and he really has only one major issue. He tends to hold the ball too long. He takes way too many sacks, not all the fault of his offensive line. He has a really good arm and a good head on his shoulders from playing the game.

Cohn: Compare him to Smith.

Miller: Rodgers has a better arm, better instincts. The issue with Smith remains - I know he's a bright guy; we heard all those stories when he came out of college how he graduated in 3 weeks. But he doesn't seem to have football instincts. He doesn't anticipate things as well as Rodgers. One excuse is that he hasn't been the No. 1 quarterback that long. I don't know. I just know he doesn't throw the ball soon enough. A receiver doesn't stay open in the NFL for long. You've got to trust he'll be open and where he'll be. If you wait to see him get open, by the time the ball gets there chances are he won't be open anymore. Windows open and close quickly. In fairness to Smith, he was handled all wrong. We know the issues with Nolan when he got hurt. The worst thing the 49ers did for him was he seemed to make progress his 2^nd season. Then Norv Turner leaves and instead of getting the very best coordinator for their $24 million investment, they went out on the street corner and said, "Who's the next guy?" It's like they went out and got someone looking for a bus. The biggest thing was not getting a decent replacement for Norv. It's like you buy a Renoir and put it in the driveway and it rains and the paint runs. Jim Hostler, was that his name?

Cohn: Who will win the game?

Miller: The Packers will win. They're the better team and they have the better quarterback.

Cohn: Will it be close?

Miller: It shouldn't be but the 49ers have played close games against better teams. It shouldn't be close.

Cohn: Are the Packers an elite team?

Miller: No. They're upper middle of the pack. They improved their defense tremendously with Dom Capers this year. They can't protect the passer. They're the worst in the league at giving up sacks. I think Rodgers is a little gun shy playing behind that line. I don't like how long he holds onto the ball sometimes. He's been sacked 41 times in 9 games. That's way a lot. The average is 21 sacks per team and he's been sacked 41 times himself. But he's accurate and he gets the ball downfield and he doesn't throw a lot of interceptions. I think holding the ball too long is something Mike McCarthy can coach out of him.

Cohn: Is there anything else to say about the game?

Miller: There's still the overall issue of the 49ers not being very good. Singletary made it clear he wants to be a running team. You take out those couple of 60-yard touchdown runs by Frank Gore and they haven't run very well. Their passing game is basically Vernon Davis. Their wide receivers have 3 TD catches among them. Their offensive line is not very good.

Cohn: I want to look back at last week. You said the Bears would beat the 49ers because Jay Cutler is better than Alex Smith.

Miller: I don't know if anyone is better, but Cutler certainly was worse, just awful. He never was that bad when he played for Shanahan. You've got to look at the coaching.

Cohn: Let's talk about the Raiders.

Miller: Lets' not. There's really nothing to talk about. It's the same story week after week, year after year. They will win the occasional game. It's like me. I broke 80 last week for the 5^th time in my life. That doesn't make me Tiger Woods. The Raiders will win the occasional game but that doesn't make them the 1984 49ers. There's no direction no plan no hope.

Several reports say Monta Ellis is the next unhappy Golden State Warrior who may be on his way out of town. It may be an epidemic of players who want to leave that bedraggled franchise.

It is being written that Ellis' agent is coming to Oakland on Thursday to discuss Ellis' concerns with the crummy franchise and maybe to talk about an exit strategy -- as in a trade, as in getting the hell out.

It is possible GM Larry Riley already has talked to other teams about Ellis.

This whole situation is really sick.

Veterans on the team -- Stephen Jackson, Ellis -- were apparently upset when the W's kept Stephen Curry after drafting him. They wanted the W's to trade the 7th pick for a veteran to make the W's better immediately. When the team got and kept Curry it seemed clear the W's were rebuilding yet again.

Something sure flipped Jackson out -- and keeping Curry was probably part of it. He was clear in his comments until his trade that the team was not getting better and had regressed and he wanted out. It is likely Ellis feels the same way now.

Don Nelson never has known what to do with Ellis. Nelson does not believe he is a point guard but thinks he's too small to play 2 guard. There is something to this point of view. But Ellis is the W's best player and an explosive scorer. Why drive him out or make him feel sour on the organization?

It's also possible Ellis never got over the aftermath of his moped accident and the $3 million the W's took from him -- Chris Mullin opposed that hefty amount and you see where that got Mullin.

As I wrote earlier, Nelson seems detached and it's possible he wants his 21 victories so he can become the all time winningest coach and that's all he wants. Great. But he'll win his games at quite a cost to the team, especially the young players who he doesn't seem interested in developing.

In his wake the team will have lost Jackson and maybe Ellis. And that won't be the end. Wait until Anthony Randolph begins bellyaching too. Nelson needs to go. But no good coach would come to this team as long as Chris Cohan owns it.

Several reports say Monta Ellis is the next unhappy Golden State Warrior who may be on his way out of town. It may be an epidemic of players who want to leave that bedraggled franchise.

