COHEN'S CORNER SPORTS

The Pat Shurmur era is over in New York. The Giants fired Shurmur this morning less than a day after his team completed a 4-12 campaign with a lopsided 34-17 loss to the NFC East Champion Philadelphia Eagles. Shurmur was 9-23 in two seasons at the helm of Big Blue. His teams often didn't compete well enough in games, especially this season as Shurmur benched quarterback Eli Manning after only two games, opting to go for the future with quarterback Daniel Jones. While Jones had his moments, he was under center during a hideous nine-game losing streak, and developed a ability to fumble the football at inopportune times. It was apparent really from the first day he was hired by GM David Gettleman that Shurmur was in over his head. He never looked comfortable here, waging wars with the media, especially WFAN host Mike Francesa, and never carried himself as a leader of men after losses. Shurmur shrugs became a thing of commonplace. With Shurmur out the Giants opted to keep Gettl...

EAGLES 34 - GIANTS 17  The Philadelphia Eagles are going to the playoffs, while the New York Giants are going home wondering who their coach will be in less than 24 hours. When Daniel Jones fumbled the exchange from center, only to watch the ball flop helplessly around the wet MetLife Stadium turf and into the waiting arms of defensive end Fletcher Cox, before Boston Scott capped off the moment with one of his three touchdowns on the night, it became clear this would be the end of an era. In some ways the play was eerily similar to the fumble by another bumbling, fumbling Giants quarterback so many years ago, Joe Pisarcik, when he fumbled in the closing minutes against Philly in 1978, only to have Herman Edwards pick up the loose ball and score. That play known as the Miracle of the Meadowlands was the beginning of the end of those horrible Giants. Help would soon be on the way in the form of George Young, and eventually, Bill Parcells. Giants fans can only hope that Sund...

JETS 13 - BILLS 6  The Jets made history Sunday at Orchard Park. They became very likely the WORST 7-9 football team to ever take a professional football field. Another week, another ugly result, and of late, another ugly victory that has to feel more like a loss for beleaguered Jets fans. The Jets won 13-6, struggling mightily against the Bills JV squad, as the offense again found itself stuck in neutral. Sam Darnold was bad. Yes, it was pouring rain in Buffalo all afternoon, but the quarterback struggled in key situations, more times than not throwing off his back foot and was lucky to come out of the game throwing only one pick. It was not a great day for the Jets so-called franchise quarterback who has been two steps forward and two steps back all season long. Sunday was not a step in either direction, as Darnold threw for 199 yards while completing 23 of 36 passes. Le'Veon Bell had another quiet day carrying the football. After a stellar first half that saw the for...

The New York Mets decided to drop a little Christmas cheer in the laps of Mets fans this Christmas Eve. The ball club notorious for being cheap, signed former New York Yankees reliever Dellin Betances to a one-year deal that will pay him $10.5 million. There is also a players option for 2021 in the deal. The Mets are taking a flyer on Betances who is out to prove that his year of injuries in 2019 are long behind him, as he looks to reclaim his place as one of baseball's top bullpen arms. Here is a fast reaction to the signing!

Things are going to be very interesting in the NFC East in the next week. The Dallas Cowboys 17-9 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night means that Week 17 means everything for the division. The Cowboys could have wrapped up the division title with a win in Philadelphia, but noooooooo. The Cowboys suffered their fourth loss in five weeks, and lost total control of the division in the process. Instead the Eagles now have dibs on the division, and Philly can clinch the division IF they beat the Giants next week in the Meadowlands, or if the Cowboys lose to the Redskins in Dallas in week 17. Most likely the Cowboys will win against Washington in Week 17, meaning the Giants could decide who wins the division. New York has won two in a row, and Daniel Jones tossed five touchdown passes against the Skins. The Eagles are desperate and banged-up, much like the Cowboys. While a Giants upset seems unlikely now, it would give the Cowboys the division. The game could also play...

