James Dolan skates off easy after firing Rangers execs John Davidson and Jeff Gorton
It wound up costing James Dolan $250,000 to publicly accuse NFL Safety Czar George Parros of being “unfit to continue in his current role.”
If you, the fan, said the same thing about Guitar Jimmy, within earshot of the Garden boss, you would be accosted by his security operatives before being ejected from the building.
All it cost Dolan to fire Jeff Gorton and John Davidson, the revered former Rangers’ goalie and straightest shooting analyst in Madison Square Garden Network history, was the money he owed them on their contracts, and whatever aspersions he could cast on their job performances, as they exited his Gulag after likely signing non-disclosure agreements.
Although it wasn’t meant to be funny, the most humorous line amidst all the hubbub, came from ESPN-98.7′s Don La Greca, one of the fine Rangers’ radio play-by-play voices. “You (Dolan) have to be careful when it comes to ticking off the fan base (by firing an icon like Davidson),” DLG said Thursday on “The Michael Kay Show.”
Really? There is nothing Dolan can do to upset Rangers’ fans. He has them by their wallets. They have a history of filling the Garden and bringing their eyeballs to MSGN through good times and bad when all Dolan was selling was hope; much of it false. Now, without much pushback from a placid media, Dolan gets a free pass to start all over again with local hero Chris Drury running the show and Guitar Jimmy’s blankie, Glen Sather, riding shotgun.
Those in the know rapidly reported (it sounded like quick-spin) the firing of the two Rangers execs had nothing to do with Dolan overreacting to Washington’s Tom Wilson putting a Monday beatdown on Pavel Buchnevich and Artemi Panarin. Multiple reports, parroted by Gasbags, said while Davidson and Gorton wanted nothing to do with the organizations attempt to “fire” Parros, their unwillingness played no role in their demise. Dolan told one outlet it was an “unfortunate coincidence.”
Yeah, sure. The impulsive Dolan has a history of dumping MSG execs for daring to disagree with him only to try and convince them to return shortly after their dismissal. That will not be the case here. Judging by the scribe’s soft reaction to Davidson and Gorton being dumped on flimsy grounds, (Dolan said there “needs to be a change in leadership”) they have finally become used to, and accepted, his impetuous and irrational process.
Have those waving the white flag, tired of beating their heads against stone, become satisfied taking a lighter approach with Dolan? Like emphasizing how the Knicks have suddenly become the model Garden franchise. Dolan gets credit for that irony while also skating after firing Gorton and Davidson.
Sadly, Davidson has to shoulder some of the blame. He knew what the deal is in Dolan’s world. He saw the dysfunctional machinations, up-close, when he worked here on TV. And as an executive with St. Louis and Columbus his education continued.
Knowing what he was getting into, Davidson still decided to take the Rangers’ gig. Since he had a history here, maybe Davidson thought, like many others, he could handle Dolan’s “unique” personality.
Davidson’s dream ended in nightmare.
Too bad. Very Dolan.
THURSDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
Three of the NFL’s TV partners (CBS, NBC, Fox) couldn’t run away fast enough from the dog of a package known as Thursday Night Football.
Yet as the old saying goes, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.
So, Amazon Prime Video suits last week agreed to take the package off Fox’s hands one year early and start streaming “TNF” in 2022. The Amazon deal runs through the 2032 season. Amazon, reportedly, is paying the league over $1 billion per for exclusive rights to “TNF.”
We are sure Roger Goodell is “rooting” for Amazon to do something the former “TNF” rights holders couldn’t: Make money airing “TNF.” With that goal in mind, Amazon execs must decide what its “TNF” production will look like. Traditional? Quirky? Or alternate streams, designed for a specific niche?
Amazon must have discovered broadcasters, whether they are play-by-play voices or analysts, can’t be shipped to the booth in cardboard boxes. Unlike the former “TNFers,” there will be no league requirements on what voices they will be allowed to use (the other networks were required to use their No.1 NFL broadcast team on “TNF”), which leaves them a wide range of mouths to select from.