It is being written that Ellis' agent is coming to Oakland on Thursday to discuss Ellis' concerns with the crummy franchise and maybe to talk about an exit strategy -- as in a trade, as in getting the hell out.

It is possible GM Larry Riley already has talked to other teams about Ellis.

This whole situation is really sick.

Veterans on the team -- Stephen Jackson, Ellis -- were apparently upset when the W's kept Stephen Curry after drafting him. They wanted the W's to trade the 7th pick for a veteran to make the W's better immediately. When the team got and kept Curry it seemed clear the W's were rebuilding yet again.

Something sure flipped Jackson out -- and keeping Curry was probably part of it. He was clear in his comments until his trade that the team was not getting better and had regressed and he wanted out. It is likely Ellis feels the same way now.

Don Nelson never has known what to do with Ellis. Nelson does not believe he is a point guard but thinks he's too small to play 2 guard. There is something to this point of view. But Ellis is the W's best player and an explosive scorer. Why drive him out or make him feel sour on the organization?

It's also possible Ellis never got over the aftermath of his moped accident and the $3 million the W's took from him -- Chris Mullin opposed that hefty amount and you see where that got Mullin.

As I wrote earlier, Nelson seems detached and it's possible he wants his 21 victories so he can become the all time winningest coach and that's all he wants. Great. But he'll win his games at quite a cost to the team, especially the young players who he doesn't seem interested in developing.

In his wake the team will have lost Jackson and maybe Ellis. And that won't be the end. Wait until Anthony Randolph begins bellyaching too. Nelson needs to go. But no good coach would come to this team as long as Chris Cohan owns it.

This is purely hypothetical, the question of whether Don Nelson should retire and go back to Maui ASAP. He has this season and next on his contract for a total of $12 million and he doesn't leave money on the table.

But let's play a game; let's pretend the Warriors can buy him out or just send him away. Would that be a good thing? Would the Warriors be a better team without Nelson?

I think they would. He seems tired, bored, detached. He doesn't coach the defense. He antagonizes old players and young players alike. He seems like someone merely hanging on for the money. I honestly can't think of any area in which he helps this team.

I believe an eager young coach with a new staff could do better and would want to do better. This club needs new blood in its head coach. It also needs new ownership but that's another issue.

Please share your thoughts on Nelson with Zohn readers.

It's funny how things change fast in college football.

At the beginning of the season Cal was a national player and Stanford was an afterthought. Now it's all reversed.

Stanford just whacked USC -- and yes it was cool that Jim Harbaugh went for that two-point conversion against the Trojans. Let Pete Carroll know what it feels like to get beaten really bad.

Anyway, at today's luncheon re: Big Game Harbaugh answered questions first from media. Everyone asked about his team.

Then Jeff Tedford went. Many minutes passed while reporters asked him about Stanford. So there were two coaches talking about how good the Cardinal is until someone finally asked Tedford about the Bears.

I expect Stanford to beat Cal handily. Most everyone does.

I just got back from the Big Game press conference/luncheon. I'll be writing about the game later in the week but one thing is important right now. Cal's Jeff Tedford was asked if Jahvid Best will play.

"There is no chance Jahvid will play," Tedford said.

For which we applaud him and the Cal doctors, even though the Bears need Best.

Best recently suffered two concussions -- the first may not have been a concussion but it was a serious knock to the head. This kid seems to be a lovely person with a great life ahead of him. That life may or may not include football. There is no way anyone should put him in harm's way of permanent brain damage.

Football concussions are serious. Regular hits that don't result in concussions also are serious. Good for Cal.

Call this a case of poetic justice. Stephen Jackson got his money and then made himself into a pest on the W's. He wanted to play for a contender. He wanted out. He wanted everything on his terms.

Well, this morning the W's traded him to Charlotte, a bad team with a 3-6 record which just happens to be the W's record. So Jackson didn't so much get traded as he got banished from one purgatory to another. There's a certain poetic justice in that -- not to mention just plain justice of the regular kind. To read my column on Jackson and Monta Ellis click here.

What a bummer. I sat here all day watching these two semi-pro teams, the Raiders and Chiefs. And the Raiders couldn't even beat KC at home. The Raiders have to be the worst team in football -- and I know, you say Cleveland is worse. Really?

OK, I feel good getting that out of my system. Now here's the point. JaMarcus Russell stinks and never will be any good. The Raiders need to move on from this bad QB. Tom Cable yanked him today and won't even commit to him as starter for next week when the alternative is Bruce Gradkowski -- not a hall of famer.

The Raiders need to find an exit strategy with Russell who never can succeed and will be out of the league in say 3 years.

This is what Russell said about his performance, miserable by any standards. "The last drive I got hit kind of late and one guy hit my elbow and the ball went sailing."

It's never this guy's fault. Have you noticed that? That's part of his problem. JaMarcus Russell has to go. To read my column on Russell click here.

They were making a big deal on TV that Jim Harbaugh went for a 2 point conversion to get his team to 50 points. They said Pete Carroll glared at him. Too bad. Carroll's issue isn't with Harbaugh. It's with himself and his own team. If the Trojans hadn't given up so many points Harbaugh never would have been in a position to add insult to injury.

