MIKE AND MIKE IN THE MAGAZINE

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THE BIG QUESTION:
Why does the coach take the fall? Mike & Mike ask why there's no accountability for those left standing.

GREENY Golic is against the practice of firing a coach or manager just for the sake of firing him, but there really is something to be gained by it.

The Mets are a perfect example. When they fired Willie Randolph and promoted Jerry Manuel, their season turned around. Whether or not they wind up in the playoffs, the move was an easy way for ownership to say that the status quo was unacceptable.

GOLIC You said the key word: easy. It's an easy change, and if the Mets don't make the playoffs, you can't say the move worked. Then where does the mirror go? In front of Omar Minaya, or the players, where it belongs?

GREENY In blackjack, you can make the right play and still lose. Big moves are meant to shake things up. The Brewers thought Ned Yost's personality was part of the reason the team was playing tight. If Milwaukee makes the playoffs, the brass will look like geniuses.

GOLIC I understand what you're saying, but I want to know where the finger will be pointed when the teams don't make the playoffs.

GREENY It won't matter. It's sad, but teams make changes for the sake of change in the NBA and MLB because the players have guaranteed contracts; you can't just get rid of them. Coaches are the only piece that can be easily moved. In the NFL, coaches have more job security because their players' contracts aren't guaranteed; they can be moved.

GOLIC Look at the modern-era Steelers: You can count all the head coaches they've ever had on one hand. They've had success by riding out the ups and downs. Meanwhile, most teams in other leagues change coaches like they change clothes, and it just doesn't work.

PREDICTIONS SURE TO GO WRONG

GREENY Warren Sapp will be a worse dancer than any other former pro athlete who has competed on Dancing With the Stars.

GOLIC I predict the day Warren Sapp reads this will be the last day of Mike & Mike in the Morning.

MEANWHILE, ON CAMPUS …

GOLIC It's early to be talking Heisman, but you can't knock out Tim Tebow—Florida keeps winning. But Mark Sanchez should be considered because USC is the top team, and Chase Daniel at Missouri is playing extremely well too.

GREENY My overriding first impression is that Mark Sanchez looks like he was separated at birth
from Mark Consuelos, Kelly Ripa's husband.

THE BIGGEST NFL SURPRISES SO FAR

GOLIC I texted Greeny during the Green Bay-Detroit game and told him he was watching the best quarterback in the NFL. I always thought Aaron Rodgers would be a good NFL quarterback, but he's succeeding even faster than I expected. He's comfortable in the pocket, has great accuracy and is firing on all cylinders.

GREENY The Panthers, who decided on their own to suspend Steve Smith—arguably their best player—for disciplinary reasons, have been a surprise. Going out and winning your first two games, including one against the Chargers that looked like a sure loss before the season, while sending a message about team discipline? No team has gotten off to a better start than that.

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