Darrell Green, Redskin Legend, Being Recruited by GOP

The Virginia Republican Party is trying to lure former Washington Redskins cornerback Darrell Green to run for political office.

Former Washington Redskins cornerback Darrell R. Green is being urged to run for the state Senate from Loudoun County next year by leading Northern Virginia Republicans who hope he can use his fame on the football field to oust newly elected Democrat Mark R. Herring. Green, one of the most well-known Redskins from the team’s recent golden era, lives in Loudoun and has been running a nonprofit foundation since he left the team three years ago.

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Green was seen making the rounds of Capitol Square in Richmond several weeks ago. “I wanted everyone to meet him,” said U.S. Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.), who was in Richmond on March 27 with his congressional colleagues for a regularly scheduled meeting with Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D). After the meeting, Green tossed a football back and forth with U.S. Sen. George Allen (R-Va.) in front of Kaine’s executive mansion. Davis declined to discuss whether Green is being courted, saying only that his candidacy would “be a nice matchup. Darrell would be great if he wanted to run for anything except the 11th Congressional District,” which is the seat Davis holds.

Charles Mann, a former Redskins defensive end and a friend of Green’s, said he had not discussed the candidacy with him. But he said Green would be a “natural” in whatever office he chose to run for. “He’s a born leader. You have to have some kind of leadership mantle to do that,” Mann said. He noted that Green would have nearly 100 percent name identification in the Loudoun district if he ran. “That and a cup of coffee would get you in the running. He would be conservative, absolutely, for whatever that’s worth.”

The Redskins’ training facility is in Ashburn, about four miles from where I used to live. The main highway that runs through the town, Route 28, is named “Darrell Green Boulevard” for quite a stretch. Even as a Cowboys fan, I’ve always liked and admired Green.

Whether Green ultimately runs, the recruitment effort is consistent with efforts by Republicans going back at least a decade to recruit both blacks and famous athletes for office. In a few cases, like Oklahoma’s J.C. Watts and Pennsylvania’s Lynn Swann, they got both at the same time. This is not only a smart strategy from the standpoint of instant name recognition and fundraising ability, it makes sense in trying to broaden the party’s appeal to blacks.

Interestingly, this report comes the day after a story in the same paper (WaPo) by Richard Morin entitled, “Whites Take Flight on Election Day.”

Bad news for Michael S. Steele, the leading Maryland Republican candidate for Senate in November: The scuttling noise he hears on Election Day could be the sound of tens of thousands of white Republicans crossing over to vote for the Democrat.

In fact, white Republicans nationally are 25 percentage points more likely on average to vote for the Democratic senatorial candidate when the GOP hopeful is black, says economist Ebonya Washington of Yale University in a forthcoming article in the Quarterly Journal of Economics. White independents are similarly inclined to vote for the white Democrat when there’s a black Republican running, according to her study of congressional and gubernatorial voting patterns between 1982 and 2000, including five Senate races in which the Republican nominee was black. Her analysis suggests that GOP “white flight” in the Maryland Senate race could mean at least an additional 1 or 2 percent of the vote goes to the Democrat, and perhaps more — but only if the candidate is white. Together, independents who would otherwise vote for a white Republican plus GOP deserters may easily swamp any increase in black Democratic crossover to Steele.

But racially motivated crossover voting is not just a Republican phenomenon. Democrats also desert their party when its candidate is black, Washington found. In House races, white Democrats are 38 percentage points less likely to vote Democratic if their candidate is black. And don’t expect turnout to surge among either blacks or whites in Maryland this November. Washington found that white and black turnout swells when the Democratic candidate for Senate is African American but is not significantly affected when the office-seeker is a black Republican.

I would have to see the study to analyze it but am highly skeptical of the findings. My guess is that the number of black candidates, especially in the GOP, has been sufficiently small as to be unrepresentative. Rather than race, other factors related to the competitiveness or timing of specific races may well be in play.

crosspost from OTB

Bettis to Hall of Fame

Jerome Bettis is a member of the Hall of Fame.

Well, the BOWLING Hall of Fame. According to Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

The Hall of Fame has decided to induct Jerome Bettis this year, two months after his retirement from the Steelers.
He won’t go in for his 13 years as a pro football player, not yet anyway, because he must wait five years before he’s a candidate for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The Bowling Hall of Fame, however, does not have such a wait.

