Len Pastabelly on Gibbs' Retirement: "Just An Ordinary Joe"

[Redskins_P]

Looks like Pastabelly is pissed again. Now he's mad at Falcon's GM Tom Dimitroff for leaking the news about their new HC to his colleague Mike Smith.

Here it is straight from PFT:

RUMBLE BREWING IN BRISTOL?
Posted by Mike Florio on January 24, 2008, 12:24 p.m.
A league source pointed out to us the catty comments of ESPN.com’s Len Pasquarelli regarding the fact that Len’s colleague, Michael Smith, broke the story that Mike Smith would be the next coach of the Falcons.

In critiquing the hiring of Mike Smith, Pasquarelli takes a jab at Falcons G.M. Tom Dimitroff for leaking the news to Michael Smith. (In hindsight, I probably should have assigned this one to our own Michael David Smith.)

“Perhaps the only failure of Dimitroff in the process was allowing word of his choice to leak out,” Len writes. “Michael Smith of ESPN knew who the new coach was going to be long before Mike Smith the new head coach did. But, hey, that was a win for the home team in Bristol, and we’ll take it.”

Our source described the comment as “childish.”

“He’s criticizing Dimitroff leaking the info to ESPN’s Smith,” the source said. “It sounds like sour grapes. Isn’t that how [Pasquarelli] survives? I think he’s jealous that Smith broke the story and he, based in Atlanta, didn’t.”

We agree. ESPN would have nothing to slap on the scroll as something that “Len Pasquarelli reports” if news only flowed from releases and press conferences. If people don’t allow things to “leak out,” there will be no cutting edge for ESPN or CBS or FOX or NBC or PFT or BFD to try to ride.

And isn’t it the goal of journalists to know things before as many people as possible? Instead of chastising Dimitroff for having loose lips (and thus potentially harming the ability of Smith or anyone from ESPN to get pry information from Dimitroff in the future), shouldn’t Pasquarelli be praising Smith?

Link: ProFootballTalk.com