Andrew Luck is a terrific QB. I'm told he'd be the first QB taken in the draft if he comes out -- he won't. He's easily the most talented QB in the Bay Area, college or pro.

Did you see this quote from Don Nelson? The NY media asked why he wasn't starting Stephen Curry and he replied, "I took him out of the starting lineup because he doesn't have enough tattoos. How can a guy start in the NBA with no tattoos?"

That quote is simply wonderful and I've been laughing about it all morning. Thanks, Nellie.

A Zohn reader excoriated me for not being at Mike Singletary's Friday news conference. I wish the reader had been more polite and not questioned my manhood. But OK, fair enough. I wasn't there.

Here's the story. Singletary usually has his press conference on a Monday for obvious reasons. This time it was on Friday, my off day. It was on Friday because of the rare Thursday night game. I wanted to go to his conference, but had promised my wife I'd take her to the movies -- We saw A Serious Man -- only so so. My wife doesn't know from Singletary and wanted to go to the movies. So did I.

On Thursday night, I attended Singletary's postgame news conference and sat in the center of the front row -- right in front of him. He couldn't miss me and if he had something to say to me I was right there. I asked a question about Alex Smith, which he answered. So I clearly wasn't hiding from the guy.

After I finished writing my column Thursday night, I approached the head of Niners PR and explained I would not be there on Friday. I apologized for that and the PR guy said Singletary would respect me as a guy who wanted to keep a promise to his wife.

I don't feel like a coward for not seeing Singletary on Friday, as I already had attended a Thursday news conference. As far as my being intimidated by Singletary or afraid to confront him -- as the reader claimed -- anyone who reads me or has seen me in action knows that's pure foolishness.

The reader also said I should have congratulated Singletary on his win. What I had to say about his win I wrote in blogs and in my column. Singletary is welcome to read me and if he has a problem he knows my number or he can talk to me the next time we get together, which will be in the near future.

A Zohn reader ragged on me for writing about Saturday night's fight between Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto. He said he lives in the North Bay -- the Santa Rosa, CA area -- and he talked to his friends and no one heard of Manny or Cotto and he said I shouldn't clutter the Press Democrat website with stuff no one in the North Bay cares about.

This is an interesting comment, if somewhat cranky, and I'd like to respond. First off -- and this is not the main point -- Pacquiao is the most famous fighter in the world right now and it seems fair to write about him based on that alone. If the reader doesn't like boxing he can skip my boxing blogs. Also, how does he know no one in the North Bay cares about Manny? Did he conduct a poll?

But there's a larger point. The reader says I should avoid blog entries on subjects readers in the North Bay don't care about. I disagree. I make a distinction between blog writing and column writing in this way.

I gear my columns to readers in the North Bay because the columns come out four times a week in the actual newspaper which is delivered to homes and racks in the North Bay.

My blogs, on the other hand, are available all over the world. One Zohn reader, who goes by the handle fishlips, lives in the Boston area. So when it comes to blogs I consider the whole world my area of interest and I write accordingly.

The world of blogging has freed up journalists from the geographical limitations of actual newspapers and I find that exciting. And I gear my writing accordingly.

Zohn readers seemed angry with your truly's column and blog from last night's snore-fest at Candlestick Park. I duly gave the 49ers credit for winning the game and for holding firm. But I could not bring myself to praise them to the skies as some fans wanted.

I couldn't give them all-out praise because the game stunk and the Bears stunk and the Niners weren't so hot themselves. Bears QB Jay Cutler threw 5 picks, two of them near the Niner goal line. Which means the 49ers could not actually stop the Bears' drives until Cutler stopped the drives for the 49ers.

Also the 49ers don't seem sold on Alex Smith and hardly let him do anything in the second half. Not a good sign.

One thing I would like to amend from my writing last night. I wondered if the 49ers are a playoff team. This morning I looked at their schedule and with the exception of a few games, it's a pretty easy schedule filled with games they may be able to win. So they are a contender. As Ira Miller pointed out, it will all come down to the Monday night game against Arizona in SF on Dec. 14.

I apologize to 49er Faithful for not being more enthusiastic about their team. When the Niners give me something to be enthusiastic about I'll be enthusiastic. To read my column on the 49er win over the Bears click here.

Here at the Cohn Zohn we give full credit for wins. So all credit to the Niners for winning a football game. But we can't help noticing the 49ers scored all of 10 points. From experience we know you don't win many games scoring 10.

We also noticed the Bears are a truly horrendous team and they were driving to beat the 49ers at the very end. What worked against the Bears' offense was not necessarily the Niner defense. What worked against the Bears' offense was their own quarterback.

Jay Cutler is surely the most reckless quarterback in the league. He threw five interceptions. It was fitting that his last pick came on the final drive, driving the nail into the Bears' coffin. The 49ers get a certain amount of credit for all those picks -- after all, their defenders caught the crummy passes. But a lot of credit goes to Cutler too.

