Neil Keefe

Mar 2, 2018

Am I a Bruins Fan Now?

Two of my personal favorites are on the Bruins in Rick Nash and Brian Gionta and I’m stuck deciding if my liking of them outweighs my personal dislike for Boston sports.

Ray Bourque was my favorite player growing up. My grandmother won a raffle put on by my youth hockey program and her prize was a Ray Bourque stick signed by the 1992-93 Bruins and she gave it to me. Well, she gave to my older brother and I, but I took it and had my dad hang it up on my wall in my bedroom. Every image or video or hockey card of Bourque’s I would check to see if he was still using the same Sher-Wood Feather-Glas P.M.P. 7030 stick, and he always did right until his retirement.

In the summer of 1997, my family was in Boston because my sister had a dance competition, and rather than watch competitive tap, ballet and jazz dancing for three straight days at the back of the ballroom/auditorium/theater and serve as a sarcastic judge with my dad and brother, the three of us and took the T to North Station for a tour of the new FleetCenter. Joe Thornton had just been drafted first overall by the Bruins and Joe Thornton apparel with his No. 6 jersey (thankfully, he switched to 19) was everywhere, so it only made sense that as a 10-year-old hockey-crazed kid, I would be intrigued by the league’s next supposed superstar.

Bourque, the Bruins’ captain, was traded during the 1999-00 season to the Avalanche to chase the Cup he had never won, and he did so in 2000-01, retiring after the Game 7 win over the Devils. Thornton, the Bruins’ captain, was dealt to the Sharks shortly after the 2004-05 lockout in one of the worst trades in professional sports history as he became the only league MVP to be traded in the middle of their MVP season.

Aside from those two players, I never really liked any other Bruin. Sure, Bobby Orr is arguably the greatest hockey player of all time, and everybody loves him, but he stopped playing 10 years before I was born. And yeah, I guess Cam Neely was cool and Andy Moog was likable (especially if you had Don Cherry’s Rock’em Sock’em Hockey Volume 2) and Gerry Cheevers had the awesome stitches mask and Jason Allison might be the most underrated player ever and Patrice Bergeron has been a great story since breaking camp with the team as an 18-year-old rookie in 2003. But for the few easy-to-root-for guys, there has been way more hard-to-root-for guys over the years and two of the hardest ones are still on the team in Zdeno Chara and Brad Marchand.

The problem is now two of my Top 10 personal favorites of all time are on the Bruins in Rick Nash and Brian Gionta, and the texts have been pouring in asking me if I’m rooting for the Bruins to win the Cup this spring. I’m stuck deciding if my personal liking of Nash and Gionta outweighs my personal dislike of Chara and Marchand and Boston sports and all of my friends from college who are Bruins fans, who I don’t want to see win the Cup for the second time in eight years and reach the Final for the third time in as many years.

Why did it have to be the Bruins for Rick Nash? I’m sure playing for a contender and being in close proximity to his wife and kids in New York was a strong reason for putting them on the top of his OK’d trade list. And I’m sure that played a much larger role in his putting together that list than my personal feelings or any Rangers fans’ feelings. But now I have to watch Nash wear that 61 in Black and Gold and do his best to help a Boston team win a championship, all while having those college friends tell me how good he is and ask why he was declining with the Rangers.

And why did it have to be the Bruins for Brian Gionta? My favorite college hockey player of all time already helped the Devils to a Stanley Cup in his second professional season, put together a 52-goal season for the Rangers’ cross-river rival and then went on to captain the Canadiens. I guess it only makes sense that the Rochester native would complete the trifecta and go to the Bruins following a personal resurgence on a bad Team USA squad at the Olympics. Maybe Gionta can go to the Islanders, Flyers, Penguins or Capitals next season for a career grand finale.

In an ideal world, the Bruins will get knocked out of the playoffs in the first round to increase the value of the first-round pick the Rangers received for Nash and then Nash re-signs with the Rangers on July 1, which seems like a given anyway. That would mean no Cup for Nash, but it would mean no Cup for Boston, no highlights of Nash helping Boston win a championship and a better chance at a faster rebuild for the Rangers. As for Gionta? Well, he already has a Cup to his name even if it was 15 years ago when he won it.

