Bruce Arians has been kicked upstairs and he needs to stay there | Commentary
Running off at the typewriter. …
The NFL issued a warning earlier this week to former Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians about his conduct on the sideline in Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints.
My question: What was Arians doing on the sideline in the first place?
I can’t imagine new coach Todd Bowles wants his former boss looking over his shoulder during games, let alone jawing at officials and opposing players and inciting fights.
Which is exactly what happened on Sunday, when Arians barked at Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore, sparking a skirmish between the two teams that resulted in Tampa Bay’s star receiver Mike Evans being ejected and suspended for this week’s game against the Green Bay Packers.
Arians, who is now the senior assistant to Bucs general manager Jason Licht, was on the sideline with Licht rather than upstairs because Bowles claims the Saints did not provide them with a booth. However, the Saints say they did provide seating for Arians and Licht in the press box.
It doesn’t really matter. If Arians had to be on the field (which he didn’t), he could have distanced himself from the team by standing on the 10-yard line, but instead he stood right in the middle of the action inside the area reserved for officials, players and coaches. According to ESPN.com, that’s where he became extremely agitated and animated and started complaining about Lattimore after the defensive back was not called for pass interference on a pass intended for wide receiver Scotty Miller.
Hmmm, maybe this is an indication of what really happened during the offseason.
Remember when Arians shockingly stepped down after last season and there were reports that he was kicked upstairs at the behest of Tom Brady?
On Sunday, it would have behooved him to stay upstairs, but instead Arians showed everybody that he still desperately wants to be prowling the sideline. …
Short stuff: Mikey likes: Tennessee over Florida by 17, UCF over Georgia Tech by 14, FSU over Boston College by 20, Louisville over USF by 17, Miami over Middle Tennessee by 30, Packers over Bucs by 3 in Upset Special, Bills over Dolphins by 10, Chargers over Jags by 9, My 401k under the Federal Reserve by $20,000 on Wednesday. … Hey, not that I’m bitter the ACC chose Charlotte over of Orlando as the site for its new headquarters, but let me just say this: You might think you won, Charlotte, until you try to get out of the deal in a couple of years but are locked in by ACC’s ironclad grant of rights contract! (insert laughing emoji!) … It’s being reported that the NBA may remove the 19-year-old age limit and clear the way for the return of high school players to once again make the jump to the league. However, de facto commissioner LeBron James, whose son Bronny will soon be graduating from high school, has not made the announcement official just yet. … With Friday being National White Chocolate Day, let’s take a moment to remember the dazzling basketball brilliance of Jason Williams. …
A moment of silence, please, Maury Wills has just slid into That Big Stolen Base In The Sky. Wills, the great Dodgers shortstop of the 1960s, passed away earlier this week at the age of 89. He is credited with reviving the stolen base as an MLB strategy. In his obituary, the Associated Press, wrote: “His speed made him a constant threat on the basepaths and he distracted pitchers even if he didn’t try to steal. He carefully studied pitchers and their pickoff moves when he wasn’t on base. When a pitcher’s throw drove him back to the bag, he became even more determined to steal. Once, in a game against the New York Mets, Wills was on first base when pitcher Roger Craig threw 12 straight times to the bag. On Craig’s next throw, Wills stole second.” RIP to the diminutive player whom Vin Scully nicknamed “The Mouse That Roared.” … Miami Hurricanes quarterback Tyler Van Dyke ruffled the feathers of some ‘Canes fans when he said in a recent interview with Barstool Sports that he prefers playing road games to home games because of the raucous college crowd at road games. Translation: Playing UM home games in a half-empty NFL stadium 20 miles from campus has all the atmosphere of the waiting room at Aamco Transmissions. …
Did you see where microphones caught ESPN commentator Dan Orlovsky simultaneously sneezing and farting during the Monday Night Football pregame show in Buffalo? Hey, at least Orlovsky was accidentally passing gas on the air instead of the intentional verbal gaseous emissions of so many incendiary talking heads these days. Which reminds me of a joke: What’s the difference between the Hindenburg and Skip Bayless? One is zeppelin and the other is a flaming gas bag. … From Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times: “Ernest and Viesia Godek, fishing in Pedder Bay, near Victoria, B.C., landed the lunker of the day when a 750-pound California sea lion suddenly leapt onto their boat, nearly capsizing it. The big lug was trying to escape three killer whales.” Hey, that reminds me of another joke: What did the seal with one fin say to the killer whale? “If seal is broken, do not consume.” …
Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards has been fined $40,000 for using derogatory anti-gay language on social media. Good thing he didn’t say anything bad about China or he would have been expunged from the league quicker than Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver. … I saw where Arizona State unsurprisingly fired head coach Herm Edwards after losing to Eastern Michigan last week. Edwards, when he was coaching the New York Jets, famously ranted, “You play to win the game!” Unfortunately, Edwards has coached to lose too many games as his 80-94 career record attests. … Steelers coach Mike Tomlin when asked to evaluate rookie running back Jaylen Warren’s first game: “He didn’t urinate down his leg, man — that’s a great place to begin.” … Did you see where UCF athletics director Terry Mohajir referenced old-time radio news pioneer Paul Harvey in a tweet earlier this week? Coming soon, Mohajir will release his top 5 list of favorite media figures: (1) Paul Harvey. (2) Walter Cronkite. (3) Edward R. Murrow. (4) Grantland Rice. (5) Mel Allen. …
Last word: RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com, on Forbes assessing the Knicks as the most valuable NBA team at $5.8 billion: “Who would guess there could be so much value in laughing stock?”
Email me at mbianchi@orlandosentinel.com. Hit me up on Twitter @BianchiWrites and listen to my Open Mike radio show every weekday from 6 to 9 a.m. on FM 96.9 and AM 740.
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