So sure all credit to the Niners for their win. But you have to wonder how good they are. They don't trust quarterback Alex Smith to do much. And they can't seem to score a lot of points. And they won't have the good fortune to face the Mad Bomber Jay Cutler every week.

Did you see where Monta Ellis provoked -- mildly -- Don Nelson after practice today?

What I find interesting is that Ellis did it in front of reporters -- seems to have made sure writers were there. So, if my theory is correct, Ellis wanted the press to know he's disgruntled, wanted the media to know there's even more trouble on the Warriors.

This is a new development and I wonder which other Warriors will be orchestrating similar scenes in the near future.

I'm glad to see readers responded to my Pacquiao/Cotto blog. Boxing is my favorite sport and I love when readers still take it seriously -- and I admit it's hard to take seriously sometimes.

But it's not hard to take this fight seriously. In addition to being skillful both guys come to fight. This is important. Promoter Bob Arum talks about businessman fighters, guys who want a payday for minimum risk. I think he means businessmen fighters don't really like to fight.

Manny and Cotto like to fight and they will fight. Mayweather Jr, who's very talented, does not like to fight. So I praise Manny and Cotto. Their love of fighting is why so many people have fallen in love with this fight.

I have gotten a ton of comments to my Mike Singletary blogs, which I appreciate. I want to stir discussion. One thing I would like to address. Some Cohn Zohn readers say I criticize Singletary because I don't like him and they say I don't like him because he emphasizes his religion, so I'm trying to get even with him.

I can honestly say those criticisms of me are untrue and I'd like to address them. I don't like or dislike Singletary. He's a sports figure I cover. He seems like a nice man, as far as I know him. He's thoughtful and sincere and seems like a decent guy. He's also wound very tight.

I had an issue with him praising God for victories. Call this a philosophical difference between him and me. I admire religious people, just don't want them shoving their beliefs in my face. Anyway, Singletary has stopped praising God after victories, and he hasn't had any victories in a while. And I have an issue with him lecturing the media how terrific his players are when I don't see the proof on the field.

My criticisms of Singletary are strictly as a coach. He needs to win -- needs to win tonight. I do wonder if he has the stuff to be a head coach, but I would wonder that about any new and untested coach who has lost more than he won.

If Singletary turns out to be a terrific coach I will praise him to the skies and I'll do it happily. And he will deserve that.

Manny Pacquiao will defeat Miguel Cotto on Saturday night but before I get to that I want to praise the fight itself and Cotto.

Boxing has fallen on hard times and rarely do we get a fight between two top guys willing to go for broke. This is such a fight. It's a real fight and a terrific attraction.

Cotto is a very good fighter. He got stopped by Antonio Margarito but someone had done something to Margarito's hand wrappings making his punches unnaturally hard and that certainly contributed to Cotto's loss.

Still, Manny will beat Cotto. Manny will knock him out. Cotto is a hard hitter who comes to fight. That's an admirable approach but Manny devours fighters like that. Manny will put pressure on Cotto and hurt him and eventually beat him at his own game. Plus Cotto won't contend with Manny's speed.

The real test for Manny will be Mayweather Jr. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Manny will stop Cotto in 8 rounds.

This entry is about me and other Bay Area sports columnists. People complain I write too much about myself so I'm warning you there's a lot of me in here. If that offends you stop reading right now. If you continue reading don't complain I'm writing about me.

I got the idea for this entry because Tim Kawakami wrote an eloquent, insightful, brave blog about why he is critical of the managements of local teams. I admire his blog and wish I had written it. To read Tim's terrific blog entry click here.

He got me to thinking. This is where the me comes in. Am I friends with the local columnists? I can't really say I am. I like them, but I don't socialize with them and I don't chat with them on the phone.

The one exception is Glenn Dickey. We spent a long time together at the Chronicle and had a great working relationship. We have been to each other's houses and our wives know each other. But even Glenn and I don't see each other much these days.

Let me be clear on this. I like Kawakami a lot and we talk in the press box and sometimes have dinner on the road. Same goes for Ratto and Purdy and Inman and Peterson and Poole and Killion and Knapp and Jenkins whenever I see him. Ostler and I have gone to jazz clubs together on the road and we often email each other.

But these people are not my core friends. I believe it's because we are competitive with each other. I want to write better than they do and I want to scoop them and I want people to like me more. I'm really immature. I'm also really competitive. I like being competitive. I get a rush from being competitive. And those things get in the way of intimate friendships with people just as competitive as I am who happen to be in the same business I'm in.

My closest friends from my sportswriting life are:

1. From my Chronicle years -- Ira Miller, now retired.

Ron Thomas who covered the Warriors and now heads the journalism department at Morehouse College in Atlanta, a program funded primarily by Spike Lee.

Mike Berger my first editor at the Chronicle, who now lives in Tokyo.

From my Press Democrat years -- very happy years:

Matt Maiocco. Everyone knows who Matt is.

Jeff Fletcher: now with AOL Sports.

Phil Barber -- brilliant writer who covers the Raiders.

Brian Murphy -- now with KNBR.

Robert Rubino -- a great writer and a genius.