I can’t root for Nash to win the Cup in Boston. I just can’t have that, the way I can’t have Ryan Callahan, Anton Stralman, Dan Girardi, Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller winning it in Tampa Bay. Aside from the simple fact that I can’t stomach another post-2004 Boston championship, Nash is most likely coming back to the Rangers (at least that is what I have convinced myself of) and I need him hungrier than ever to win it all. I can’t have him cashing in once last time and riding off into the sunset with a ring on his finger and Henrik Lundqvist becoming the Rangers’ Don Mattingly.

So no, I’m not a Bruins fan. I’m a Rick Nash and Brian Gionta fan. I understand that rooting for Nash and Gionta to do well essentially means rooting for the Bruins to do well, but I will refuse to think of it like that. Instead, I will root for them, but against Tuukka Rask.

Blogs • Yankees

Oct 22, 2017

Ballgame Over, 2017 Season Over

And just like that, it’s over. The daily grind that started in Tampa back on Sunday, April 2 has ended.

Twenty-eight hours ago I was planning my trip to Los Angeles for the World Series for an event that I thought would never happen, let alone nearly happen this season: my Yankees against my girlfriend’s Dodgers.

Back then, all those 28 hours ago, it was win tonight OR tomorrow and the Yankees are headed to the World Series for the first time in eight years in the most improbable of ways by reaching the postseason as a projected 81-win team, by beating Minnesota in the wild-card game after falling behind 3-0 in the top of the first, by overcoming a 2-0 series deficit to top-seeded Cleveland after going off on Corey Kluber for the second time in five nights and by overcoming another 2-0 series deficit to the Astros after winning three straight at Yankee Stadium. But now, here I am, wondering how a dream so close to finally being realized ended with one run scored in 18 innings against an Astros team the Yankees had seemingly figured out for three straight days in the Bronx.

Saturday night’s Game 7 was the fifth time the Yankees played for their season in 19 nights, starting with the raucous night at the Stadium back on Oct. 3, before the wild Sunday night Game 3 against the Indians on Oct. 8, followed by the series-tying Game 4 against the Indians the next night on Oct. 9 and then the second batting practice in five days against Corey Kluber two nights later on Oct. 11. You could even count Games 3, 4 and 5 against the Astros as elimination games because if the Yankees had gone down 3-0, 3-1 or 3-2, their season would have been over as well. I didn’t think going back to Houston UP 3-2 would mean the same.

I’m not angry with the way the season ended. Not like I was after the 2010 ALCS when the failed trade for Cliff Lee was the sole reason the Yankees didn’t win the pennant (and likely didn’t win back-to-back World Series). And I’m not mad with the way the season ended. Not like I was after the 2012 ALCS when I had to watch Derek Jeter break his ankle in what would be his final postseason game, and really the end of his career, as the Yankees were swept by the Tigers.

Those two ALCS losses were different. The window of opportunity on those Yankees teams was closing … OK … slamming shut and those two series represented the last real chances for that group to add to their collection of five championships.

After 2012, with Jeter suffering a career-altering injury at age 38, and Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettitte entering their final season, half of the “Core Four” would be joining Jorge Posada in retirement following the 2013 season, and Jeter would follow after 2014. Aside from the Yankees who had been Yankees since elementary school for me, Alex Rodriguez was 37 and coming off a 3-for-25 in the postseason, in which he was pinch-hit for in the ALDS; Robinson Cano, coming off his own 3-for-41 in the postseason after hitting .313/.379/.550 with 33 home runs in the regular season was entering the final year of his contract in 2013; Curtis Granderson, who had hit 43 home runs in the regular season and 41 the year before, put together a nice 3-for-30 with 16 strikeouts in the postseason and was up for free agency; Nick Swisher, who made Brian Cashman look like a genius for acquiring him in exchange for Wilson Betemit, had hit 105 home runs in four regular seasons with the Yankees, but had been the worst postsesason player in history in those same four years, and played himself out of the team’s future plans as a free agent; Russell Martin had lessened the hurt of Jorge Posada retiring, but he was also up for free agency, and the Yankees’ catching depth (and by catching depth, at the time it was Francisco Cervelli, Austin Romine and John Ryan Murphy, not Gary Sanchez) meant he was gone.

