Page 2710 of 2957

Something’s brewing in New England between Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and his former defensive coordinator and current New York Jets head coach Eric Mangini.

In a story posted online by the New York Post, Belichick refuses to even mention Mangini’s name while talking about the Jets-Patriots came this Sunday in New England. When asked about Mangini, Belichick will only respond by talking about the Jets as a team.

Asked what kind of job Mangini has done with the Jets, Belichick said, “I think the Jets are a very good football team. They’re a very talented team, and they’re a very explosive team in all three phases of the game. They play that way on a weekly basis.”

Asked if he sees any particular stamp that Mangini has put on the Jets in his first season as a head coach, Belichick said, “The Jets have been a strong, competitive football team ever since I’ve been here.”

According to the article, the two coaches completely avoided each other before and after the first meeting between these two teams in September. People close to the to situation think it’s because Belichick isn’t a huge fan of New York owner Woody Johnson and therefore told Mangini to pass on the Jets offer and wait for a better one to come along. Apparently, Belichick isn’t too thrilled that Mangini went ahead and took the job even though Belichick told him it wasn’t a great situation.

If this is true (and as of right now, there are no public facts that says it is), I think Belichick should respect the solid job Mangini has done thus far with the Jets. Nobody has the right to tell a grown man what job he should or shouldn’t go after. Maybe Mangini passes that offer up and another one never comes along? But who knows – maybe there is more to the story than meets the eye.

First it was the San Francisco Giants who left the windy confines of Candlestick Park (and yes, I still call it Candlestick) and now apparently it’s the 49ers turn to jettison.

49ers owner John York had been in discussions with San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom on building a new stadium for his team in Candlestick Pointe. But according to SFGate.com, York has had enough with the talks and has decided to move the team to Santa Clara.

But in his calls to the mayor and to supervisors, York repeatedly said that his decision was final. The team could not stay in San Francisco, he said, because the stadium deal “didn’t pencil out” and because provisions for transportation and parking at the proposed site at Candlestick Point were inadequate.

In his calls, York complained that the proposed parking garage outside the stadium would mean the end of the traditional pregame tailgating parties and lead to traffic jams.

Not that this would be a catastrophe-type move like Art Modell uprooting the Browns to Baltimore virtually over night. But it’s still sad to think the 49ers won’t be playing in the same ballpark Joe Montana, Jerry Rice and John Taylor help build a great history in. Although, it’s not like the current 49ers are helping build new lasting memories now are they?