GIANTS 41 - REDSKINS 35 - Overtime  If New York Giants co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch are on the fence about head coach Pat Shurmur, the embattled coach can only hope that Sunday's performance could help his cause. After pulling the plug on Eli Manning following his send-off against the Miami Dolphins last week, Shurmur went back to Jones, who was riding a personal eight-game losing streak. The rookie turned out easily his best start of the season, a 352-yard masterpiece and five touchdowns -- granted it was against the Redskins, but still a five-touchdown effort nevertheless. Jones joined only Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford as the only rookie quarterbacks to throw for over 300-yards and five scores in a game. Jones started the game tossing a 23-yard score to Sterling Shepherd to make it 7-0 Big Blue, and closed it out with his second touchdown of the day to rookie Kaden Smith in overtime to win it 41-35. Jones was so good that he was going point for point with f...

JETS 16 - STEELERS 10 Saying it wasn't pretty would be a serious understatement.  The Jets 16-10 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers was downright ugly, as Gang Green outlasted a bad Steelers team and its two moribund back-up quarterbacks for their sixth win of the season -- the most victories by a Jets team since 2015. That little fact should provide little solace for Jets fans who probably feel like they were delivered a lump of coal by winning this game. After stories surfaced over the weekend that players do not respect Head Coach Adam Gase, and the video former NFL Safety Ed Reed recorded at the Jets training facility where he openly rips Gase as "people who get jobs they are not even qualified to be in...," the only thing owner Christopher Johnson is going to care about at the end of the day is wins. And Adam Gase has six of them. Like I mentioned earlier, the six victories is most 'W's this team has had in a season since Todd Bowles first seaso...

Give Giants Head Coach Pat Shurmur credit, he outlasted Tom Coughlin by about two and a half weeks. The former Giants head coach, and current Jacksonville Jaguars Vice President of Football Operations was fired Wednesday after the NFL Players Association sent out a letter warning potential free agents not to sign in Jacksonville after it became apparent that Coughlin was fining players for not attending rehab and doctors appointments in Jacksonville. The biggest example was former Jaguar Dante Fowler who threatened with a fine in excess of $700,000 if he didn't attend physical rehab within the organization. The NFLPA also stated that more than 25 percent of  grievances that have been filed by players have come against the Jaguars, a clear sign that Coughlin was completely insubordinate in his job. Coughlin always had an edge to him. When he was the head coach of the Giants, he was notorious for running training camp and practices like a drill sergeant, and players in the ea...

GIANTS 36 - DOLPHINS 20  There was something special about this game when on Friday the Giants announced that Eli Manning would make the start for the second consecutive week. The Giants losers of nine straight games, a team in complete and utter turmoil, whose head coach should and likely will be fired in two weeks, finally won a game for the first time since September. If you want the math, it has been 76 days since Big Blue last won a football game. In that time, the Yankees swept the Twins before falling to the Astros in the ALCS; the Mets won a game; the Jets won five games; and the Knicks won six games -- and fired a coach. Yeah, it was a long drought. But Sunday's 36-20 victory over the Miami Dolphins wasn't so much about snapping the skid as it was about quarterback Eli Manning. In what could be his final start in a Giants uniform -- pending Daniel Jones' ankle, of course, Manning guided the Giants to victory for 117th time. He is at .500 in his career as ...

RAVENS 42 - JETS 21 Let's face it, this game was over when the sun rose Thursday morning. The Jets had no shot against the heavily favored Baltimore Ravens. Quarterback Lamar Jackson -- as he has done all season -- ripped up another opposing defense with both his arm and legs as the Ravens stomped on the hopeless Jets in  a 42-21 drubbing that wasn't even that close. Right from the onset, fans knew where this game was going when Gang Green managed only five yards on its fist possession, while Jackson guided the Ravens on a nine-play, 84-yard drive for the opening salvo to make it 7-0 birds. It was just a none contest. Jackson was too fast as he broke the single season rushing record for a quarterback, once held by Mike Vick, on the opening drive of the game. He also picked apart a horrendous Jets secondary, finding open men all over the field when he wanted to. Overall, Jackson threw for 212 yards and five touchdowns to five different receivers. It's the third tim...

