FanHouse WadeWilson

The Dallas Morning News' Tim MacMahon must've known the poopstorm this would cause, but I give him credit for running with it anyway. He goes about the task of ranking the quarterbacks and has the audacity to put Tony Romo fifth behind Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, and Drew Brees.

Predictably, some Cowboys fans thought Romo was ranked way too low (oddly, nobody thought he was ranked too high), and proceeded to tell us as much. While I have no problems with MacMahon's list, the most intriguing piece of news comes courtesy of commenter Gigante who points to this link and asks, "And this is supposed to make me feel good?"

"You're Phil Mickelson before he won his first major." - Cowboys coach Wade Wilson to quarterback Tony Romo, who has yet to win a playoff game.

First, when I saw "Wade", I just figured it was Phillips and he had confused "Phil Mickelson" with "Brett Favre when he was in Atlanta." It's definitely plausible.

But Wade Wilson? Was he trying to motivate Romo? I mean, it would've been less insulting to say, "If Dr. Frankenstein found a way to combine the worst qualities of Drew Bledsoe, Vinny Testaverde and Quincy Carter, it would be you."

That Romo even made it into MacMahon's top 5 is a testament to his perseverance. In retrospect, maybe Roger Goodell's suspension wasn't harsh enough.

In the wake of Patriotgate, Cowboys quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson has questioned why he got a five-game suspension for receiving a shipment of human growth hormone, while Patriots coach Bill Belichick got no suspension at all for cheating.

But in his interview yesterday with Bob Costas of NBC, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said he didn't buy the comparison:

Costas asked: "Wade Wilson, quarterback coach of the Cowboys, received a shipment of HGH. You suspended him five games, fined him $100,000, which is one-third of his salary. Half a million, we guess, is about one-tenth of Belichick's salary. Wilson, who is no longer a player, said he received it to help him cope with the effects of diabetes. Is that a disproportionate penalty?"

Goodell replied: "First of all, I'm not going to get into the personal situations of why Wade was taking it, but that's not an accurate point. Second of all, Wade Wilson was involved in a criminal activity. It was against the law. There's a very clear policy for our clubs and our players that if you violate that, it's a four-game suspension. I suspended him for five games because I think a coach should be held to a higher standard. That is why I approached it that way. They all understand the rules, and I think we did what was appropriate in Wade Wilson's case, and I'm comfortable with that."

By saying, "that's not an accurate point," Goodell seemed to be suggesting that Wilson is lying when he says he takes HGH for treatment of diabetes. But if that's the case, why wouldn't Goodell get into why Wilson was taking it? Shouldn't there be a full accounting of exactly what Wilson was doing when he illegally acquired a substance that's banned by the NFL?

Remember Wade Wilson, the Cowboys quarterbacks coach who also tested positive for HGH? Yeah, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell suspended him for five games because HGH makes you an unfairly awesome quarterbacks coach.

Actually, Goodell suspended Wilson because HGH is a banned substance ... for players, coaches, ball boys, owners ... basically everybody on an NFL payroll. But with Goodell announcing Bill Belichick's punishment yesterday, Wilson's got some questions:

... Wilson said he intends to write a letter to the league office seeking an explanation for what he considers inconsistent enforcement of NFL policy. Wilson also said he might attempt to determine whether he can appeal his five-game suspension.

"I would say there is definitely a double standard being applied here," Wilson said. "I don't want to be seen as a crybaby or as someone questioning the commissioner's decision, but I see some major inconsistencies here.

Mr. Wilson, can't disagree with you, sir. And in case you missed it, in addition to five-game suspension, Wilson was fined $100,000, nearly a third of his salary. But here's the thing: he was taking HGH for his diabetes impotence (I know, it sounds sketchy -- kinda like taking weed for glaucoma ... but, just go with it).

I don't think Belichick was illegally videotaping opponents for his health. And that $500,000 fine, that's approximately one-eighth Belichick's salary. If the point of a punishment is to serve as a deterrent, the fine is kind of pointless.

I eagerly await Goodell's response to Wilson's concerns.

Patriots safety Rodney Harrison has been suspended for the first four games of the season for admitting to obtaining human growth hormone from an illegal Internet pharmacy. Cowboys quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson has been suspended for five games for essentially the same offense. And former Steelers doctor Richard Ryzde has been fired for his role in the investigation.

But are those the only three people associated with the NFL who were involved? Yes, according to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who says that the league has cooperated fully with investigators and hasn't heard any names other than those three.

That's good news for the league, but it would be naive to think those are the only three people in the NFL who have any connection to HGH. As long as the league doesn't test its players for HGH -- the league and the union say no reliable test exists; some experts believe it is possible to test for it -- it's safe to say that many players will use it to gain a competitive advantage. So even if the league's involvement in this case was fairly limited, it's only a matter of time before we next hear about the combination of the NFL and HGH.

Rex Grossman's problems are well documented: he doesn't set his feet, he's loose with the football, he makes bad decisions. Grossman knows this, Lovie Smith knows this, and everybody else knows this.

But here's the thing: new quarterbacks coach Pep Hamilton is actually trying to break the fifth-year quarterback of these bad habits. Something the previous quarterbacks coach didn't do. And when you remember Wade Wilson -- he of 57.3 career completion percentage, 99 touchdowns and 102 picks -- formerly held the job, it kinda makes sense. And Grossman realizes as much now:

"He's come in and specifically worked on the things I didn't do so well last year," Grossman, 27, says of the 32-year-old Hamilton, who coached with the 49ers in 2006. "Stepping up in the pocket, making sure I have two hands on the ball, going through my reads and staying balanced at the top of my drop.

"To not have to do that on your own or try to make someone help you with something is just unbelievable."

Yeah, I think that was aimed at you, Wade. To Grossman's credit, he looked solid during the first few snaps against the Colts' last week, but unfortunately, NFL games aren't four minute affairs.

Obviously, the hope is to mold Grossman into a consistent, competent starter. It's anyone's guess if that's even possible, but you have to like Hamilton's chances over Wilson's. Which reminds me: Cowboys fans might want to take note. Tony Romo's new quarterbacks coach is some dude named Wade Wilson.