Link: Cowlishaw Explains the Revis Theory
Tim Cowlishaw, who reported yesterday that the Jets are close to a new deal for star cornerback Darrelle Revis, took to his blog this morning to offer an explanation for his Wednesday prediction.
My quiet day ended when I obtained some information early in the afternoon about Darrelle Revis, the Jets’ fabulous cornerback who has been holding out from camp in order to get a new contract.
The source of information was good, someone I have used before. Beyond that, I won’t go into further details.
Originally I was told the signing would be “probably Wednesday or Saturday.” That seemed strange that there would be a possible range of three days in the situation.
But when I found out one other aspect of the story that made me believe it had to be true, Wednesday made a lot more sense than Saturday. Since the 140-character nature of Twitter doesn’t lend itself to expanding on one’s thoughts, I just typed “probably Wednesday.”
Even limiting myself to that, “probably Wednesday” sounded weird, like I was hedging my bets. I wasn’t trying to suggest there’s a deal-breaker involved, but who knows? Things of that nature happen all the time. Still, I felt like “probably Wednesday” was the most accurate information I could provide at the time.
Once that one tweet was out there, my chances of getting much of the day off were shot (although I did manage to squeeze in three games at Top Golf with Ben and I didn’t forget to skype Rachel).
It didn’t surprise me that my information was getting shot down right and left by those covering the Jets. As a beat writer covering the Cowboys for six years, I did a lot of “shooting down” and this was in the early days of ESPN and long before the world was wired and Twitter came along.
I talked to ESPN’s Chris Mortensen and the New York Daily News‘ Gary Myers on the phone, a couple of guys I have known for 20 years or more. I exchanged texts or, in some cases, tweets with others I have had long relationships with.
They were supportive if curious as to how this information was coming from a Dallas-based general columnist. Understandably curious.
As for those who said I was making it up to get more followers: Does that sound like a good thing to do? I’ve worked for The Dallas Morning News for more than 20 years, ESPN for another seven. Is just making stuff up and having no clue about it a big part of my history?
Getting predictions wrong, yeah, I’ve done that two or three times. Two or three thousand times, I mean.
Throwing stuff against the wall with no idea whether or not it might stick? Not a real good way to maintain any shred of credibility.
The messages coming in from Jets’ fans were pretty much non-stop and the only surprising thing about any of that was how many of them seemed to suggest they didn’t think Revis would sign until well into the season, if at all.
How often does that happen? How often does that work?
Emmitt Smith got extra guaranteed money by sitting two games in 1993. But that was the league MVP-to-be and he had to get somewhat lucky in rolling the dice that the Cowboys would go 0-2 to Washington and Buffalo and that Coach Jimmy Johnson would go so crazy about it that Jerry Jones would have no choice but to cave in.
As great a player as Revis is, that’s a big gamble to take.
Regardless, it does not appear that he is going to roll those dice. All signs indicate that the Revis saga, a major storyline for HBO’s Hard Knocks‘ special on the Jets, ends this week.
And then I can tweet more about Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon … even if it doesn’t quite reach the same audience that Darrelle Revis does.
68 Responses to Link: Cowlishaw Explains the Revis Theory
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he still seems confident..even after all the backlash. he could have easily backed out by now, saying he mixed up mangold and revis. wednesday will be a big day for mr. cowlishaw as well as all of us.
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He posted this at 6:23AM this morning on his blog, this after all of the “it’s Mangold, not Revis” stories started coming out last night. So it looks like Mangold aside, Cowlishaw is sticking by his story that Revis signs this week.
I am trying to temper my excitement, but man, would this be sweet or what?
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he responded on twitter yest to someone who thought he mixed up mangold and revis
“@Jets321 yeah I don’t know the difference between mangold and revis. Please…
he’s certainly sticking to his guns i hope he is right!! -
He did clarify that potential mix-up last night though saying he knew the difference between Mangold and revis.