The New York Mets made a firm and quick response to the Yankees signing of Gerrit Cole ... eh ... sort of ... The Mets agreed to terms with former St. Louis Cardinals right-hander Michael Wacha on a one-year deal worth $3 million. He will slot into the number four or five spot in the rotation behind Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Marcus Stroman and Steven Matz. This is a good signing by the Mets, and one that carries little risk. The 28-year old went 6-7 with 4.67 ERA in 29 appearances for St. Louis last season, a year where Wacha also made five appearances out of the bullpen. Wacha was a break out star for the Cardinals in 2015, when he went 17-7 with a 3.38 ERA. His namesake, of course, drawing comparisons to the famous saying by Jim Henson's Fozzy Bear muppet, Wacha became an instant star in the sport. However, injuries hampered the righty the past few seasons. Wacha dealt with shoulder inflammation in 2016, making only 24 starts that year. Two years ago he missed a...

Just hours after the New York Yankees lost Didi Gregorius to the Philadelphia Phillies, the Bronx Bombers scooped up free agent pitcher Gerrit Cole on a record breaking nine-year, $324 million deal.  Didi who? Exactly.  The Yankees got the pitcher they have coveted for well over a decade when they drafted him out of high school in 2008. Back then, Cole spurned the Yanks for college and UCLA. Cole would eventually make it to the Big Leagues, but with Pittsburgh, before being dealt to Houston in 2018.   The Yankees always wanted to have Cole on their team for so many reasons, the obvious being he was a combined 35-10 with a 2.68 ERA in Houston the past two seasons, and his record setting 326 strikeout season in 2019 was certainly none too shabby.  The guy is a difference maker, just ask the Astros who watched Cole win 20 games for them and lead them to an American League title this past season.  Cole, a Yankee fan growing up in California, who...

EAGLES 23 -  GIANTS 17  Overtime  Eli Manning made his return to the starting lineup, Monday night, and were it not for an Eagles second half rally, and eventual win in overtime, it was a successful return to the field. Yes, the Giants lost their ninth straight game; they stand at a woeful 2-11, as head coach Pat Shurmur's seat continues to get red hot by the day. But for one half of football anyway, Eli Manning proved that he can still play in this league. He proved in one half of football that Pat Shurmur and David Gettleman were too quick to pull the trigger on him after a Week 2 loss to the Buffalo Bills. He proved that he has enough left in the tank to play at a high level and win. Unfortunately for Eli Manning, he is playing on a dumpster fire of a football team. In the first half Manning looked great. He was 11-of-19 for 179 yards and two touchdowns, both of which were long distance TD's to Darius Slayton of 35-yards and 55-yards respectively, as Big Blue bu...

Stop me if you heard this before. The New England Patriots have been caught videotaping a teams sideline during a live game. Spygate II, the sequel the NFL didn't want is here. According to ESPN, the NFL is currently investigating why the Patriots had a video crew taping in the press box of the Cleveland Browns - Cincinnati Bengals game, Sunday. The video crew was credentialed by the Browns to be there to video a series called "Do You're job" about the Patriots scout team. The Patriots play the Bengals next week. However, the Bengals were not made aware of the recording, and found out through a Bengals employee that the Patriots were video taping the Bengals sideline. The Bengals employee "flagged Bengals security and media relations, then interviewed the Robert Kraft videographer. The league hasn't issued a statement and is has a copy of the video. Meanwhile, the Patriots tweeted out a response , explaining their version of the story. "For ...

JETS 22 - DOLPHINS 21 The Jets had no business winning this football game against the Miami Dolphins at MetLife Stadium. But, they did -- not because it was anything they did. Adam Gase didn't draw up some brilliant play call. Sam Darnold didn't turn into John Elway in the fourth quarter. Instead the Jets needed the refs to overturn a supposed pass interference call on third and 18 in order to give New York a chance to win the football game. Dolphins head coach Brian Flores hated the call, and even charged after the refs afterwards, and who could blame him? The reversal was horrendous.  Yes, the corner did have a hand on Vyncint Smith's back, but only reached around to block the ball. He didn't grab onto Smith's arms, and didn't spin him around. The original call of incomplete was correct, but the refs reversed it. Terrible call against Miami. A boon to Gase and the Jets, they should send Christmas gifts. The win overshadows what was a horrible effor...