The retirements, injuries, free agents and uncertainty following 2012 led to this Opening Day lineup in 2013:

Brett Gardner, CF
Eduardo Nunez, SS
Robinson Cano, 2B
Kevin Youkilis, 1B
Vernon Wells, LF
Ben Francisco, DH
Ichiro Suzuki, RF
Jayson Nix, 3B
Francisco Cervelli, C

If that didn’t make you sick, here’s who played the most games at each position that season:

C: Chris Stewart
1B: Lyle Overbay
2B: Robinson Cano
3B: Eduardo Nunez
SS: Jayson Nix
LF: Vernon Wells
CF: Brett Gardner
RF: Ichiro Suzuki
DH: Travis Hafner

Still haven’t thrown up? The following players played for the 2013 Yankees:

David Adams, Zoilo Almonte, Brennan Boesch, Reid Brignac, Luis Cruz, Alberto Gonzalez, Travis Ishikawa, Corban Joseph, Brent Lillibridge, Melky Mesa and Thomas Neal.

Somehow the 2012 Yankees played for the AL pennant against the Tigers and the 2013 Yankees went into a time machine to the Stump Merrill era and featured a roster that might not have won the Independent League. (Somehow, they won 85 games in Joe Girardi’s greatest accomplishment as a manager). The most highly-touted position player prospect to play for the Yankees in 2013 was David Adams, who will always be remembered as the player whose ankle nixed the Cliff Lee deal. The 26-year-old rookie hit .193/.252/.286 with two home runs and 13 RBIs in 152 plate appearances.

That’s why I’m not angry or mad or frustrated or disappointed or upset at the way this season. I’m sad that baseball is over. I’m sad that the young Yankees weren’t able to do the unthinkable and win it all well ahead of schedule. I’m sad that I won’t be going to the world in New York or Los Angeles. I’m sad that there isn’t a meaningful baseball game for me until March 27. But what I’m not sad about is that the dark days of 2013-2016 are over.

Gary Sanchez and his 53 career home runs in 175 games will be 25 in December. AL Rookie of the Year and possibly AL MVP Aaron Judge will turn 26 in April. Top 3 AL starting pitcher with the hardest fastball velocity for a starter in the majors Luis Severino will be 24 in February. Healthy Greg Bird, who hit three postseason home runs to go along with a .426 on-base percentage, will be 25 in November. Jordan Montgomery, who pitched to a 3.88 ERA in 29 starts as a rookie, will be 25 in December. Old man Didi Gregorius, who set the Yankees’ franchise record for home runs in season by a shortstop and saved the Yankees’ season in the wild-card game and again in Game 5 against Cleveland, will turn 28 in February.

There’s no more fake prospect hype and a long list of bad contracts. There are real homegrown stars, superstars even, on this team and when you figure that Chase Headley only has one year at $13 million left, the only real bad contract left on the team is Jacoby Ellsbury’s $63.4 million over the next three years and then the $5 million to buy him out of the 2021 season. One bad contract! That’s it! A-Rod’s $21 million to not actually play is over. There’s only $5.5 million left to pay Brian McCann to get big hits against the Yankees. Matt Holliday’s $13 million has cleared. CC Sabathia will return, but he won’t be making $25 million per season. And again, there’s just one more year of Chase Headley at $13 million. One. More. Year.

The future isn’t just bright for the Yankees, it’s you-have-to-buy-those-special-glasses-like-you-did-for-the-total-eclipse bright. The next core of the franchise is already in place and that’s before Gleyber Torres and Clint Frazier find their full-time place on the team with others like Miguel Andujar, Tyler Wade, Chance Adams and Justus Sheffield to follow. And if needed, that whole part about tens of millions of dollars coming off the books between this year and next will happen just in time for the 2018 free-agent class, which includes Bryce Harper and Manny Machado, who will both be 26 on Opening Day 2019.