What will the criteria be based on? Will Amazon base its selections on past reputations or audition tapes. Or the number of followers a particular voice has on social media? Will they eschew those voices already employed by networks and turn to fresh faces?
Amazon can’t re-invent the game, but it can attempt to bring a different kind of look and sound to the production, like Fox did when it got into the NFL business in 1994. Shaking things up is still the way to go.
THE VALUE OF STEPHEN A
When it comes to cash, moo-la-dee, there is no ceiling for Stephen A. Smith. At least in his mind.
Already ESPN’s highest paid Gasbag, hovering around $10 million per, you could hear the wheels of the future spinning in SAS’ head as he spoke with Kyle Brandt on his “10 Questions” podcast.
“Despite the huge contract that everybody wants to lean on, I am still underpaid,” SAS said. “I am paid well, but I know I am worth more. During a negotiation, you get what you can get and move on.”
It would not be surprising if SAS, in the second year of five-year contract, scans the landscape and sees former colleagues fully invested in, and running, their own media companies. Maybe that’s what he has his eyes on. Maybe that’s what he means when he says: “….I know I’m worth more.”
A MUTED VOICE
It must have been tough for Sam Rosen, MSG’s voice of the Rangers. For two decades, beginning in 1986, he worked side-by-side with John Davidson in the broadcast booth.
They were more than colleagues. They are friends. When Davidson became president of the Rangers in May, 2019, Rosen was full of hope. “He (Davidson) will work tirelessly. This is not just coming to New York and celebrate a welcome home,” Rosen said at the time. “This is to come back to bring a championship to the Rangers.”
That won’t happen. Davidson ends up as just another victim on James Dolan’s hit list. Thursday, on the air prior to Rangers-Bruins faceoff, all Rosen could say was Davidson and Jeff Gorton were good men who he wished well. We’re sure he would’ve liked to say more.
Maybe even offer an opinion.
Unfortunately, Rosen was wearing Dolan’s invisible muzzle.
So sad, but not surprising, that Rosen was prohibited from paying a fitting tribute to his pal.
AROUND THE DIAL
Craig Carton was so upset, so distraught, over how he was characterized, after asking Jets No. 1 draftee Zach Wilson about his “really hot mom,” he couldn’t stop talking about it. Carton even boasted about his WFAN bosses giving him a “bonus” for all the attention his inquiry brought to the station. ... Did someone light a stick of dynamite under Marc Malusis’ posterior? On Tuesday, the FAN mouth went off, way off, on the Mets using “process” as an “excuse” to fire hitting coach Chili Davis. Nice rant. ... Working all Mets games from the Citi Field broadcast booth must be taxing for SNY’s Keith Hernandez. On Monday, with the Cardinals leading the Mets 6-5 with two outs in the ninth, the lights went out in Busch Stadium. Back in Queens, Hernandez’s first concern: “How long do I have to stay here?”
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DUDE OF THE WEEK: MICHAEL ROBINSON
Excellent call-out by the NFL Network analyst, urging Aaron Rodgers to come out of his bunker, step in front of a camera, and air his grievances. “If you are really pissed off, step up to the microphone and say it,” Robinson said. Agreed. It’s time for Rodgers to inform the Free World why life with the Packers is so bad.
DWEEB OF THE WEEK: AARON RODGERS
If Mr. Rodgers’ goal is to supply talk radio Gasbags and TV debate shows with an endless stream of low-brow theatrical drama he scored a touchdown. How soon before he goes for the two point conversion by playing the Jeopardy card.
DOUBLE TALK
What James Dolan said: “…In order for the team to succeed in the manner our fans deserve there needs to be a change in leadership.”
What James Dolan meant to say: “…In order for the team to succeed in the manner I deserve there needs to be change in leadership.”
