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Disasters: Can USMNT fix a mess in a year?
Joe Buglewicz / Getty Images
It’s difficult to fathom how bad things are for the USMNT right now. Let’s try anyway:
- Under new coach Mauricio Pochettino, the Americans have lost four straight matches for the first time since 2007. The nadir came last night in a friendly 4-0 loss to Switzerland. Sure, the roster has been short on stars in the lead-up to the Gold Cup, but this is still awful.
- Those stars, namely Christian Pulisic, remain away from the team for myriad reasons — but mostly, a brutal European club schedule. Landon Donovan criticized the move, which has turned into an embarrassing social media snit between Donovan, Pulisic and Pulisic’s father.
- Did we mention the World Cup, played on American soil, which is supposed to feature a golden age of American talent, starts exactly a year from today? Everything looks great!
The U.S. enters the Gold Cup with plenty on the line, maybe even Pochettino’s job. He took the blame after last night’s debacle, which is good PR. But it’s fair to wonder, bad roster or not, whether his coaching is taking root.
I went to Martin Rogers, our head of U.S. soccer, for a status update the team:
💬 How bad is it? The program will be judged on the World Cup, but a year out, the prognosis could hardly be gloomier. No positive vibe around the squad, little passion, few ideas. As a result — none of that host nation momentum to build interest and support ahead of what’s supposed to be the moment of a lifetime.
I highly recommend reading Paul Tenorio’s column on the situation, which offers a simple, yet brutal, solution: We should blame everyone for the disaster.
Yuck. The Americans start Gold Cup action Sunday. Can’t wait?
Luxuries? Kirk Cousins, the NFL’s richest backup
Legendary quarterbacks have been in Kirk Cousins’ position, benched for a younger talent. Peyton Manning got demoted for Brock Osweiler once. Tony Romo gave way to Dak Prescott. And, of course, Drew Bledsoe’s injury helped birth the career of Tom Brady.
None of them stuck around, though, and none of them were quite as expensive as the Falcons quarterback, either, which makes the 14-year veteran one of the most interesting stories in the NFL right now. Two quick points:
- Cousins is in the second year of a four-year, $180 million deal with $100 million guaranteed. Releasing Cousins this season would trigger a $75 million dead cap hit, so that’s a no-go. Cousins wants to start, naturally, and he’ll still be plenty able, even at 37. Atlanta just has to find a willing trade partner. So, for now, Cousins remains the backup to Michael Penix Jr. — an expensive one.
- Even with inflation taken into account for the aforementioned legends, none came close to Cousins’ $40 million total cash salary this year. For a backup! The only thing even slightly comparable in the league is the Deshaun Watson mess in Cleveland, but that’s obviously more complex — and the Browns don’t seem to want him back, anyway.
So, Cousins is at Falcons minicamp, behaving as normally as possible as he and the team wait for a fairytale trade scenario to appear. I asked our Falcons writer Josh Kendall for a vibe check from Atlanta:
What’s the mood like at minicamp with Cousins around? It’s hard for me to remember such a unique QB situation.
💬 The situation does feel unprecedented in some ways, but on the surface, at least, things are remarkably normal. Cousins said all the right things Tuesday in his first appearance with the local media since the end of the season, and Penix so far in his young career has been impossible to fluster on or off the field. The caveat to all this is it’s easy for everyone to play nice in June. The vibe might feel very different in November.
Gut feeling: Do you think the team trades him before the season?
💬 I still believe the Falcons want to trade Cousins, but the Steelers’ signing of Aaron Rodgers filled the last glaring hole in the league. Atlanta now has to wait and see if an injury or ineffectiveness opens up a spot after training camps begin. Even if it does, though, it would have to be a place Cousins is willing to go because he has a no-trade clause.
What a setup. It’s hard to imagine this just being the status quo for the rest of the year. I thought the “Scoop City” podcast crew went into great detail on the situation, too, which you can listen to here.
News to Know
Knicks striking out?
Mavericks officials believe coach Jason Kidd, one of the Knicks’ top targets to replace Tom Thibodeau, will stay in Dallas, sources told The Athletic yesterday. Also, according to an ESPN report last night, New York requested interviews with both Rockets coach Ime Udoka and Timberwolves coach Chris Finch — and both were denied. Already seems like a disaster from here.
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Rodgers casually drops wedding news
New Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers showed up to minicamp yesterday wearing a wedding ring, which he confirmed in a news conference was not just a smart ring. Rodgers said he’s been married “a couple of months,” though it’s unclear to whom. See his full comments here.
More news
- Alex Cooper, host of the popular podcast “Call Her Daddy,” said in a documentary interview that she was sexually harassed by her coach while playing soccer at Boston University. More here.
- North Carolina coach Bill Belichick says the current news cycle is just “outside noise” that he’s used to. I don’t know, man.
- Deion Sanders is “feeling well,” according to his son, while the Colorado coach remains away from the team due to an unspecified health issue. Read our full report.
- Whatever is happening at Bengals camp, for both Trey Hendrickson and first-round pick Shemar Stewart, sounds awful.
- Lee Corso’s final appearance on “College GameDay” will come in Week 1 at Ohio State. Ready for tears?
- Liverpool is close to signing Florian Wirtz from Bayern Leverkusen. Oh boy.
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What to Watch
📺 MLB: Yankees at Royals
7:40 p.m. ET on MLB Network and Prime Video
The Yanks are still a behemoth, but relief pitching is a worry for now with Luke Weaver out. They are up to No. 3 in our latest Power Rankings, though.
📺 NBA: Thunder at Pacers
8:30 p.m. ET on ABC
The most pivotal moment arrives. Will Indiana reclaim a surprising lead? Or will the insatiable Thunder begin their bludgeoning march toward an inevitable title? Crowd should be raucous. I imagine they’re all just screaming “YES’CERS” over and over again. Find a couch.
Get tickets to games like these here.
Pulse Picks
The NBA Draft is a week away. Our expert Sam Vecenie put together an entire guide for us. This draft is deeper than Cooper Flagg, too. Polish up before next Wednesday.
The House settlement in the NCAA has been complex, but Justin Williams covered my biggest takeaway: Get ready to say hello to the bag men again.
Andy McCullough sought out some former Rockies greats — Nolan Arenado, Trevor Story, DJ LeMahieu, among others — and asked how they felt about the current state of the franchise. Their reactions were … interesting.
We’re doing a full U.S. Open preview tomorrow, but here’s a question for an appetizer: Is there any reason we should pick against Scottie Scheffler? Answers here.
OK, I lied, one more amuse-bouche: Our U.S. Open Big Board, which is crucial as you make picks.
🎥 The GOAT Sue Bird stopped by our “No Offseason” podcast to talk WNBA ownership, collectibles and more. Fun conversation.
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Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: Brendan Marks’ story on Jordon Hudson’s beginnings. Catch up here.
Most-read on the website yesterday: A beautiful story on Roger Federer’s viral commencement speech, which was more than that, as Rustin Dodd wrote. It was masterful.
(Top photo: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)
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