The Dean

Why is this a benefit? How does playing on Monday night translate to wins?

He isn't a Buffalo Beat reporter (at least I don't think so). He is their AFC East reporter. And Rex is a terrible hire, IMO. But the point is, a blogger is allowed to have his own opinion and not simply agree with what is being said by others. Now, I happen to agree that Rodak sucks. But I can't agree with your post for the reasons stated.

Let's not forget he is clueless on the offensive side of the ball, and has sucked his past few years as a HC.

I love how everyone is piling on Marrone. Now, I wasn't the biggest Doug fan, nor a hater. I thought he was a flawed coach, but improving. Anyway, according to La Canfora Pegula offered Marrone an extension and expected he would be back. Also, the players seemed pissed he was leaving the team---not happy about it. So, a guy who got an extension offer, and whose players were upset he left, is now a flaming piece of garbage nobody could stand? Color me unswayed by the "kick the fired guy with every insult--and blame him for every bad thing" ploy.

I think that is faulty thinking. Let's look at it this way. The Jets had a very good D last year, as teams typically do with Rex involved. Nobody ever questions Rex's ability to put together a good D. Their D was very close, statistically, to the Bills this year. Their offense was basically a disaster. Guess what other team had a strong D and a weak O? Yet the Bills, under Marrone (who has become the whipping boy for everything anyone doesn't like about the Bills) got the team to 9 wins. This with EJ and Orton and a terrible performance by the OL, Rex eked out 4. with Vick and Gino and by most accounts, a FAR better OL. Are you prepared to say Orton and EJ are 5 wins better than Vick and Smith? What did Marrone have going for him that Rex did not, offensively? Face it, Rex SUCKED this year. And he wasn't much better last year, either. His coaching ability (not just his record) has regressed just about every year since he started with the Jets. Yes, for some reason you love Rex. At the beginning of the year I suggested this would be Rex's last with the Jets. You disagreed. No, this is not an "I told you so" comment---I can't stand those. Over the years we've all made correct predictions and ones that flew in our faces. But I just can't see what you see in Rex's gameday HC performance that impresses you. Add to that, what does he bring to the Bills, who already have a great D? This is a media/PR move. Big name coach, to make it seem the team is doing something different. In reality, IMO, they are just hiring another failed retread HC with a career losing record. I smell Pegula, and maybe even Brandon, on this move. I refuse to believe a football person derided this was the best move for this team. I can only hope this becomes successful as a result of the swagger Rex projects. I'm not too big of a fan of swagger (especially when it isn't backed up) but maybe that is what this team needs. I'm trying to search for ANY positive in this move. I just can't see it at the moment. Looks like I picked a bad day to give up drinking.

With the exception of a couple games at the end of the year, the Jet's laid down like DOGS this year. Yes, the GM sucked, but so did Rex. Nobody ever makes excuses for Bill coaches the way I hear people make excuses for Rex. The had WAY more talent than their record.

As I said in my text to you, this has Pegula written all over it. I can't even fathom it was Whaley's top pick. I hope I'm wrong, but I feel like this is Black Sunday. A proven failure HC, who is a blowhard to boot. Worst HC in the NFL last year---hands down. Of course I'm worried about what it will do to the D, but I'll fell better if Schwartz stays. A move to the 3-4 would be ridiculous at this stage. If Trestman comes (not my first choice, but OK) and brings Cutler, I'll explode. A crappy loudmouth HC and a QB who couldn't lead a girl scout troop. Beautiful! I really hope I'm wrong, but I have a very bad feeling about the Bills immediate future.