Bettis, who became an accomplished amateur bowler long before he played football, will be the first person inducted into the new Celebrities Bowling Hall of Fame, part of the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame in St. Louis.

The Bus, who counts a perfect 300 game he rolled in competition among his favorite moments, will be enshrined June 28 at the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America’s International Bowl Expo at the Las Vegas Hilton.

I did not know that about Bettis. I have to admit, I’m jealous of his bowling marks (and his average, which is over 200). I’m lucky if I break 100, and would rather not calculate my average.

So I guess he can officially be called a Hall of Famer now. Congratulations to Jerome.

And yes, it is a slow free agency period for my team, why do you ask?

Muhammad Ali Sells Marketing Rights

Muhammad Ali has sold the rights to market his name, for a cool $50 mil.

Muhammad Ali, one of the world’s most recognized people, has sold 80 percent of the marketing rights to his name and likeness to a firm for $50 million. The 64-year-old former heavyweight champion, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease, will retain a 20 percent interest in the business. The new venture will be operated by a company called G.O.A.T. LLC, an acronym for “The Greatest of All Time.”

Ali and wife Lonnie are expected to work with CKX, Inc. to market his interests around the world. The deal includes trademarks owned by the boxing great. “This relationship with CKX will help guarantee that, for generations to come, people of all nations will understand my beliefs and my purpose,” Ali said in a statement issued Tuesday by the company. “I am honored to be able to partner with CKX as they continue to grow.”

CKX has concentrated primarily on entertainment and holds the rights to the IDOLS television brand, which includes the show “American Idol.” It also holds the rights to Elvis Presley’s marketing, and has an interest in the operations of Graceland, Presley’s Memphis, Tenn., home.

Elvis and Muhammad Ali are a pretty good combo, I guess. Still, this somehow seems wrong.

And how does one sell eighty percent of one’s name, anyway? Eighty percent of the profits, sure. But either Ali has a veto power over how his name is sold, in which case he effectively owns at least 51 percent of it, or not, in which case he effectively owns none of it.

Update: I hope they don’t change his name to “Enron Field.” That would really suck. Although, if they changed it back to “Cassius Clay,” it’d be kind of funny.

Ballbug

Gabe Rivera has added yet another Memeorandum spinoff, this one for seamheads:

As the 2006 MLB season kicks off this week, the outlets for baseball coverage have grown more numerous and diverse than ever. Local newspaper sites, national news networks, and official MLB releases all play an important role. For the most obsessive fans, the same is true for baseball blogs, which excel in analysis, opinion, speculation, and scandal.

Of course this means keeping track of the biggest baseball stories on the Web is now impossible without clicking on links all day. And (yep) this leads us to Ballbug, which offers a news summary, updated every 5 minutes, spotlighting the most buzzed about baseball stories and blog posts from thousands of web sites. So if you’re a baseball fan, I’m hoping you’ll become a Ballbug fan as well!

It’s a good idea. His pop culture aggregator, WeSmirch, has been quite helpful in finding information for Gone Hollywood. I’m sure I’ll find some material for OTB Sports at Ballbug, too.

Jones: Cutting Larry Allen Hurt

Rick Gosselin talked with Jerry Jones about the human side of the business of football. It’s not just players who feel emotional pain.

The salary cap has taught NFL teams you must learn to say good-bye to your older players. Even when sometimes they are your best players.

A week after the fact, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is still struggling with his decision to release 1990s all-decade offensive lineman Larry Allen, the last link to the franchise’s Super Bowl era. Speaking publicly for the first time since cutting his seven-time Pro Bowl blocker March 22, Jones talked of the difficulty he’ll have watching Allen wear the uniform of the Cowboys’ longtime rival the San Francisco 49ers in 2006. “It hurts a lot,” said Jones from his hotel suite at the NFL spring meetings. “I was so proud of him as a Dallas Cowboy, as much as any player we’ve ever had. “I have so much respect for him. You hear about Bob Lilly as the best left defensive tackle ever to play the game. I’m convinced that Larry can get some of that kind of recognition as well.”