Five great editors: Jim Jenks, Slim Smith, George Manes, Jim Barger, Bill Pinella.

No columnists on the list. It's my failing, and I admit that.

Here is my conversation with Ira about the Raiders. We spoke on Tuesday.

Cohn: It has been reported the NFL wants Tom Cable to be psychologically evaluated to see if he needs anger-management counseling. What's your take on this?

Miller: He should have a psychological evaluation to find out why he's working for Al Davis. We don't know what he did with Randy Hanson or those women but we do know he went to work for Al.

Cohn: Is there anything new to say about this team?

Miller: No. There hasn't been anything new to say for almost 7 years. They stank. They continue to stink. They will stink.

Cohn: Cable keeps saying the Raiders are almost "there." In your opinion where is there?

Miller: That's a good question. They'll be in Oakland on Sunday. You can't have an easier game than Kansas City. In USA Today I predicted the Raiders will win -- talk about going out on a limb. Any time you pick the Raiders to win you're leaving yourself open for your own psychological evaluation.

Cohn: Excuse me. Did you say you're writing for USA
Today? That's news to me.

Miller: I write previews for USA Today Sports Weekly. I do 6 a week, but my name isn't on them.

Cohn: Back to the Raiders. Why are you picking them?

Miller: Because Kansas City is so bad and the Raiders already beat the Chiefs once and the Raiders are playing at home. I've got to pick somebody.

Cohn: When did Al stop being a good football man?

Miller (sighs): God, a while ago. He stopped being a good football man when he ran Jon Gruden out of town.

Here is Ira Miller on the 49ers, Ira looking back at the Titans game and ahead to the Bears game. I was going to hold this post until tomorrow. But I like it a lot and thought why wait?

Cohn: How do you evaluate the Niners' loss to Tennessee?

Miller: It was devastating. Those are the kinds of games you've got to win if you intend to win the division and make the playoffs.

Cohn: Devastating in what sense?

Miller: To their playoff hopes, if you can't beat a 1-6 team at home.

Cohn: Compare Vince Young and Alex Smith.

Miller: The interesting thing about Sunday's game was that it was the 2^nd start of the 2^nd time around for both quarterbacks, and Young clearly outplayed Smith. It was kind of obvious and that leads me to believe during their time off Young improved materially and Smith didn't improve materially. Is that because Smith didn't learn? I don't think so. He's a smart guy. The only conclusion I can draw is he doesn't have the tools. This is not to say it's the end of his career but it's not a good sign. We know Bill Walsh made a big deal of saying he needed a different kind of quarterback to come off the bench in a backup role and change the pace of the game. And that's what Smith did when he came off the bench in Houston and got everyone real excited. We can't be real impressed with his 2 games as a starter. He was so-so against the Colts and bad against the Titans.

Cohn: Elaborate on bad.

Miller: Indecisive. Even Rich Gannon on tv emphasized he was too late delivering passes. That brings us back full circle to something Smith's college coach said - Smith is going to struggle until everything is perfect around him and he knows everything perfectly. I took that to mean he won't be decisive until he's certain of everything. Things rarely are perfect in an NFL game - a lot of chaos goes on. If you're not decisive and quick delivering the ball it gives the defense a chance to react and you wind up losing to a 1-6 team.

Cohn: Singletary said Smith did OK.

Miller: That depends on what his definition of OK is. If he thinks this is OK he's never going to win anything. Is this what he aspires to?

Cohn: Do you still think Singletary has the team improving?

Miller: Certainly not last week.

Cohn: How is Singletary doing?

Miller: It's difficult to make any blanket judgments. I understand he's got a problem at quarterback. As far as we know he understands that too. He's not going to come out and say we can't win because my quarterback sucks. But it's kind of interesting, a lot of people notice a lot of good young quarterbacks in the NFL right now, just not on the 49ers or Raiders.

Cohn: You heard the tape of Singletary and me at his Monday news conference. He got upset over what I considered a mild question. Why? Does it tell us anything about him?

Miller: I guess he got upset because on a certain level he realized what he was saying was BS. It brings us back to Mike Nolan -- it smells good in the building. Stop talking about it and show me something. Don't tell me how much you like this team. Just do it. Didn't he know they were already under .500 when they played Tennessee? Wasn't that a good time to turn it around?

Cohn: What's holding the team back?

Miller: Quarterback. But I'm not excited about their overall defense. They've got issues at safety, injuries at corner. They are in the bottom third of the league in pass defense, the bottom quarter in sacks. Those are important indicators. They don't have a good quarterback or offense and they can't stop the pass.

Cohn: Jimmy Raye called a lot of passes against Tennessee. What does this tell us?

Miller: The 49ers ran very well. Raye called way too many passes, I don't know why. Tennessee showed it couldn't stop the pass until it got the 49ers on the schedule. I can't explain all those passes. It doesn't make sense -- 45 passes and 4 sacks. Raye basically called 50 pass plays.

Cohn: How will the Niners do against the Bears?

Miller: I expect the Bears to beat them. Neither team is very good. If you've got two teams that aren't good the next thing I look at is who's got the better quarterback. End of discussion.