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I hope Cowlishaw is right but I’m dubious. How likely is that one Dallas guy has the scoop when the beat reporters, Mortensen, Shefter, King and all their respective contacts got nothing?
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it was suggested earlier that he may have an HBO source from when the cowboys were on hard knocks..bit of a stretch, but who knows
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great point…that could possibly be true they do have hidden cameras all over tanny office…maybe some film crew guy has loose lips…
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I doubt he would put his reputation in NY on the line if he didn’t truly believe his report. And remember, it’s not about the reporter, it’s about the source. If Cowlishaw has a mole in Schwartz’s office (which is more likely, since Cowlishaw doesn’t have any NY connects it is more likely he’d have one in the agent business) then this could be possibly true. Or if the team submitted papers to the league, it could be a league office mole. Either way, it’s not out of the question.
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from all i’ve read by him it seems like it must be a hard knocks source. at the end of his article he says how the drama on hk will be over this week and also his insistence that it’ll be on wednesday makes me believe that. but it’d be weird that an hbo source is someone he’s used before who “has never been wrong”. what stories would he get from hbo. so my guess is its someone from nfl films (they film hk in conjuction w/ hbo) who very easily could have football stories in the past. other possibility i’ve heard floating around is wannstedt who apparently he once covered and was revis’ college coach
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The HK connection doesn’t make sense.
They prepare each episode late Tuesday, and pull all the film together, edit it, decide what the stories are and write and record the narration, all in a blur to race to get it on by Wednesday night.
This isn’t live TV, in which that scenario would be possible. This is film. Wednesday? No can do.
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It would be like the jets to do both at once, if possible. Make a splash! I doubt he’s making it up. If it’s not true it’s because the source is wrong. He’ll look like a loser if it is wrong!
I’m sure it’ll energize the team to get Revis back! Let’s hope!!
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C Low says:
I bet you Revis is going to pull a LeBron. At the very end of HK’s this Wednesday you will see a quick clip of Revis in his Jet jersey close-up and he says “GUESS WHO’S BAAAAAAAAAAACCCCKKKK!!!!!”
Hey, I can dream right?!?!?
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Wouldn’t surprise me. It would really boost HBO’s ratings so the Jets would probably get paid, maybe that’s even how they’re affording Revis’s contract haha… with the extra income they get by making the announcement on Hard Knocks. Maybe this guy just knows the producer of the show and that’s his source. Wouldn’t surprise me at all.
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No way. We’re heading into “D’uh!!” territory here.
To up the ratings on Wednesday’s episode, they’d have to announce it at least by early Tuesday for fervor to build and turn into more viewers.
If they signed him quietly on Tuesday for a SURPRISE!!!!! announcement on Wednesday, what are the odds against it not leaking by Wednesday?
If they do sign him quietly on Tuesday to announce it on Wednesday, they get NO extra viewers, just the ones who were going to watch it anyway.
So, the Conspiracy Theories are strictly the balliwick of Conspiracy Theorists.
Let’s go back to football…
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well Tim Cowlishaw keeps insisting that he knows something noone else does. When I initially heard the news yesterday I thought to myself, his account had to have been hacked, which now I know is NOT the case. I figured why would a Dallas writer be the one breaking this news. Now I’m cautiously optimistic I must say. I think Tim may be right. Until I hear Tanny, Rex, Woody, or Darrelle himself some out and say it, I won’t believe it though. We’ll have to wait ’til later on in the week. What a coincidence that Mangold is in serious contract talks with the Jets just a few hours after Cowlishaw made his report. hmmm, interesting….
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I really hope he is right. This reminds me a little bit of when Stephen A. Smith reported that James, Wade, and Bosh would all go to Miami. Most Knicks fans absolutely killed the guy, but I was a bit more hesitant. When someone seems that confident and is willing to put their reputation on the line, it is usually for good reason. I really hope we see Revis in a Jets uniform. Revis, Cro, and Wilson will give the Jets a disgustingly good secondary. Cro would get a ton of picks opposite Revis. His arms can cover like a quarter of the field. Its insane how long they are!
