WATERCOOLER CHAT: PRO BOWL FANTASY SELECTIONS, GASE REJECTS BROWNS, SETTLING FOR MANNING
FOOTBALL
This year, the Pro Bowl is undergoing more of a playful, fantasy reconstruction. Jerry Rice and Deion Sanders are drafting the teams, and Tuesday,  Jerry Rice kicked off the Pro Bowl draft by selecting Drew Brees at quarterback and Robert Quinn, the St. Louis Rams’ defensive end. Picking Quinn that early is a huge sleeper pick for Rice. Then Sanders began his draft, taking Kansas City Chiefs’ superstar running back Jamaal Charles and Houston Texans’ defensive tackle J.J. Watt. This is a fun format so let’s hope it brings some ratings and interest to the game. Watch the 2014 Pro Bowl on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2014 at 7:00 pm from Aloha Stadium on NBC.
And in coaching news, the Cleveland Browns are the last team looking for a head coach. Reports showed that they had their sights set on Adam Gase, the young offensive coordinator prodigy for the Denver Broncos. He, along with Peyton Manning of course, is a big reason that the Broncos were racking up points this year. But there are also reports that a lot of coaches don’t want to take the Cleveland job because they think it’s a loser job, and if they fail there, they may never get another shot at a head coaching opportunity.  On Tuesday,  Gase pulled his name out of the running for the Browns gig. He will stay at Denver for the time being, and likely wait until the time is right to jump ship.
Finally, in some interesting news from NFL’s past, reports are coming out that the Indianapolis Colts had every intention of drafting Ryan Leaf over Peyton Manning in the 1998 NFL Draft. However, Leaf didn’t want to play for Indy, and wanted to play in the sunshine of San Diego (the #2 pick). Problem is, players don’t get that choice — they have to manipulate it. Leaf’s agent at the time knew that Leaf couldn’t rub Colts owner Jim Irsay the wrong way, because, apparently, Irsay didn’t let a QB’s ego phase him. Instead, the agent figured that Leaf would have to annoy current head coach Jim Mora, who was all about punctuality and respect. So Leaf’s agent told him to skip a scheduled meeting with Mora, who would in turn tell Colts owner Irsay that they simply can’t draft Leaf, and would have to settle for Manning. Can you imagine they thought they were settling for Manning.  Clearly, that missed meeting changed the fate of football forever.
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