Classy Cowher not ready to talk turkey with Bucs

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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers want to hire Bill Cowher to be their next coach but, the one-time Super Bowl winner during his time with the Pittsburgh Steelers, isn't ready to talk.

Cowher adheres to a strict, "I won't talk about a job during the season and I won't talk about a job until it's actually vacant," policy.

In short, Cowher won't discuss taking the Bucs job with the Glazer family until they fire Raheem Morris.

In the same vein, Mike Shanahan won't take a job with the Chicago Bears or Houston Texans and displace old friends Lovie Smith or Gary Kubiak, who currently hold those jobs.

Word out of Cleveland is that Mike Holmgren will likely keep Eric Mangini as the Browns bench boss for at least one season before passing judgement. Although Holmgren would reportedly give Mangini the toe if an A-lister like Cowher or Shanahan was willing to move to Cleveland. No chance.

It's easy to see these guys as vultures but they don't start the rumours and Cowher and Shanahan have shown some restraint throughout this feeding frenzy.

It's easy to forget these coaches, the guy running your team into the ground for instance, are people just like us with families to feed and children that want explanations when they hear 'your daddy's getting fired,' on the schoolyard.

Kudos to Cowher and Shanahan for showing exactly why you'd want them running your club -- they have integrity and aren't willing to poach jobs to cash another cheque or have a second swipe at fame and glory.

Here's our look at Week 16 in the NFL:

PEYTON'S POUT: Did you catch the look on Peyton Manning's mush in the second half of the Colts loss to the Jets? Manning left the game with his club leading 15-10 only to watch the Jets pour on the points and cruise to an easy win. The loss was the first of the season for Indy and Manning didn't appear to like it one bit. Rookie coach Jim Caldwell made the decision to keep Manning healthy and think big picture while not worrying about the chase for a perfect season. Good call.

SATURDAY NIGHT SPECIAL: While morphing into the couch Saturday night (they might have to lance it off my posterior like a boil) and watching Queen Latifah smoulder on the screen in The Last Holiday, I couldn't help but wonder why there wasn't a football game on. And I have to believe that NFL fans across the continent, while poking their eyes out watching similar pap, were thinking the same thing. It's a holiday weekend and after battling through malls and gatecrasher sales all day, what would have been better than some Saturday night smash mouth? The NFL scheduled a game on Friday night, which also happened to be Christmas, and missed an opportunity at a captive audience on Saturday. Queen Latifah was good and all, we're just saying a little football would have fit perfectly into our schedule.

UNCLE BEN'S: Forget Minute Rice, when a fast score is needed, few are better at getting it done than Ben Roethlisberger of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Big Ben got the ball deep in his own end with time running out in the first half and with a seven-play drive went 94 yards for a touchdown in just 1:25. Roethlisberger has a little John Elway in him when it comes to running the two-minute drill.

WHAT A TREAT: Dick Enberg may be older than dirt (soon to be 75, for the record) but he's still a fine football broadcaster. Paired with Dan Fouts to call the Steelers/Ravens game on Sunday, listening to Enberg is a great way to spend the afternoon. He's knowledgeable, capable and smooth. He and Fouts work well together and for our money quarterbacks make the best analysts in the game. Phil Simms, Troy Aikman and Fouts to name a few of the best. Some of us have been listening to Enberg since we were children and here's hoping it doesn't end anytime soon.

WHO SCARES US: The Chargers (we think they're the hottest team in the AFC), the Colts (Peyton Manning could make the Toronto Argonauts a threat in the NFL), Minnesota Vikings (if they can find some offensive balance in the post-season they could be unbeatable), Philadelphia Eagles (they can score 30 in a New York minute), Green Bay Packers (Aaron Rodgers has come of age).

WHO DOESN'T: Dallas (we just don't believe they can win big games with Tony Romo at the helm), New England (just an ordinary Pats team and not Super Bowl worthy) Cincinnati (close but not this year), Pittsburgh (last year is now a year ago), New Orleans (losses in the last two weeks after moving out to a 13-0 mark), Arizona (too inconsistent).

BONEHEAD OF THE WEEK: Broncos receiver Brandon Stokley, with his club already thin at wide receiver, was ejected for hitting an official on Sunday after he slapped a ref's hand at the end of a hissy fit over a missed pass interference call. Stokely's tantrum left his club with just three wideouts for the rest of the game. Stupid and selfish.

KEEP THAT COACH: The Bucs are poised to fire Raheem Morris at the end of the season but we believe he'll make a good coach with just a little more seasoning. It's not like Morris had a lot to work with, and his players have kept playing for him as shown in Sunday's win over the Saints in New Orleans. I'd give Morris another season.

FAN RANT: Send us an email at the address below, keep it clean, lean and mean (by lean we're saying under or real close to 100 words) and we might print it in this space next week.

CHANNEL YOUR INNER BOOKIE: Think you've got the jam to make a pick that deserves to be printed in our Thursday picks package? Follow the same rules as above and we might print it in our Big Screen Big Mouth midweek edition.

ROAD TRIP: Taking in an NFL game this season? Send us a photo of you and your pals tailgating or hanging in the stands and we might print it our Big Screen Big Mouth Thursday picks package.

How cool would that be?

gary.lawless@freepress.mb.ca

Gary Lawless, Winnipeg Free Press

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 28, 2009 C6