Rao's makes a damn fine jarred sauce. Actually I'm embarrassed to admit it, but I always keep a jar or two of sauce on hand, for "emergencies". For me, there are two categories of jarred sauce. Basic: These have minimal ingredients. Usually basic marinara. Victoria's is a good example. No sugar (I refuse to buy jarred sauce that has sugar added.) Typically just tomatoes, salt, pepper maybe a bit of garlic and/or basil. In a pinch you can use it to stretch a sauce if you need to make more in a hurry. Or, if you just are lazy, with a bit of doctoring, you can make a sauce in less time than starting from scratch. Another surprising choice for me in this category is Don Pepino Spaghetti Sauce. Comes in a can, like tomatoes. Can't get it down here, but it is very cheap at Wegman's or Topp's. Ready to serve (more or less): Again, I always doctor jarred sauce a bit. But there are some jarred sauces that are pretty much ready to go, and in fact are better than the sauce in most of the Italian restaurants in St Augustine. Rao's is easily one of the best in this category. I get my jarred sauce at the discount grocery store down the street. Instead of $8+ for a jar of Rao's I pay $3.25 or so. But I've had some very good sauces besides Rao's. Thing is, I can't remember their names. I'd know them if I saw them. But this place doesn't have a consistent inventory. If I recall correctly Nello's might have been the name of one. And there was an arrabbiata from Philly (some guy's first name) that was one of the best I have ever tasted. Damn if I can remember the name, though. La Famiglia DelGrosso Sunday Marinara is pretty good, too. Now, I must go hide in shame.

Browning also adds some flavor. I don't peel my tomatoes either. I know some do,. But when you a making a long cooking sauce, I think it's pretty unnecessary. And, of course, I'm lazy.

Well, good for him---the weight loss that is.

How's Big Gay Al doing?

Maybe my utilities are included. Hardly. Just a home cook with a limited range to be truthful. I try to put some professional techniques to work, when I can. I have WAY too much respect for professional chefs to even pretend to be one. Although, I sometimes think chefs aren't always the greatest cooks---with traditional ethnic dishes, for examples. Old grandmothers (and grandfathers) sometimes can sometimes out-cook a trained chef, IMO. Some people use the meat raw. Like Beerball, I brown my meat (sometimes I even brown the ribs--- ) in the sauce pot. Nice! The rare occasions I use fresh tomatoes are when they are fresh from my, or a friend's, garden.

Pretty good! I worked with a guy in Boston who was Peter Griffin before Peter Griffin was Peter Griffin. Still know him and he's still a real life Peter Griffin.

OK here is an example of where the new quote system didn't work.

I mentioned ribs, as I always use them. But didn't think about the eggs, My grandmother (also from Sicily) did that on occasion. They do nothing for me, so I skip them since, as as you note, they do nothing for the sauce. But my cousins loved them. Nice touch, Beerdude. That sauce looks like crap! (Not the pics in the full article, the the one in the first link.) But truthfully, there are as many different sauces as there are regions of Italy---and more. But I'd only use a carrot if using fresh tomatoes that were sub par. Canned San Marzano tomatoes are sweet enough without the carrots, IMO. But that's just me. I prefer using carrots to raw sugar, which i think totally ruins sauce--even a little bit.

