Running back Carnell "Cadillac" Williams suffered a severe injury to his left knee late in the Buccaneers season-ending loss to the Raiders. (In 2006, of course, Williams tore a tendon in his right knee which kept him out until November 23 of this season. Now he's doubtful to contribute in 2009 and, really, his return to the NFL is in serious jeopardy.)But Joe Henderson of the Tampa Bay Tribune says Jon Gruden could lose more than a running back. After winning his Super Bowl with a sub-par quarterback, Gruden seems unable, or unwilling, to develop a young QB that will bring the team stability, Henderson says. He thinks the Bucs need to consider "regime change." Today is Bloodbath Day in the NFL with coaches getting fired all over the country. If Gruden is canned, he would join the Detroit Lions' Rod Marinelli, the Jets' Eric "Man-genius" Mangini, Cleveland's Romeo Crennel and (probably) Herm Edwards in KC, as coaches getting canned. The Cowboys' owner Jerry Jones insists that Wade Phillips won't be joining that list.
Speaking of the Cowboys, a very bizarre story in the Dallas Morning News says that Tony Romo "collapsed" in the showers after the Cowboys loss to the Eagles. On a day when he suffered three sacks, Romo was apparently floored by pain from a rib injury. Players yelled for help and medical staff rushed in with a stretcher, but Romo got back on his feet and was helped to the trainers' room. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram said that Romo appeared to have difficulty breathing after the fall and was helped from the podium after addressing the media.
Um… Okay. We hope Tony doesn't have any serious health issues or anything, but it frankly doesn't sound like it. It sounds more like Romo was being a massive drama queen after yet another disastrous late-season performance -- one that included fumbles on two of the Cowboys' first three possessions of the second half. The Cowboys offense was nothing but sloppy yesterday, unforgivable so late in the season, with Romo and his wide-receivers continually getting mixed up on even the most basic pf pass plays. When are the Cowboys going to realize that Romo, despite his marketing-friendly zeal for being America's Quarterback, doesn't have the temperament of a championship-caliber QB?
Deadspin finishes us off with a classic, "This isn't really sports but we'll call it that" story. Here's Hope Jacoby, 23, an athletic trainer at Tustin High School in California recently arrested on suspicion of engaging in sex acts with underage student athletes. Hope, who has worked with athletes at the school for the last year, was arrested last week on suspicion of oral copulation and unlawful sex with a minor. She was busted, of course, by sending photos of herself to students via text message.