This thing with Stephen Jackson's agent is so predictable. The agent is eager to get Jax out of Oakland and Jax we know wants out. So the agent rips Don Nelson, calls him untrustworthy and a lot of other things and said Jax would now go anywhere as opposed to the selected teams he first named.

Fact is, Nelson may be untrustworthy. I don't know. I wonder what really went on between him and Chris Mullin. All I know is Mullin brought Nelson back and Mullin is out.

But Jackson's agent had no business saying that stuff publicly unless he wanted to widen the breach between player and team. The Warriors won last night but the team has massive problems and you wonder how long Nellie and Jax can put up with each other. So, I have questions for you

1. What should the Warriors do? Trade Jax immediately or make him play out the season? Here's a wild thought. They can bench him.

2. Whose fault is all this: Jackson's or the Nellie/Larry Riley/Bobby Rowell combine? As always I welcome your feedback.

Most of the comments about my exchange with Mike Singletary at his Monday presser criticized me. No problem. I can take it.

A couple of points. I made Singletary uncomfortable and fans don't like that, I believe. Who am I to put Singletary on the spot? I'll tell you who I am. I'm a journalist who wants to know why he's so sure his team will do well considering the available evidence. I'm a guy asking a hard question in a context where people are supposed to ask hard questions. I was doing my job.

I also want to point out the Niner marketing campaign has Singletary on buses on billboards announcing, "Don't tell me. Show me." Well, the same applies to him. All he was doing today was telling -- how his team will be terrific. Follow your own saying, Mike. Show us. Talk is cheap as you well know. To read my column on Mike and me click here.

I just drove home from Mike Singletary's Monday presser. I was pretty quiet throughout. Remember, I flew in late last night from Orlando Florida (through Chicago) after driving to Orlando from Vero Beach where I attended my nephew's wedding. So I was kind of tired.

But as I listened to Singletary I was struck by how comfortable he feels with the media, how in control.
This from a man riding a 4-game losing streak. Make whatever excuses you want for him but losing 4 in a row is losing 1/4 of the season and that's not good. So I initiated the following exchange. I didn't have my recorder because it broke and I didn't have time to buy a new one because I flew to the wedding, so another reporter furnished me with this transcript.

¶ LC: What makes you think your players can turn it around? (I also said Singletary's words to the media  were quite motivating but we aren't his players.)

¶

¶ "You know what sir, I don't know where you're from and I don't know what you really meant by that. I understand that you're not my players. I'm thankful that you're not my players. I do want to win. But let me say this, you have to know guys that you spend days with. You have to know the guys that you spend hours with. Just like you when you're at home. I don't know how much time you spend with your kids. But it's important that when things happen you have a pretty good idea of how your kids are going to respond. If you tell me that one of my kids slapped you, one of my kids spit on you, I've got a pretty good idea of who it would be, because I know them. 'OK, that was Jack, or you know what, that was Brooke.' When I think about our guys, when I'm talking about our guys, I know them. When you spend as much time with these young men and you know what they're made of you have a pretty doggone good idea how they're going to respond. Does that makes sense?"

¶

¶ LC: "It may. We'll see what happens."

¶ MS: "It may? You asked me a question. I thought I responded to your question."

¶ LC: "I appreciate your response."

¶ MS: "Well I thank you, very much."

¶ LC: "And I wish you the best."

¶ MS: "I appreciate it."

¶ LC: "But when you say you know how they're going to respond, I don't know how they're going to respond. You may know better than I."

¶ MS: "You're not the coach. I wasn't asking you the question. You asked me the question."

¶ LC: "You asked me if I thought you did OK with the answer."

¶ MS: "Thank you."

¶ LC: "My response is, I guess we'll find out. You clearly have more confidence in your players than other people may, including me, and that's why they play the games."

¶ MS: "You're exactly right, and I appreciate that. Are you going to be here next week?"

¶ LC: "I'm going to be here all the weeks."

¶ MS: "Now that's exciting. That's outstanding. I'm looking forward to it. I want you to sit right here, or get a seat right here and you ask me those same question."

¶ LC: "I'll stand up there next to you."

¶ MS: "Outstanding. Fantastic."

¶ LC: "OK."

¶ MS: "All right."

So, that's me and Mikey. He sort of came unglued, no?

It is accepted wisdom around here that Tom Cable is a bum but Mike Singletary is an up and coming really good coach.

Are these assumptions correct?

One sure is. As a coach, Tom Cable is a bum? But is Singletary any better?

Well, no one accused Singletary of breaking a jaw or physical abuse. But the guy's team has lost four in a row, the latest to a very bad Titans team. The Niners are only one game ahead of the Raiders in terms of won/loss. So why is Singletary any better than the other guy?

I know what you're thinking. Singletary has a QB problem and that absolves him somewhat. Well, Cable has a QB problem and no one absolves him.

One explanation for the difference between Cable and Singletary is that Cable works for the Raiders and they get bad press and Singletary works for the 49ers and they get good press. But if you go by results Singletary is dangerously close to the Cable level. Your thoughts?