All of this helped me as Justin Verlander pitched like Curt Schilling in Game 6 on Friday night, and it comforted me after Evan Gattis’ solo home run in the third inning in Game 7 on Saturday as I watched the outs go by knowing the inevitable: the 2017 Yankees would fall one win short of the World Series.

But this is just the beginning, the way the heartbreak of 1995 was the beginning for those Yankees. These Yankees won’t ever be the underdog again. The young, fresh faces in the Bronx soon won’t be likeable or easy to root for by the rest of the baseball world as they will enter 2018 as the favorite to win the AL East and will be picked by many to get the win they weren’t able to get on Friday or Saturday to win the AL pennant.

I’m sad the season is over, but I’m happy the Yankees are the Yankees once again.

Blogs • Yankees

Oct 25, 2016

Gary Sanchez Is the AL Rookie of the Year

Gary Sanchez is the AL Rookie of the Year. Not Michael Fulmer. Gary Sanchez. And it’s not even close.

In an ideal world, there would be one Rookie of the Year for pitching and one for hitting and then this wouldn’t be something to argue and I wouldn’t have to write this story. But this is baseball, where the All-Star Game determines home-field advantage in the World Series, the wild-card game turns a 162-game schedule into a nine-inning game and no one knows for sure what call is going to be made after every review. So complaining about an award that really only benefits the player who wins it, his family, his agent, his bank account and his team’s fans is his team had a bad season seems kind of pointless, unless you fall into one of those categories. For me, I’m a fan of a team that had a bad season and has a player in the AL Rookie of the Year conversation.

When Sanchez got called up for good on Aug. 3, the Yankees were 53-53 and had just given up on the season by trading Andrew Miller, Carlos Beltran, Aroldis Chapman and Ivan Nova. (Ivan Nova really wasn’t part of them giving up, but he was in the majors and still is.) In return, they got an abundance of prospects and Adam Warren back as well as Tyler Clippard in a separate deal. The Yankees traded their best two pitchers, who very well might be the best two relievers in baseball, and their best hitter. They waved the white flag as aggressively as they could and turned to Sanchez to begin the top prospect showcase that Yankees fans had been waited for and what should have been started two or even three years ago. Sanchez gave Yankees fans meaningful baseball up until the final weekend of the season and climbed all the way back into the postseason to at one point trail in the wild-card standings by one game.

This isn’t a knock on Michael Fulmer and it isn’t meant to take away from his season or say he had a bad season. He had a nice season, making 26 starts and going 11-7 with a 3.06 ERA and 1.119 WHIP. Those numbers are solid and good and all that, but they’re not historical like Sanchez’s are.

Sanchez finished the season hitting .299/.376/.657 with 12 doubles, 20 home runs, 42 RBIs and a ridiculous 1.032 OPS. He tied Nomar Mazara for the most home runs by a rookie in the AL in 315 less at-bats, had three multi-home run games and homered in consecutive games seven times. He became the fastest player in history to 20 home runs (along with being the fastest to nearly all of the other home runs totals along the way), hit third in the Yankees’ lineup, forced Brian McCann to the bench and hopefully soon to Atlanta, and did all of this while mostly playing catcher. He made straightaway center at Fenway seem as close as the Pesky Pole, he made the seemingly-impossible-to-hit second deck in left field at Yankee Stadium look like the short porch in right and he turned Safeco Field into Camden Yards with three home runs in 11 at-bats in Seattle. He single-handedly saved the Yankees’ season for two months, turned a lost season into an eventful one with real promise for the future and made every one of his 229 plate appearances must-watch TV.

The idea that Fulmer is more deserving of the award than Sanchez because he was in the majors longer and pitched a “full season” is as ridiculous as someone winning the Cy Young solely based on their wins total or someone winning MVP based on if their team reached the postseason or not. In a game now controlled by analytics, how is it possible that such archaic ways of thinking and reasoning can still be used to decide yearly awards.

