PHOENIX — A peace came over veteran defensive tackle Fletcher Cox when the Eagles released him in March just hours before they would owe him $18 million guaranteed.
Instead of fretting about it, he went to the racetrack with friends.
“I kind of knew I was going to get released,” said Cox, who sponsors a drag racing team. “It was news to the world, but it wasn’t news to me. So, I think what happened was Howie (Roseman) and the whole organization handled it as professionally as they could, and I appreciate that.”
All it took was a text alert after hitting free agency for Cox to at least entertain if it would be better to stick around or join Mississippi State alum Chris Jones – with the Chiefs, of all teams. As it turns out, Cox is joining him in the Super Bowl on Sunday, although that was probably the furthest thing from his mind.
“Chris texted me and you know, obviously, when you’ve got an old coach there’s things that you think about,” Cox said, referencing Andy Reid, who drafted him in 2011. “But at the end of the day I bleed green.”
At the end of the day, Cox wanted to spend season No. 11 with the Eagles, who gave him a one-year, $14 million guaranteed contract.
Cox wound up with seven sacks, his highest total in four years, a bear hug from Reid on Super Bowl Opening Night and a chance to put a ring on his other hand. Asked if he’d like to be on the field to decide the Super Bowl, he respectfully indicated no.
“The best formation is the victory formation,” Cox said. “I’d rather my offense be on the field taking a knee.”
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At his Super Bowl state of the league address, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said Wednesday the officiating is the best he’s ever seen it and the league isn’t going to be pushed around by critics.
“When you look at officiating,” Goodell said, “I don’t think it’s ever been better in the league.”
After the shock wore off, the Commish made a few poignant points, one of which was throwing shade at the TV announcing teams who use ex-NFL referees and officials to weigh in on almost every close play. The latter has become a carriage industry in the NFL.
“We want to go back and look at the facts,” Goodell said. “We may not with every TV announcer or great officiating expert, but we think our officials have done a good job. We’re always going to look to our Competition Committee and everything else we have to improve our officiating. But it will never be perfect.”
The drill on game day is the announcers question a call, the officiating consultant analyzes whether the call is correct or not, and games are delayed while every replay known to modern man shows angles that prove the officials got it right and wrong at the same time.
“I think we all have to realize through the quality of what we see on our broadcast, you’ve never been able to see the kinds of things that you can see today,” Goodell said. “You see it in super slow motion. You see it where you can actually stop it. Sometimes that distorts a call potentially but the reality is our officials are potentially held to an incredibly high standard, and I think they meet it. Will we try to get better? You betcha.”
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The Eagles held a walkthrough Wednesday. Great news: Guard Landon Dickerson (elbow), defensive end Robert Quinn (foot) practiced fully.
Just as great news: Offensive tackle Lane Johnson (groin, resting player), center Cam Jurgens (hip, resting player), cornerback Avonte Maddox (toe, resting player) were limited, their same status before the Birds won the NFC title game.
For the Chiefs, wide receiver Kadarius Toney (ankle, hamstring) was limited but everyone else practiced fully, including quarterback Patrick Mahomes (ankle).
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Also at the commissioner’s presser, Goodell conceded he put Dallas great Drew Pearson up to that infamous speech praising the Cowboys before announcing the pick made in the second round of the 2017 draft at the Art Museum in Philadelphia.
The topic was raised when Goodell was asked if appreciated the booing he receives while introducing the picks in the first round.
“I actually love it, personally,” Goodell said. “It’s a way for fans to interact. It’s a way for them to be part of it. I always tell this story, there was a former player, I’ll leave his name out for right now. He played for the Dallas Cowboys. He saw me getting booed. He said, ‘Do you think they’re going to boo me?’ We were in Philadelphia at the time.
“The Philadelphia fans are pretty good at booing, let me just tell you. I said, ‘They’re going to boo you so hard you’re not even going to believe it. So, you ought to come back with something else.’
“So, he came out,” Goodell continued, “and all he did was talk about the great Dallas Cowboys and their Super Bowl champions. And the Philadelphia fans went at him like you can’t believe. And he said, ‘That was the most I’ve ever been booed in my life.’ But he turned it around and made it a positive. And it was extraordinary.”
The jeering got so loud in the middle of Pearson’s rant outside the Art Museum it took courage to finish.
Source: Berkshire mont
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