Jones believes Allen was still playing at an elite level in 2005 when he was selected to his seventh Pro Bowl. “He still had the ability,” Jones said. “He graded out as our best lineman last year. That makes you scratch your head. But we needed to get younger, and we had the opportunity to do that. “Very candidly, we needed to allocate those dollars … some of them to T.O. I’m not saying T.O. cost us Larry. But we had to shuffle around.”

Allen is 34. He was scheduled to make $5.5 million in 2006, counting a $2 million signing bonus in April. His release came three days after the Cowboys signed wide receiver Terrell Owens. Allen’s salary cap figure would have been $7.5 million in 2006. Owens comes in at $6.6 million. You can pay that kind of money to an offensive playmaker. You can’t to an offensive guard.

“When we gave Larry his third contract [in 2002], he was going to be our left tackle,” Jones said. “He’d been a Pro Bowler at left tackle. Then we drafted Flozell Adams. He comes in and can play left tackle. Whether it be Hudson Houck or Camps [Dave Campo]…nobody ever wanted to get rid of that luxury of having a Larry Allen and a Flozell Adams over on that left side. “But his arrangement was all predicated on him moving out to left tackle, and we’d be good at left tackle for five or six years. If you look back at what we paid him, the kind of lessons I’ve learned – you can’t stack it up like that on the offensive line. You can’t pay somebody like that to play left tackle when he’s not playing left tackle, when he’s playing left guard.”

Jones hashed over the idea of asking Allen to take a pay cut to finish his career in Dallas. “I’m not so sure I couldn’t have sat down with Larry personally and said, ‘Let’s get in here and reduce this thing down and stay with us,’” Jones said. “We did the best thing for the team. But it did cross my mind that we could make this work. There was a part of me that thought he might get out there and [find the money] might not be there. But I knew when we extended the collective bargaining agreement we were in trouble with him.”

It’s always sad to lose a good player, especially one who has been with the team a long time. But, Jones is right: You simply can’t pay an aging offensive lineman, especially a guard, that kind of money.

Cowboys Looking at Detroit QB Joey Harrington

Mickey Spagnola reports that the Cowboys are among seven teams looking at Lions QB Joey Harrington, whose sporadic play has caused Detroit to give up on the former third overall pick in the 2002 draft.

The talks are incredibly preliminary:

[Cowboys owner/GM Jerry] Jones said he has only recently spoken with team vice president Stephen Jones about considering Harrington, and that the team’s pro scouting department did start evaluating him once it became apparent about 10 days ago the Lions were going to get rid of their primary starter the past four years one way or another. In fact, any speculation the Cowboys are seriously interested in Harrington would be premature since Jones said, “But I really haven’t talked to [head coach] Bill [Parcells] about it.”

Moreover, this appears to be mere due dilligence on a tremendous athlete at the most important position in the game who might be had for a bargain basement price. It is not even a reflection on the three QBs currently on the Dallas roster.

This also does not mean the Cowboys are ready to throw in the towel on two-year veteran Drew Henson, who currently is NFL in Europe playing for the Rhein Fire. Henson’s club is 2-0, and his performance this past weekend was much improved over his NFL Europe opener. Jones said he hasn’t even so much as looked at tape of Henson’s performances or read any of the scouting reports from the first two games. But, according to Jones, this should not be viewed as some European vacation for Henson, heading into his third season with the Cowboys. “Certainly it is important, very important, a significant thing,” Jones said of Henson’s performance this spring overseas. “That’s the process. It’s very meaningful what Drew’s doing, relative to anything we might think about any quarterback.”

And maybe most importantly, don’t for a minute think Jones is thinking about replacing Drew Bledsoe with Harrington as the Cowboys’ starting quarterback in 2006. On the contrary. “But let me be real clear about anything we’re doing, it does not in anyway mean to me that we are looking at anything other than Drew Bledsoe as our starter,” Jones said. “This is a look to the future here with any interest you might have. “I don’t want to come across as sitting here looking at anything other than Drew Bledsoe (as the Cowboys starter.)”

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Jones does not in anyway want to immediately sign Harrington, even as a backup since the move would cut the developing legs out from under Henson in Europe. Or possibly even backup Tony Romo, since there is a feeling within the organization that the Cowboys might have something special in him, even though the three-year veteran has done nothing more than take a knee twice in regular-season games during his career. In fact, there are some who think Romo, if handled properly, could develop into the team’s future starting quarterback if the Cowboys can remain patient with the development of the undrafted player out of Eastern Illinois. Sort of like their version of Jake Delhomme, who stepped up to prominence after signing a free-agent deal with Carolina after all those years in New Orleans.