There’s a very good chance Sanchez won’t win the award because Fulmer was in the league longer, even if he did only make 26 starts didn’t join the Tigers until one month into the season on April 29. But Joe Girardi said it best (I can’t believe I just said that Joe Girardi said something “best”) when he as nicely and as politically correct as possible said, “I think Fulmer’s had a great year, but if I had a vote, it’d be for Gary,” following Sanchez’s 20th home run in his 185th at-bat. And for someone who has heard nearly every word Girardi has said as manager of the Yankees over the last nine years, he basically said what I said earlier, “Gary Sanchez is the AL Rookie of the Year, and it’s not even close.”

Blogs • Giants

Sep 12, 2016

Giants-Cowboys Week 1 Thoughts: Ben McAdoo’s Giants Are Tom Coughlin’s Giants

The new Giants head coach proved he’s the same as the old head coach in the season-opening win over the Cowboys in Dallas.

There was a good few-year stretch where I never would have doubted the Giants were going to win Sunday’s game, but last season scarred me. I’m not talking about the kind of scar that fades with time, I’m talking about an open-heart surgery scar where every time you look in the mirror without a shirt on you’re reminded of what happened: a 6-10 season that could have been a 13-3 season. And with 1:05 left in the game, and the Giants leading 20-19, Dak Prescott and the Cowboys took over at their own 20 and I could feel the beginning of a panic attack.

I watched most of Sunday’s game in silence. Part of that was because my girlfriend and dog were passed out on the couch and I didn’t want to wake them up and the other part of it was that I couldn’t believe what I was watching. The Giants were Giants-ing away a game that should have never been close with an abundance of runs, a missed extra point, a defense that couldn’t get off the field and a typical Eli Manning interception (though it seems as though Sterling Shepard ran the wrong route). So I sat on my couch in silence for nearly three hours and watched the Cowboys continuously kill the clock starting back in the first quarter in a first quarter that felt faster than Super Bowl XLII.

I had a bad feeling about what was going to happen because I had already seen this game before. The way I recite the lines of Slap Shot or Dumb and Dumber, I could tell you what was going to happen on Sunday as if it had been scripted. I could have cared less about the -1 with 1:05 left (thanks, Randy Bullock) though I obviously was ready to sign up for a push. Covering a spread no longer mattered because all I really truly want is to have a football season this year. Not the kind of season we have had for the last four years either with bad starts, disastrous losses and second-half collapses, I mean a real season with wins in winnable games and a minimal amount of frustration and disappointment. Stopping the Cowboys with 1:05 and no timeouts would go a long way to accomplishing that goal.

With 35 seconds left and the Cowboys facing a third-and-15 from their own 31, Prescott hit Cole Beasley for exactly 15 yards and I thought I was going to be sick like bad sushi sick. The Cowboys were now at their own 46 and with Dan Bailey, I was thinking I would watch the Giants lose on a 60-yard field goal, which meant the Cowboys needed only 11 yards to set up that chance. On second-and-10, Prescott threw a pass for Jason Witten, who will forever try to ruin my life, but it fell incomplete. And then came the play.

Prescott found Terrance Williams wide open on the right side of the field with a clear lane to the sideline, but rather than go out of bounds and stop the clock to set up just under a 60-yard attempt, Williams stayed in and tried to make a few extra moves to pick up extra yards. The only problem was the Cowboys had no way to stop the clock and as they raced to the line to try to spike the ball, the clock ran out. Giants win! Theeeeeeeeeee Giants win!

No, I didn’t think the Giants with their franchise quarterback now in his 13th year in the league and their three-headed receiving monster would need a Terrance Williams brain fart to beat the Cowboys and their rookie quarterback in his first career game. Then again, I’m the same person who has been pulled back in by the 2016 Yankees about 39 different times even though I know what’s likely to happen to them over these next three weeks. I’m easily fooled and I was fooled again that a new head coach might change who the New York Football Giants are. But now I know, no coach is going to change that.