Well, there are many "recipes" for sauce. So I won't try to nitpick yours, too much. Let me just say, I have no "recipe" I just vibe it. And there are several different pasta sauces I regularly make. Some fresher, quick sauces, and some longer cooking meat based sauces (as I assume yours is based on the recipe and ingredients). But I've been doing it for so many years with my mother and grandmothers, that I kind of know what works and what doesn't. Just a few comments: What is "tomato sauce"? Are you talking about something like Hunts caned tomato sauce? If so, I'd advice losing this ingredient. It adds nothing good and can only corrupt the final product, IMO. It has added sugar (typically in the form of corn syrup) which has no real place in a pasta sauce, IMO. It may have a place in the pantry for quick sauces, but not in this case---again, IMO. As for tomato paste, it often depends on the quality of the tomatoes I'm using and the cooking time I have. For me, there is way too much onion in this sauce. I often make sauce with no onions at all. Or, I will cut an onion in half and then squeeze it out at the end, and take the remaining onion out. Now this is a regional thing, I understand. If you like an oniony sauce, by all means keep them. The garlic may be a tad too much too, but I rarely have an issue with that. I actually prefer to cook with dried oregano. I used fresh for years, but oregano is one of the rare herbs that is actually a bit better used in dry form for most dishes. One suggestion is to use dried herbs early in the sauce prep, and add the fresher herbs toward the end. Just a suggestion, not a criticism. I never put thyme in my sauce. Just an observation. And, I like to make sauce with pork and beef ribs, Italian sausage (typically homemade) and sometimes, chicken thighs (a departure from my mother's preferred method) and meatballs at times. BTW, it is important to really wet the breadcrumbs and maybe even add a bit of liquid to the meatballs, if you are using prepared breadcrumbs. In the old days they used dried bread, which they would soak (sometimes in milk) to soften before making the meatballs. Some people, when substituting prepared breadcrumbs forget that extra liquid, and get hard meatballs. For the record, I love my mother's and sister's meatballs, but I am too lazy to make them, and actually prefer the sausage and the chunks of pork and beef that fall off the bones. (Oh, yes, if you use ribs, don't use boneless--I've made that mistake. The bones/marrow add a LOT to the sauce.) As for the the wine and cheese, I start with a bit or red wine (I can't ever remember measuring it) and then, toward the end go by taste. Maybe a bit more wine. Maybe some Romano (usually some Romano--but real pecorino Romano, not this cow's milk crap make in Wisconsin they call Romano)--but any good Italian grating cheese works just fine. The rinds, if you have them, are a great touch. I save my rinds for this occasion. Of course I assume you add salt to the tomatoes when you first put them in. Don't go crazy, but some salt is necessary. More so, if you eliminate the "tomato sauce" which is packed with salt and sugar. And, did you forget some crushed red pepper? Try adding a bit, at least. Me, I'm a freak show and use really hot sausage and extra red pepper--unless I'm cooking for known wimps. Cooking time is important. When possible I cook my sauce the day before I plan to serve it. The rest in the refrigerator overnight really helps the final result, IMO. As to the pasta, I like both fresh and dried. With a big meat sauce, dried pasta is just fine---assuming it is a good brand and a good shape With fresh, make sure it has some texture. Grocery store fresh pastas can be OK, but some are just horrible (like Contadina--smooth and doughy) others are OK (like Monterey). For red sauce, I'll take a quality dried pasta (like Delverde) over a weak fresh pasta in a heart beat. But by and large, I'd say you have a better start than 90% of people out there making sauce.

Hello Hello All good here (Chrome). Looks odd without the /quotes, but I kind of like it better. It is spaced far better than before. Good job, Fearless Leader

There are too many imitators, but only one originator. RIP Mr Scott. You were one of the good ones.

I figured it was some stupid fake wrestling thing. I'll skip watching a video of d-bags.

I have no idea who RKO is, but no enhancement was needed to make that play funny. Look, I like FSU (well, sort of like them) but that was epic fail.

I was very impressed by Polian's comments today. And, while I'm sure he isn't sharing everything, he seemed to be sincere and rather complete. As Tuesday already said" The job became a bigger when Marrone left. Now the Bills are in major "retooling" mode. Was planning on being an "adviser" to the team. The new HC should be assured the guy who hired him will be around for awhile, but he wasn't ready for a long term commitment--nor the extra time commitment. Also his family was against it (holding signs that read ESPN) when he entered the room. Thought the offense needed more Quality players. Says the D has them. Need a QB, of course. Said there doesn't look to be a QB in the later rounds (like Garraffalo or Metz) this year. Said Bill will bring in a vet as #1 or #1a (I think I'm remembering that correctly) Said EJ is, for all intents and purposes, is a still a rookie. (BTW, Polian just mentioned Marrone as a "wise choice" for Atlanta.) Funny thing about that. When he went to Miami didn't he get very involved with the groceries?

Congrats to OSU and Oregon. And poo on the SEC! WooHoo! Great games today and I expect another next week.

I'm not sure your reason #1 is a reason at all.

Meh. I'd rather get a brainer head coach.