Football this 'n' that

 The frustration over not reaching the Super Bowl for the first time in over 30 years has reached a boiling point for Buffalo Bills fans.

This morning, the Bills dismissed head coach Sean McDermott after 9 seasons, in which the Bills reached the postseason 8 times, including two trips to the AFC title game, in which they lost to Kansas City both times. After being eliminated in the divisional round at Denver on Saturday, McDermott went off on game officials over a controversial 4th quarter play in which Denver's Ja'Quan McMillian appeared to have intercepted a pass from Josh Allen by picking the pocket----literally-----of receiver Brandon Cooks after Cooks was down by contact.

The ensuing controversy suggests to detractors yet again that the league is looking to manipulate the tournament to get the best matchup that they want, not the fans, thinking it'll generate more ratings, and overshadow the controversy already existing surrounding halftime headliner Bad Bunny.

Overall, game officials have had so many gaffes this season, it should be an official stat all by itself.

So, what happens next for the Bills?

The easiest answer that comes to mind is a reunion with Brian Daboll, who was let go by the Giants in November. Assuming GM Joe Schoen follows Daboll out of New Jersey, given the hiring of John Harbaugh over the weekend, the Pegulas, the owners of the Bills & Sabres, would welcome them both back. If not, the carousel will spin again.

We just learned that the Miami Dolphins have settled on defensive assistant Jeff Hafley, a Siena product, and former UAlbany assistant, as their next head coach, replacing Mike McDaniel. Curious. Another assistant with ties to the 518, Anthony Weaver, a Saratoga & Notre Dame product, is doing interviews, most recently with Pittsburgh. More on both in Tri-City SportsBeat tomorrow.

As noted, John Harbaugh finally signed a 5 year deal with the Giants on Saturday. Wags were claiming Harbaugh wanted more control over player moves, effectively sharing the GM role with Schoen, or, as suggested earlier, pushing Schoen out the door, and back to Buffalo. Stay tuned.

Atlanta has filled their coaching vacancy, bringing Kevin Stefanski, a 2 time Coach of The Year with Cleveland, in to replace Raheem Morris. We'll see how long that lasts.

While Miami likely will have many of their famous alumni (i.e. Michael Irvin, Warren Sapp, Vinny Testaverde, Dwayne Johnson) in town for tonight's College Football Playoff Final vs. Indiana, America's Worst Sports Fan will also be at the game.

Yeah, this guy:

We already know Donald Trump won't stay for the whole game. He left early during the Super Bowl back in February, and left the Army-Navy game last month, also early. I'd say the game ends past his bedtime, but he's a chronic insomniac, given his penchant of middle of the night rage posts on Truthless Social.

And speaking of Army-Navy, Trump is again sticking his bronzed nose where it doesn't belong.

With talk that the CFP will expand in the 2026 season, Trump wants the Army-Navy game to have an exclusive space, that being their traditional date on the 2nd Saturday in December, leading up to the Heisman Trophy ceremony later in the night. If memory serves me, the only other game played the day of Army-Navy last month was a FCS playoff, so Trump's meddling is a FU to the NCAA.

Given his deteriorating mental health, however, there's no guarantee he'll even make it to December as president. He has threatened an executive order to get what he wants. Ironic, considering he was too much of a chicken to serve in the military in the first place, with 5 deferments from the draft for phony bone spurs.

I recommend a public psychiatric examination, before the whole world. No lies, no cover-ups, so that we can all see the real Trump.

Back to the NFL. The weather was the New England Patriots' best friend Sunday, as the Pats eliminated Houston, sending New England to Denver, where they'll be a prohibitive favorite next Sunday, after the Broncos lost Bo Nix for the season with a broken ankle. However, Bear weather didn't help Chicago, as they lost in overtime to the Los Angeles Rams, setting up a 3rd meeting with Seattle in the nightcap on Sunday.