There’s no difference between the Ben McAdoo Giants and the Tom Coughlin Giants. Sure, the former Giants head coach was a now- 70-year-old drill sergeant and one of the most intimidating motivators in the game and the new Giants head coach has a haircut and facial hair someone who thinks it’s still 1986 and has the persona of someone who only eats at T.G.I. Friday’s, Chili’s, Applebee’s and Ruby Tuesdays, but aside from that, they are the same coaches. The only true difference is that the Ben McAdoo Giants completed a fourth-quarter comeback the way the last version of the Tom Coughlin Giants couldn’t and that’s why the Giants are now Ben McAdoo’s and not Tom Coughlin’s. I would have liked more Odell Beckham Jr. and less Rashad Jennings and I would have liked more passing plays than running plays on first down and I would have liked the Giants to not have to eek out a one-point win against an inferior opponent and first-game quarterback, but that wouldn’t be Giants football. And Giants football is the same with Tom Coughlin or with Ben McAdoo.

The Giants can change the head coach and tweak the coaching staff and roster, and they can change stadiums and the color of their uniform pants, but it won’t matter. The Giants are always going to put their fans through a mental, physical and emotional grind each week and each season and leave them questioning why they do this to themselves and if they even enjoy football. That’s just who the Giants are. Giants football is always going to the same and the Giants are always going to turn in performances like Sunday in Dallas. I can’t wait to do it all again next week.

Blogs • Email Exchanges • Giants

Sep 9, 2016

Giants Start Season Against Potential Cowboys Quarterback Controversy

For the second straight season and the fourth time in five years, the Giants get the Cowboys in the season opener. The other four times haven’t gone so well as the Giants are 0-4 in the those and the G-Men haven’t won the first game of the season since 2010.

For the second straight season and the fourth time in five years, the Giants get the Cowboys in the season opener. The other four times haven’t gone so well as the Giants are 0-4 in the those and the G-Men haven’t won the first game of the season since 2010 though that season didn’t exactly end on the best note. The Giants are looking for their first playoff berth in five years this season and they will start their quest for it against their division rival.

With the Giants in Dallas to open the season, I did an email exchange with Dave Halprin of Blogging the Boys to talk about the latest Tony Romo injury, what expectations are for Dak Prescott and the Cowboys and why it seems like Jason Garrett is invincible.

Keefe: Every season we talk, and every season we talk about Tony Romo. Here we are again.

Last season, the Cowboys went 3-1 in games started by Romo and 1-11 in the other 12 games. They were 2-0 when he went down, including their miraculous Week 1 win over the Giants and looked to be the team to beat in the NFC East for the second straight season before it fell apart. This season, it might have all fallen apart before the season even started.

In the last six seasons, Romo has played 16 games twice and he obviously won’t be playing 16 games again this season. He’s now 36 years old with lingering back issues.

What do you make of Romo right now and what is his future with the Cowboys?

Halprin: The Cowboys insist that these are all separate injuries indicating they think it’s not a chronic issue that will keep Romo from returning and playing a few more years. Cowboys fans, on the other hand, are a lot more skeptical and are worried that Romo’s body is just giving out on him. The way he plays by scrambling around in the pocket extending plays leads to getting hit, and that all those hits have taken their toll. It’s expected that Romo will return sometime after the first month of the season so unless Prescott just blows everybody way Romo will be the starter unless he gets hurt again. I think that’s the expectation for the future, if Romo is healthy when he comes back and stays healthy, he’ll be the starter. But one more major injury and the organization will have to start thinking about turning the team over to Prescott permanently.

Keefe: I guess that future does depend on how Dak Prescott plays. The fourth-round pick out of Mississippi State made opened everyone’s eyes with his performance in the preseason and there were Cowboys fans who thought he should be the starter even before Romo got injured. Now they have their wish as Prescott is the Cowboys’ starting quarterback.

It’s rare that a rookie quarterback starts in Week 1 and it’s even more rare that a rookie quarterback has success in their first season. Even with the rule changes of recent years that have made it easier for rookie quarterbacks to succeed in the NFL, there still isn’t a very long list of those who have.

