On Saturday morning, I took a break from my normal routine of writing up a string of three-to-five-paragraphs blurbs and hitting “enter” to devote two-plus hours to working the phones regarding some information I’d obtained on Friday.
For the first time in league history, a Super Bowl MVP is facing a suspension.
Ultimately, we got to the point where we were 100 percent comfortable reporting that former Steelers receiver Santonio Holmes had been suspended by the league, and that the matter was pending within the NFL’s internal appeals process.
Though the various Pittsburgh television stations and other blogs picked it up, it was largely ignored until Holmes was traded to the Jets for that well-traveled cold turkey sandwich with wilted lettuce.
Now, Adam Schefter of ESPN has confirmed the report, and he has expressly given us credit for breaking the news, prompting the rest of the ESPN machine (as far as we can tell) to do the same.
Bottom line? If the appeal fails, Holmes is one bad Friday night away from a one-year suspension. By handing him to the Jets for a fifth-round pick, the Steelers apparently are betting that Holmes won’t be able to avoid a full season on the sidelines.
So now we can celebrate. Time to “wake n bake.” Some cinnamon rolls.