This might be the single greatest day in New York Mets history. The long, horrifying nightmare that has been the reign of Fred and Jeff Wilpon is mercifully coming to an end. At least soon anyway. Reports are sizzling up the hot stove that the infamous owners are looking to sell 80 percent of team to billonaire Steve Cohen (no relation by the way). The transaction would value the Mets at $2.6 billion. Cohen is a Long Island native, and avid Mets fan. According to Bloomberg, he is somewhat "controversial" and his life story inspired the long-running Showtime hit, "Billions" (we assume Damien Lewis' character). That's the exciting news. The sobering news? The Wilpon's will remain in control of the team for at least five more years though at least 2025. Even if the sale is complete and Cohen controls the team, the Wilpon's will still have a stake, so they aren't going away. The sale is welcome news to Mets fans who have suffered for years...

When the New Jersey Devils fired head coach John Hynes Tuesday afternoon, it had an immediate impact on their former co-tenants the Brooklyn Nets. Nets Coach Kenny Atkinson is currently the longest tenured head coach in the Tri-State. Hynes held the distinction previously, having led the Devils since 2015, but with his ouster it is now Atkinson who is the longest tenured coach in town, having helmed the Nets since 2016. The current list of coaches for all nine major, professional sports teams is as follows: NBA Kenny Atkinson, Brooklyn Nets, Hired April 2016 David Fizdale, New York Knicks, Hired May 2018 NHL David Quinn, New York Rangers, Hired May 2018 Barry Trotz, New York Islanders, Hired May 2018 Alain Nasreddine, New Jersey Devils, Promoted December 2019 NFL Pat Shurmur, New York Giants, Hired January 2018 Adam Gase, New York Jets, Hired January 2019 MLB Aaron Boone, New York Yankees, Hired December 2017 Carlos Beltran, New York Me...

Finally! Finally, a team in this area had the gumption to do what needed to be done, as the New Jersey Devils fired head coach John Hynes after a horrible 9-13-4 start to the 2019-20 season. Let's be honest this needed to happen. The Devils had high expectations coming into the season. They drafted Jack Hughes with the number one overall pick in last Spring's draft, and acquired an All Star defenseman in P.K. Subban, and even had Taylor Hall healthy for the first time in two years. And what has it wrought? Absolutely nothing but more misery. Hall, for example, has scored only four goals this year, and is 1-for-9 on power plays, a stark contrast from where he was two years ago when Hall netted career highs in goals (39) and power play goals (13). Devils fans have to wonder if they will ever get the best of Hall ever again. Subban, whom the Devils acquired last summer in a deal with Nashville, has been nothing but disappointing. Subban's shooting percentage is down ...

After another dispiriting week for New York football, the Hot Seat has been turned up on Giants head coach Pat Shurmur and Jets head coach Adam Gase. There is not much to say anymore. Shurmur's Giants are 2-10, in the midst of an eight game losing streak, while Gase's Jets are coming off a horrible 22-6 loss to the once winless Cincinnati Bengals. On this week's Open Mike Podcast we talk about both situations.

Happy Anniversary Mets fans! It may not be at the level of Bobby Bonilla Day -- yet, but it is an anniversary that Mets’ fans shudder to think about. It was one year ago today that Mets General Manager Brodie Van Wagenen completed a deal with the Seattle Mariners to acquire closer Edwin Diaz and second baseman Robinson Cano for Jay Bruce, Anthony Swarzak and three prospects, one of whom turned out to be Jarred Kelenic. We all know what happened. The trade turned out to be a colossal disaster for the Mets. Diaz, who was the AL Reliever of the Year in 2018, was the complete antithesis last season, posting a career worse 5.59 ERA in 66 games, while blowing seven saves and losing his position as the teams closer. Instead the Mets had to rely on a closer by committee of Seth Lugo, Justin Wilson and Robert Gsellman just to end games without having to worry a large lead would be blown. Robinson Cano was no better. The 36-year old second baseman sent to the Mets as a cash d...