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Exactly. He reported that they were going to Miami, just like Cowlishaw is reporting that Revis is signing in NY. When you have been around for as long as SAS or Cowlishaw, you make good connections. Sometimes those guys have connections that the local beat writers don’t have. Anyway, lets just hope he is right and I can wear my Revis jersey again!
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Lol I can’t stand SAS. He is one of the most annoying people in sports media. He did get the “big 3″ story right though. He has good sources. It doesn’t mean he is a good writer or a good analyst.
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I understand your point, but I personally believed smith was just throwing darts and hoping it stuck and he was going to stick by it through thick and thin. And it worked.
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Idk he seemed pretty confident. Thats what I thought at first, but then when he got that “you are all going to eat your words” attitude, I thought he might have some legit info. I don’t really like SAS, but he could have some good inside info. He has a ton of connections in the NBA.
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Maybe I am just hoping, but i don’t see any reason for cowlishaw to make this up, and the fact that he is in dallas doesn’t mean he can’t have a source. Let’s face it since the media blackout no one really has had any info, this is the first we’ve seen, again maybe hoping but it seems like news.
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Horrible trade. Rex has coached both and calls Revis the best defender in the league. In those same talks he mentions coaching Ray Lewis and Ed Reed. My point is he compares those guys at there peak to Revis NOT Ngata so clearly he doesn’t think he is at Revis’s level. Also, he and Tanny have said that Rex is in love with CBs and this D is built from the back forward. That why Wilson came off the board instead of a pass rusher or run stopper.
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if he’s right his rep gets elevated big time! if he’s wrong he loses all credibility in the new york market for a long time
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Aside from wanting Revis back, I mainly want him to be right just so he can shove it up Florio’s a**! :=)
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If, or rather when, this comes about, the contract will be scrutinized ad nauseum with regard to the state of the Jets, having paid that amount. FO cannot win,can they….
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Hey It would make a AWESOME Episode of Hard Knocks.
“The Return Of Revis”.
As long as we can resign our other people Im good with it. -
Just a thought, maybe the fact that they have a deal for Mangold is an indication that they have a deal in place for Revis. They might have been waiting to see if they could get a deal done with Darrelle, just to see what kind of money they’re looking at for Nick. I’m probably wrong, but it’s not out of the question
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Yeah I read that on a previous thread (not sure if that was you), it makes a lot of sense. I commented there how it’s a very big spread between the two possibilities:
1) we needed the Revis deal in place to make Mangold’s deal work now
or
2) we gave up on Revis’ deal and just went on to Mangold, hoping to strike a fire in Revis.
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well i guess i wont work this week while on the blogs reading one good thing is im typing faster.who needs school just go to a blog and give opinions.
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I’m gonna go ahead and believe him…the mangold news was pleasantly surprising so that’ll soften the disappointment if the revis ordeal doesn’t end up being true.
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I feel much better after reading that. If Revis signs this week, Cowlishaw is my new fav media guy lol. I’ll watch Around the Horn way more now and vocally cheer for Cowlishaw to win. I might even make a Tim Cowlishaw ATH jersey.
On the other hand, if this does go down on Hard Knocks and it was intended to be the best surprise any of us would have ever had in our lives, unless any of our gfs took that whipped cream bikini idea from Varsity Blues to heart… then way to ruin it Cowlishaw!!!
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I don’t know about that. How ruinned can it be? If Cowlishaw called you at your job and said his sources told him your girlfriend was waiting at home to surprise you with a whipped cream bikini on, how many of us wouldn’t drop the phone and break the speed limit to get home and lick that pie! The thrill of the surprise may be gone but, oh how sweet the reward is!! LOL!!
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How sweet would it be if the opening scene of this Wednesday’s HK was Revis signing his contract, just like Rex in the first episode.