But, again, we’re talking about quarterback, the premier position not only in football but all sports.

[A]s has been the case since Troy Aikman eventually retired after the 2000 season, the Cowboys can leave no stone unturned searching for the next franchise quarterback. And while Bledsoe is expected to be the starter this year, and possibly even next, Jones knows a team never can have too many good quarterbacks on the roster or future options if that total equals three.

And as Jones did say with the draft now a month away, “Tony and everybody knows we’ll be looking at a young quarterback, whether it be late in the draft . . . or if something crazy happens, it may be early in the draft, who knows.”

Which obviously led to a natural question: What would the Cowboys do if Texas quarterback Vince Young happened to slide all the way to their 18th spot in the first round? “Be real interesting, wouldn’t it?” Jones said, and not totally teasing.

Yes it would be, and it’s always interesting when the Cowboys throw their hat in a quarterback ring.

Indeed it would. The team is positioned to make a serious run for the Super Bowl this year and would obviously prefer to take a player in the first round who could start right away. Still, the Cowboys would almost have to take a flyer on Young if he fell that low, unlikely as it is. The opportunity to grab a franchise quarterback is just too rare to pass up.

Dungy for NFL Commish?

Len Pasquerelli believes a dark horse candidate will emerge as Paul Tagliabue’s successor and thinks Colts coach Tony Dungy might fit the bill.

By now, most fans have read the names of NFL vice president Roger Goodell, team presidents Rich McKay of Atlanta and Dick Cass of Baltimore, and league counsel Jeff Pash as current league officials who might be elevated into the commissioner job. All are worthy candidates, but the suspicions of many owners is that Tagliabue’s successor won’t come from that list, and by the end of the process, it will actually be a relative football unknown.

Here are some names, none of which have been on the radar screen yet, that have been suggested by some owners as potential commissioner candidates:

• Bill Bradley: The former United States senator, and onetime candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, Bradley certainly knows a lot of about the marriage of sports and politics. A member of the basketball Hall of Fame, and Princeton-educated, Bradley possesses the best of a lot of worlds. But his age (62) and the fact most owners vote Republican probably work against him.

• Chase Carey: File this name away, because he could be near the top of any “outsiders” list. Carey is the president and CEO of DirecTV. Prior to that he was chairman and CEO of the Fox Television Group. In his 50s, he still plays rugby and has a very active lifestyle. With the league fixated on creating new revenue streams through the Internet and digital media outlets, he would be a guy with some expertise in an area that some visionaries see as the NFL’s next great frontier.

• Tony Dungy: OK, so the Indianapolis Colts’ coach is hardly an outsider. And he still wants to coach a while longer and, hopefully, to capture the Super Bowl title that has so far eluded him. But by his own admission, Dungy doesn’t plan to be a lifer in his current job. Few men in the league, at any position, are so universally respected. A long shot, no doubt, but a guy not to be summarily dismissed.

• Arlen Kantarian: Everyone praises his work as the chief executive of professional tennis for the United States Tennis Association. Notable is that he once worked for the league, as the vice present of marketing for NFL Properties. The landscape has changed a lot since he left the NFL, but he remains well-regarded and has a few advocates in the league.

• Tim Leiweke: The president of the Anschutz Entertainment Group, whose holdings include the Staples Center, hockey’s Los Angeles Kings and soccer’s Los Angeles Galaxy.

An interesting list. Dungy, especially, would be a bold pick. He lacks a law degree and the sort of business experience one might expect in a CEO of a multi-billion dollar business but the man undeniably knows football, is highly intelligent, and has a strong work ethic.

Update: Rick Gosselin thinks the NFL needs to think global.

But the NFL’s next step is beyond its popularity in the United States. It’s a global step – and the new commissioner must take football there.

“The challenges going forward,” said Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeff Lurie, “are how to grow the sport in the world of globalization and digitalization – how to maintain the integrity and the popularity of the sport but grow it in a new media world, in a new global world.”

Which is where the ability to speak several languages comes into play.