BENGALS 22 - JETS 6  So Christopher Johnson, how about that endorsement of head coach Adam Gase now? Better yet, will the Jets skip partying at Bounce Sporting Club this week? Yes, the Jets three-game winning streak came to a thundering halt Sunday at the hands of the once 0-11 Cincinnati Bengals, who dominated a pathetic Jets football team 22-6. It was almost like the Jets were the 0-11 team, not the Bengals. As has become typical under Gase, the Jets looked ill-prepared, unfocused and unmotivated. So much for a three-game winning streak that now seems like a distant memory. As much as people will point out that the Jets winning streak came against the Giants, Redskins and Raiders who together are a combined 11-25, how does one come up with an excuse for this latest disaster? The Jets made history Sunday in losing to the Bengals, becoming the first team in NFL history to lose to two teams who were 0-7 or worse in the same season. If you need a reminder the Jets fell on th...

PACKERS 31 - GIANTS 13 About the only nice thing that happened Sunday at MetLife Stadium was the snow in the first quarter. Nothing says the holiday season than football in a snow globe. Other than that, there was not much else to root for for Giants fans, other than continue booing a horrid football team. The G-Men were predictably run over by the Packers, Sunday as Aaron Rodgers picked apart Big Blue's leaky defense for four touchdowns in a 31-13 victory. Meanwhile, Daniel Jones again struggled, tossing three interceptions as the Giants failed to answer three Green Bay touchdowns in the blowout defeat. It was the typical tease Giants fans have grown accustomed to. Trailing 7-0, Jones engineered an 11-play, 71-yard drive, dashing through the snowfall en route to the tying score, an 18-yard pass from Jones to Sterling Shepherd. It didn't take long for Rodgers and the Packers to respond. After scampering for a 15-yard gain on a key third and five, Rodgers found Allan...

JETS 34 - RAIDERS 3  Raiders head coach Jon Gruden spent the entire afternoon screaming and yelling at the refs and his football team, while the suddenly surging Jets became the first time in NFL history to score 34 points in three-straight games, as Gang Green slammed the Oakland Raiders 34-3 at a near empty MetLife Stadium, Sunday. In a season that was lost long ago, the Jets clicked in every facet of the game for the third consecutive week with quarterback Sam Darnold leading the way. Darnold was near perfect, completing 20-of-29 passes for 315 yards, two touchdowns and a rushing score in the victory. For a team that has no discernible offensive line, and a bad running game, Darnold's resurgence has been something to watch. Four weeks ago when the Jets lost to Miami Dolphins 26-18, it appeared that Darnold was regressing, as heat was ratcheted up on head coach Adam Gase. Since that time, Darnold has completed 65 percent of his passes while throwing for seven touchdowns a...

BEARS 19 - GIANTS 14 It isn't so much about how the Giants lost to the Chicago Bears, Sunday, because the script has been the same. Daniel Jones fumbles the ball away; the Giants offense is anemic; the opposing quarterback (today it was Mitchell Trubisky) figures out how to throw a football again, and the Giants waste all of their time outs with more than three minutes to go in the game - costing themselves any shot of winning. Yep, same old, same old for the Giants in a 19-14 loss , Big Blue's seventh straight in fact as they now stand at 2-9, tied for last place in the NFC East. Congratulations. Congratulations to David Gettleman who put this mess together. Congratulations to Pat Shurmur who has coached this team in the ground week-in and week-out. With games against the Packers and Eagles starring them in the face the next two weeks, it is reasonable to think the Giants will be 2-11 before Chanukah. At least they have the Dolphins and Redskins still on the schedule. ...

Nothing was more disturbing and stunning to watch late Thursday night than Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett using the helmet of back-up quarterback Mason Rudolph as his own personal gavel. Late in the fourth quarter, with just seconds to go, and Cleveland already on its way to a 21-7 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, Garrett drove Randolph to the ground; the two of them tussled a little bit, with Rudolph grabbing a hold of Garrett's helmet.  Garrett rose, seemingly enraged by Rudolph's actions, and grabbed a hold of Rudolph's facemark and pulled the quarterback off the ground before finally yanking the helmet off. As guard David DeCastro tried to protect his quarterback, Rudolph tried to grab his helmet back when Garrett slammed the equipment over Rudolph's exposed head. That led to another altercation as center Maurkice Pouncey got into the mix to protect Rudolph, while Browns linebacker Larry Ogunjobi pushed Rudolph to the ground. The images ha...