In this blog I have been hard on Michael Vick and Larry Johnson. I wrote that Vick should be banned from the NFL. I suggested Johnson should get fined and suspended.

Some Zohn readers commented today on my apparent lack of balance. If I want Vick banned why not Johnson as well? A group in KC wants Johnson banned because of his anti-gay remarks.

I won't get into Vick again -- my thoughts have been well-documented. But why would I go easier on Johnson than Vick and why don't I want the people in KC to ruin his career?

Maybe I am being inconsistent but I'll try to explain. Vick killed dogs, killed them over a period of years. He also broke the law.

Johnson made a few nasty and insensitive remarks. I don't think killing and talking, in this case, are the same. Johnson did not break the law and I think Johnson can learn from what he did. I also think he's paying the price right now with a suspension and a fine. With Vick I think he paid a price but I don't think he deserves to be in the league. Frankly I don't care what happens to him. I think Johnson deserves a second chance -- especially if Vick got one.

So that's my best explanation of how I feel.

Here is Ira Miller on the 49ers as they approach this weekend:

Cohn: How did Alex Smith do against the Colts?

Miller: He did OK, considering. I did not expect the game to be competitive the way it was. The defense kept them in the game. The next 2 weeks will be interesting. These are 2 games at home against 2 not very good teams, Tennessee and Chicago. They have bad defenses.

Cohn: Is there a chance the 49ers will do well?

Miller: Yeah, if they're going to show something it would certainly be against these teams at home.

Cohn: Is Singletary showing himself to be adaptable?

Miller: He changed quarterbacks but he hasn't changed his basic philosophy. He's shown he's adaptable to some degree; he's not totally inflexible. At some point he must think about his overall direction. You can't win a championship in the NFL just running the ball. I think he knows that and that's why he's not happy with his quarterback situation. His 2 best games were games they lost, Minnesota and Indianapolis. It shows they are clearly better than I thought they would be and they have reached the big middle rank of mediocrity.

Cohn: Where were they before?

Miller: Down there not far away from the Raiders. They were mixed up because of coaching and their quarterbacks and they weren't very good. Now they have discipline and you can draw a direct straight line between Mike Singletary becoming the coach and Vernon Davis becoming a player.

Cohn: Is the 3-game losing streak they're on serious or standard growing pains?

Miller: It's a sign of a team making slight improvement. Certainly from game 1 to 2 to 3 of the losing streak they have improved. They've lost 4 games, 3 of them to teams very clearly better than they are. One of their problems is quarterback matchup. They almost always have the 2nd best starting quarterback. This week they may not. I don't know where Vince Young is now.

Cohn: How will they do against Tennessee?

Miller: I think they will beat Tennessee. Their defense is good enough to keep an eye on Vince Young. They must stop the run but they have done a good job at stopping the run. They have held opponents to under 3.8 yards per carry for almost year.

Some KC fans wrote and signed a petition demanding the Chiefs further punish Larry Johnson. He's already been suspended through Nov. 8 and fined and now the fans want him kept out of games so he doesn't pass Priest Holmes as the all-time Chiefs ground gainer.

Come on. Enough already. I criticized Johnson for his anti-gay remarks but no one should want to ruin this guy. He's doing his time, as it were. Maybe he can learn from what he did. But at a certain point you've got to let him play and not treat him like the worst man in the world.

Chiefs fans should understand that. Plus the job of the Chiefs is to win games and so far they're not very good at that.

I caught up with Ira Miller this morning. He and his wife Sharon were driving from their home near Chicago to Penn State for the weekend. Ira is a loyal Penn State alum. He's going to State College for a football game and to see some students he mentors in journalism. Here's our chat about the Raiders. The Niners will come later.

Cohn: Your reaction to the latest allegations against Tom Cable?

Miller: We really don't have the first clue what it's all about. The most interesting thing is the idiotic response by the Raiders about we've dismissed employees before.

Here is the Raiders statement: "There have been occasions on which we have dismissed Raider employees for having engaged in inappropriate conduct. For reasons of privacy, we kept the basis for those dismissals confidential. We endured public opprobrium for the dismissals, all the while knowing our basis for them was appropriate."

Back to Ira: Why drag this stuff into it? And then the other idiotic thing about ESPN.

Here is the Raiders statement re: ESPN: "ESPN's role in this matter must be carefully examined. ESPN routinely disseminates falsehoods about the Raiders. During the last year, ESPN (working with someone who was in this organization) engaged in a calculated effort to distort the truth about the Raiders, utilizing lies and innuendo."

Back to Ira: If you're the Raiders why not try to put a football team together. You stink. You're in the 7^th year of the worst stretch in NFL history. Are you waiting for a government bailout or what? You can't make up this stuff. What goes on with these people is unbelievable.

Cohn: What should the Raiders do about Cable?

