I have not been to a secret meeting in my private jet recently, but I do have a heaping helping of links for you to digest this morning...and another, as usual, monster day on tap for TST. Plenty of headlines for the St. Louis Rams and the NFL as the labor battle kicks off again tomorrow after a lengthy intermission.
Also, a big thanks to my family over at Cards Diaspora and the United Cardinal Bloggers for having me on their podcast last night to talk about old times and frustrating new times. Give it a listen. You can hear the tale of how I let our old URL get us held hostage by Russian mobsters muscling in on the URL business.
Diving in...
Making sense of the not-so-secret ownership meeting
PFT tries to make some sense of the small group of owners who got together outside of Chicago yesterday. Their speculation supposes the owners could have met to prep for mediation to begin again on Tuesday, June 7. If the court proceedings that start Friday give the impression that the lockout will continue, parties might be more wiling to strike a deal, especially since it's really getting down to the wire.
Bernie: I'm pro-STL
Bernie Miklasz from the Post-Dispatch offers his take on the labor mess a day before both sides present oral arguments in front of the 8th Circuit Court for the appeal of the decision to lift the lockout. Rather than picking a side, Miklasz strikes a position that will keep the Rams in St. Louis, with the economy and a big stadium issue hanging over head. Anyway, it's a must read.
Rams 'surprised' by coaches' association brief
Steve Spagnuolo and the rest of the Rams coaches knew nothing about the coaches association brief filed last week in support of the players. Not surprisingly, coaches from several teams are distancing themselves from the brief.
Breaking down the Jenkins' INT vs Sam Bradford
Matt Bowen from the National Football Post breaks down the Saints' cover 2 red zone defense that resulted in a Bradford INT which Malcolm Jenkins turned into a touchdown. Essentially, Bradford made a rookie mistake, throwing the ball inside to his receiver, Brandon Gibson, which allowed Jenkins to make a play on the ball coming from the inside out. It's a nice piece, but it has nothing on the PBP 3k did on the two-TE set earlier this week.
Bradford also working out with fellow Sooner DeMarco Murray
Sam Bradford has definitely been working out during the lockout. After leading most of his team through a series of workouts last week, Bradford was working out this week with his fellow OU teammate DeMarco Murray, who was drafted by the Cowboys this year.
Shula: Coaches, young QBs in no-win situation with lockout
Don Shula shares his thoughts on the lockout.
Meet Robert Quinn's haberdasher
Haberdashery isn't exactly a dying art, but it just doesn't have the place in used to in society. Too bad. There's nothing better than tailor-made suits. The haberdashers in this story dressed several of the most prominent draft picks this year, including Robert Quinn.
Five questions the Rams have to answer for 2011
Many of these questions you will recognize, since we ask them every day. Still, it's a good catch-all piece on where the Rams are and what else needs to happen to be competitive this year.