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Wednesday or Saturday? Hmm…
If it were Wed, do they have time to get footage prepped and aired that night? Probably only if it was footnote, I doubt they could go and plan for that without it being signed sealed and delivered. Or maybe not.Our next game is Friday, so maybe not to distract our gameplan this week? It doesn’t overshadow our game? The speculation alone might overshadow this whole week.
Saturday because it gives them ample to time to film for the 4th episode? Also to give him a full week to prepare for the 4th game?
Cowlishaw has ruined my productivity today.
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Honestly I don’t think they give a fluke what H.K. thinks about whats good for their show. It’s DARRELLE REVIS! HBO is just there to capture the moment, not reconstruct when and how the Jets does its business… If Darrelle came in the building to sign you think Woody is going to say, Hey you think we should let him sign now H.K. or whats good for you guys’ schedule??? lol
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“Originally I was told the signing would be “probably Wednesday or Saturday.” That seemed strange that there would be a possible range of three days in the situation.
But when I found out one other aspect of the story that made me believe it had to be true, Wednesday made a lot more sense than Saturday. Since the 140-character nature of Twitter doesn’t lend itself to expanding on one’s thoughts, I just typed “probably Wednesday.””
would like to know what he found out that made him believe the report and what made him think it would come out on wednesday rather than saturday…
hmmm..
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that very well could be an HBO source then. Can footage from wednesday still make it for that nights episode? I thought they said they edit it and deliver it late in the day, but I don’t actually know.
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I like his explanation…
better than the, “his account is hacked…no it wasn’t, sorry” rumors going around yesterday..I guess we’ll just wait and see..
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850k for Coleman ? No matter what he does I’ll always think of Peyton Manning when I hear Colemans name ..
Oyea…. Fu*k Revis .. That is all
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I want Revis to play, but not if he gets a stupid contract that screws the team. It must be beneficial for the Jets as well.
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I used to care about 2011 +. However this close to the season I just want Revis here. The NFL is SO liquid that if you don’t strike while the iron is hot you never may win it. I just want to see how dominant this super team can be with Revis playing and not wondering what if. This team is so close THIS YEAR. Next year, with or without Revis…..who knows?
I’ll worry about 2011 in 2011. I’m a Jet fan, I want to live in the present not 2011, not 1999 when Vinny goes down in week 1. ……NOW -
I think if this has to do with Hard Knocks it all adds up and makes sense. HBO certainly can’t tease it because that would just give it away and they can’t leak it to the NY media because that would give it away too. That’s why leaking it to someone like Cowlishaw makes sense, it doesn’t seem to add up but gives some buzz and makes people think something might go down in hard knocks this week. Bottom line if Revis is in uniform for Game 1 then all will be forgiven, ok maybe not forgiven but definitely forgotten until the next contract issue with him comes up. I am going to remain cautiously optimistic…
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lol yeah if jerry jones is willing to give up his first round pick for the next 10 years then it would be a good deal, there is no player on the Cowboys roster the Jets would upgrade themselves with and definitely no CB that would be better than Cromartie or Wilson
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well Tony Romo is miles ahead of Sanchez but I hear you. No way Revis is getting traded to Dallas.
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Tom Brady said he hates the Jets( big surprise).I’d like to see Revis back so we can send in some crazy blitzes. I want Brady to walk off the field needing 12 stitches.
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THIS JUST IN…….REVIS IS BEING COURTED BY SPORANO, LEBRON, BOSH, and WADE ……
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lol yeah Darrelle is a pretty good basketball player from what I’ve heard but I don’t think the Heat have enough cap space to give him the money he would want as the best point guard in the NFL
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If Wed date is for the HK episode, does it make sense to keep him out of practice? Unless HBO is kicking is ome guaranteeed money, I would rather see the signing sooner rather the later. I could care less if HBO gets better ratings.
Really ? I don’t want to get excited for nothing…