Miller: The league should try to find out what really went on, too. As far as the Raiders go, I assume where they're concerned anything that makes sense they will do the opposite. You can't take them seriously. Any facet of that operation strains the bounds of belief. I do not think Cable is a good coach but we all know where the problem starts with the Raiders. I do not understand the motivation of people who still buy tickets to their games. It's like, "We've got to go back to this restaurant because the food is so bad I want to see if it's still bad."

Cohn: Are the Raiders a story as a football team or only as a soap opera?

Miller: If they were a soap opera it probably would be canceled.

On Monday there was a national conference call with Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. Johnson and Bird were on the phone at two different locations and they spoke to dozens of writers from all over the country.

They were promoting a book they co-wrote with Jackie MacMullan, "When the Game Was Ours." I participated in the call because I wanted to hear Bird and Johnson after all these years. I thought I might get a column out of it. I didn't, but one thing stayed with me.

It's how Johnson acted. He joined the call before Bird and waited with the rest of us for Bird. It's not that Bird was late. It's that Johnson was early. When we got talking it was clear how much admiration and affection these two great players have for each other. Many times Johnson would praise Bird and sometimes he would defer answering a question and say, "Larry, why don't you go first?"

Finally, after an hour Magic said two more questions and he had to go. In other words although there was a moderator he had, very politely, taken over the call. Here's what I think. Magic is still a point guard, the best ever. He distributed the questions, involved his teammate Bird and ended the call when appropriate. He was very impressive and it was a pleasure to hear both of them speak.

I ask the question: How nuts are the Raiders?

Before answering I need to explain something. On Monday I went to Tom Cable's presser, drove home and wrote my column firing the crummy coach. Around 4 in the afternoon the Raiders sent out two press releases via email, one concerning Cable's alleged hitting of women and another about ESPN. My column did not reflect those releases because I never got them. I never get any press releases from the Raiders because I have been stricken from their email list.

I take this as a mark of great achievement on my part. The Raiders apparently treat me as a non-human, non-journalist because I have gotten under their skin. When a team is that bad, when ownership is that paranoid a journalist should get under their skin. To my knowledge only 2 other columnists share this honor with me -- Monte Poole and Tim Kawakami. If I'm leaving anyone out I apologize.

So anyway I never got the emails until Monday evening when my colleague Phil Barber sent them to me. Now I want to comment on press release No. 2, regarding ESPN.

Here it is: ESPN's role in this matter must be carefully examined. ESPN routinely disseminates falsehoods about the Raiders. During the last year, ESPN (working with someone who was in this organization) engaged in a calculated effort to distort the truth about the Raiders, utilizinng lies and innuendo.

OK, that's the statement I didn't get. Here's what I have to say. Holy, cow! Is that nuts or what? Did ESPN disseminate falsehoods in Cable's case or engage in innuendo? It presented two women who spoke on camera about Cable hitting them. That's not innuendo. That's accusation.

These women may be lying, but it's not wrong for ESPN to interview them. And we must point out that Cable, who may be innocent of all charges, now has 4 people who claimed he hurt them physically.

The Raiders say they will investigate Cable. Good. But for them to blame ESPN for Cable's problems is off the chart whacko even for them.

At today's presser someone asked Tom Cable about having an anger management problem. He said he'd refer questions like that to the statement he issued -- he didn't punch his first wife, he had said; he slapped her after he found out she committed adultery. The first wife says she didn't commit adultery and said he did hit her.

It was the right question for the reporter to ask and although he maneuvered out of the situation, Cable never answered the question. You wonder if he has an anger management issue. You wonder if the Raiders are investigating him or if the league is. If they aren't they should be.

Do you think he has a problem controlling his rage? To read my column on Tom Cable click here.

Al Davis should fire Tom Cable. The Raiders are entering a bye week and this is a good time to get rid of him.

Of course, in the big picture, the Raiders' misery is not strictly Cable's fault. It's Davis'. Still, 2-6 at the bye stinks and coaches with records like that need to go. All this negative publicity Cable is bringing the team with his personal life doesn't help.

Davis has a choice with Cable. Fire him now or wait until the end of the season. It's a crummy choice, but that's how it goes. I say fire him now.

I wonder about Tom Cable. He got off in Napa County for slugging Randy Hanson, but that whole thing seems fishy. A guy walks into a room without a broken jaw and then walks out with one and no one saw Cable slug him. Huh?

Now an ex-wife and an ex-girlfriend say he slugged them too. Another ex-wife who's getting alimony from him says he never slugged her. But before that she alleged he physically abused her but then she retracted.

There's the saying where there's smoke there's fire. In terms of Cable, is there smoke?

Let's rate Alex Smith's performance today. He wasn't horrible, didn't seem afraid or rattled. So that's OK.

He made some good decisions and led one good drive. So that's OK.

On the other hand, he was most definitely not special. In fact, he didn't seem like an upgrade over Shaun Hill. If you disagree, please let me know.

It's hard to judge him after 1 1/2 games. But let's try anyway. He did well last week when Houston had not prepared for him. Against Indy he sometimes seemed inaccurate. Based on today's performance you would say he is not the answer at QB and pretty soon the Niners must get a quarterback they can build around. Of course, Smith will get more starts and maybe he can get the feel of things.