How do you feel about Prescott as your starting quarterback?

Halprin Well, I’m sure you could find a very small pocket of fans who though Prescott should start over Romo before the injury, but you can find small pockets of people who will think or believe anything. I don’t think there was ever any real sentiment from the vast majority of Cowboys fans that Prescott should have been the starter over a healthy Romo. Guarded optimism is the way I would describe my feelings about Prescott. He did everything that was asked of him in the preseason and did it flawlessly, but that was preseason. Two things stand out about Prescott, one is his poise and leadership, he’s looked like a veteran so far, handling the huddle and in-game situations with a veteran’s cool. He’s also been much more accurate than what many thought he would be. Prescott has a lot of weapons around him and a fantastic offensive line, so he doesn’t have to do it all, just keep the motor running and don’t turn the ball over.

Keefe: If Prescott doesn’t play well, next up would be Mark Sanchez, who the Cowboys recently signed after the Broncos released him. Sanchez lost his job in New York to Geno Smith. He only started Philadelphia when Sam Bradford was hurt. He couldn’t be out Trevor Siemian, who has taken one snap in the NFL or rookie Paxton Lynch in Denver.

After having to watch Brandon Weeden, Matt Cassel and Matt Moore start games for the Cowboys last year and Kyle Orton start the most important game of the season in 2013, I guess it’s only fitting that Sanchez might start for the Cowboys at some point.

How long of a leash will Prescott get and what would it take other than injury for Sanchez to have to play?

Halprin: Prescott’s leash is very long, like miles long, and it would take an absolute disaster of epic proportions for them to turn to Sanchez unless an injury occurs. It’s hard to imagine a scenario, but I guess if the Cowboys lose their first four games and Prescott is the obvious cause, then maybe, but even then it’s questionable.

Keefe: Jason Garrett is now in his seventh season and sixth full season as head coach. His only winning full season was in 2014 when the Cowboys went 12-4 and he’s 45-43 overall. It’s certainly not the worst record for a head coach, but for the Cowboys head coach with the talent and expectations he has had, it seems almost improbable that he could still be the head coach of the Cowboys.

Are you a Garrett fan? Why does it seem like Jerry Jones never says Garrett’s job is on the line?

Halprin: I don’t see it as improbable that Garrett is still the coach, I would suggest that kind of thinking comes from not examining the Cowboys culture and roster when Garrett took over. The team had bottomed out under Wade Phillips, the salary cap was a mess, there was a lot of rebuilding to be done. The Cowboys offensive line of today wasn’t here in the beginning of Garrett’s tenure, that has been built over his time. The accountability of the players, getting the roster younger, having a long-term plan instead of lurching from season to season, much of that has come from Garrett. I have no problem with the job he’s done in trying to revitalize the franchise.

Keefe: Two years ago, the Cowboys were a catch rule catch away from going to the NFC Championship, and last year, they were decimated by injuries. Once again, a lot of preseason predictions had the Cowboys winning the East, but that was before the Romo injury. Now, in another year in which the NFC East seems like it’s wide open, the Cowboys are starting a rookie quarterback.

What were your expectations for the season before Romo went down and what are they now?

Halprin: Before the Romo injury I had the Cowboys as the favorites to win the NFC East. They were going to look much more like the 2014 team instead of the injury-plagued unit that was undone by poor quarterback play in 2015. I think they were solid contenders in the NFC. Now, it’s anybody’s guess because no one, and I mean no one, knows how Dak Prescott is going to play once the games become real. And no one is quite sure when Romo will return and how healthy he will be. So the Cowboys still have a chance to be special this year but it’s impossible to be sure.

Author: Neil Keefe

Am I a Bruins Fan Now?

Ballgame Over, 2017 Season Over

Gary Sanchez Is the AL Rookie of the Year

Giants-Cowboys Week 1 Thoughts: Ben McAdoo’s Giants Are Tom Coughlin’s Giants

Giants Start Season Against Potential Cowboys Quarterback Controversy