“In the sports world, as in the business world, you see China, India, Latin America, Eastern Europe …” Lurie said. “Those are the real growth areas. We happen to have an extremely fan-friendly product, but we have not made a lot of inroads in the global marketplace. “That’s a big, big challenge going forward for the National Football League. We need someone to help grow the brand.”

That line of thinking would open up the possibility of a Condi Rice bid. While she has said she’s not interested for now, the NFL can offer her one hell of a pay raise.

Cowboys Sign Mike Vanderjagt, Idiot, Liquored Up Kicker

Fresh of the signing of Terrell Owens, the Cowboys are reportedly close to signing another very controversial free agent, former Colts kicker Mike Vanderjagt.

After 17 seasons of counting on inexperienced and inexpensive place-kickers, the Cowboys made it clear this off-season they intended on changing their ways. And if they are indeed willing to pay for an experienced kicker, might as well go after the most accurate kicker in NFL history. That’s what the Cowboys were doing on Wednesday, courting Indianapolis unrestricted free-agent kicker Mike Vanderjagt at Valley Ranch.

While no deal had been officially struck by early Wednesday evening, the two sides appeared to be closing in on an agreement that could be signed as early as Thursday.

Any chances of Vanderjagt returning to Indianapolis ended Tuesday when the Colts signed New England unrestricted free-agent kicker Adam Vinatieri to a deal that reportedly includes a $3.5 million signing bonus and averages $2.5 million over the first three years of the contract.

And with Vinatieri off the market, Vanderjagt and former Minnesota kicker Paul Edinger are the top veteran kickers still available, assuming the Cowboys aren’t interested in re-signing Billy Cundiff, recently signed by Tampa Bay and then released this week. The Bucs re-signed their kicker from last year, Matt Bryant, who the Cowboys were highly interested in signing at the start of free agency.

I would have preferred Vinatieri, of course, but Vanderjagt would be a huge upgrade at the position for the Cowboys. The fact that neither of them are good at kicking off is rather odd, however. One would think a punter could handle kickoff duties, though, even if he had to learn in training camp.

And, frankly, the options are pretty thin:

Heading into the off-season, the Cowboys had interest in both Bryant and Green Bay’s Ryan Longwell, who signed a five-year, $10 million deal with Minnesota, which handed him a $3 million signing bonus. The Cowboys also were contemplating signing Seattle restricted free agent Josh Brown to an offer sheet, but since the Seahawks decided not to match the transition offer sheet guard Steve Hutchinson signed with Minnesota, they have enough cap space to match any legitimate offer the Cowboys might make for the three-year veteran kicker.

The Cowboys also have been keeping a close eye on the Olindo Mare situation down in Miami. Reports suggest the Dolphins might release their veteran kicker, who is scheduled to earn a $1.4 million base salary. Mare not only has one of the league’s strongest legs, but would immediately give the Cowboys a boost on his kickoffs, recording 16 touchbacks last season alone. But with the veteran kickers disappearing from the free agent market, the Dolphins must be asking themselves just who would kick for them if they let Mare go.

Indeed.

Update: It’s official. Both ESPN’s Len Pasquereli and DC.com’s Nick Eatman confirm that a deal has been reached. According to the former, “Financial details were not yet available, but it is believed the contract averages about $2 million annually.”

Tyrone Carter’s Brother Skips Jail for the Super Bowl

Tank Carter, brother of Steeler Tyrone Carter, skips jail for the Super Bowl.

While I cannot agree that this was a good thing, I have to admit, part of me understands. If my brother were ever in anything like this, I’d skip jail too. The crime was minor, so I guess they didn’t try to find him. I mean, it took them over a month to figure out he was gone, and where he was? Either they weren’t trying too hard to find him, or Broward County is unbelievably incompetent.

He was to report to a Broward County prison on Jan. 6, but decided against it when his brother told him the Steelers had a good chance of going to the Super Bowl.

Tank had to be happy Tyrone was right. Had they lost the next weekend in the NFL playoffs, and Tank Carter got five years, I can imagine him saying, “I skipped jail for THIS?”

Glad he doesn’t regret the fact that he’s staying in jail ten times longer than he would have originally stayed. Tank had better hope the Steelers don’t go on a Super Bowl run here, because there will be no more partying with Snoop Dog at the Super Bowl for Carter for the next five years.

Cross posted at The Unusual Suspects.