NFL head coaches, Blues notes, and an NBA coach is getting sued. 

The Chip Kelly sequence pretty much sums up how slimy college coaches, and for that matter the entire NCAA is. Perhaps the heat from ongoing investigations at Oregon got a little hotter. Or, the Philadelphia Eagles emptied the vault and gave Kelly two things: 1) money 2) power. 

Good for Doug Armstrong. The Blues’ GM deserves his new five-year contract. Front office stability lays the foundation for a strong organization. Continuity, perseverance, and skill separate the pack in professional sports. Armstrong has a knack for talent, and not necessarily the big-name fish…just good hockey players. 

The latest in Chicago: WHAT THE @#$% ARE THE BEARS THINKING. The Bears took a swing for the fences by choosing Marc Trestman to be the 14th head coach in team history. Trestman hasn’t coached in the NFL for eight years, but had a 64-34 record as head coach in the Canadian Football League. Trestman is a QB guru, having success tuturoing Rich Gannon, Jake Plummer, and Scott Mitchell. His work with college QB’s include Brandon Weeden, Tim Tebow, and Jason Campbell.

His priority in Chicago: Fix Jay Cutler.

Two gambling lines I keep pondering.

• Blues to win the Stanley Cup +1300
• Ravens over Patriots +330

The Patriots are a better team, but the Ravens feel like the 2004 Red Sox. 

It was great to see the Blues scrimmage last night at the Scottrade Center. It’s obvious guys are still working their way into playing shape, as the speed of the game just was not there. Remember though, all 30 clubs are in the same spot endurance-wise heading into Saturday…but the teams that shed it the quickest will prevail the longest.

There is a fine line regarding physical contact during a scrimmage. Getting after it is important, so to is staying healthy. When David Backes opened Roman Polak’s door last night, things got a little chippy, but the captain laughed it off afterwards: 

Quick Blues Hits

• Colin White is going to make the roster, somehow. His winning legacy and veteran presence will benefit the entire defensive unit…even if he plays sparingly.
• Here’s Ken Hitchcock on Vladimir Tarasenko and Jaden Schwartz:

Remember a few weeks back we reported a story about Greg Poppovich getting fined $250,000 for resting his star players unannounced? Well, now he’s getting sued by a Miami lawyer for “economic damages”.

“It was like going to Morton’s Steakhouse and paying $63 for porterhouse and they bring out cube steak,” said Larry McGuinness, who said he bought his ticket on the resale market. “That’s exactly what happened here.”

The man accomplished his task of getting recognized, and remember: there is no such thing as bad publicity.

OK now this is just getting outrageous:

Finally, the Nationals recently signed free agent relief pitcher Rafael Soriano to a $28 million, two-year contract. Maybe he’s worth the money but how much did the Cardinals spend on their Championship quality relievers in 2006 and 2011?

2006: Randy Flores ($350,000), Tyler Johnson (league minimum/pro-rated) Josh Kinney (league minimum/pro-rated) Adam Wainwright ($327,000) Brad Thompson (334,000) Braden Looper (3.5 million)

2011: Fernando Salas (league minimum/pro-rated) Marc Rzepczynski (Blue Jays) Lance Lynn (league minimum/pro-rated) Arthur Rhodes (league minimum/pro-rated) Octavio Dotel (Blue Jays) Mitchell Boggs (431,000) Jason Motte ($435,000)

Hm…

Keep Grindin’