NFL

Wow, what a game.  Is there really any other way to put it?  A lot of people were picking the Giants to win, yet somehow I don’t think they believed it.  How could they?  The Patriots were a juggernaut, but against all odds and logic, the Giants persevered making these men with their wild picks look, well, logical. [click to continue...]

1.000, 50, 22.  The 2007 Patriots are a team of numbers, a group of overachievers that set multiple records that look great on paper, but in reality, those figures have been overvalued and aren’t worth the lead they were wrote with.  Records are nice, to throw for the most touchdown passes, or be on the receiving end of those beautifully orchestrated routes more times than any other man is impressive, but they tend to resonate more when that route ends in Disney Land. [click to continue...]

“24-Year Pro Bowl Safety Sean Taylor died early Tuesday Morning after being shot by an intruder… How will this affect the Redskins future plans?”

We lost a human life here folks.  In the world of sports media I understand there are responsibilities and demands that must be fulfilled to their audience.  Understandably Taylor the player and Taylor the man are one in the same, but we aren’t talking about a broken bone or a torn ligament, we’re talking about murder.  Unfortunately as Sean Salsbury thumbs down his copy of the Redskins depth chart and discusses the possibilities of Taylor’s replacement, Pedro Taylor will be busy shopping for a casket and making funeral arrangements for his son.

Let’s not forget that the implications here are bigger than Football.  Joe Gibbs is certainly going to struggle to find someone that approaches the game with the same intensity, but his problems are minute compared to those that are going to inundate Jackie Taylor, Sean’s 1-year-old daughter, through her life due to this ruthless event.  What happens when her school hosts a father-daughter dance?  Who is going to teach her about boys, help with her homework, or just simply be there for her after she has a bad day?  I doubt the name will be found on Salsbury’s depth chart.

What about his girlfriend who was lying in bed next to him as the intruders burst through the door with their guns blazing?  How is she ever supposed to overcome the images that are certain to haunt her while she sleeps?  The self-guilt that is destined to appear in the coming months as the shock fades from her mind?  Is it fair that she will forever question herself and wonder what if?  Hopefully they have enough money so that she can focus on raising her daughter without having double shifts, but that won’t help them recover from this traumatic event.

Lives were destroyed here.  I understand how important the games are to the fans.  Of course the first thing that came to Redskins fans minds was the implications that this was going to have on their teams.  I remember when Daryl Kile passed away a few years ago.  The first thing I thought was how this was going to affect the Cardinals rotation.  Then after I realized what we were really talking about:   life and death.  Some things are bigger than the game.  This is one of them.  I’m no better than you, and I’m not scolding anyone for evaluating the future of this team, it’s what we do, it has to be done.  The games still go on, just have some compassion.  Realize the implications here are greater than who is going to pay free safety on Sunday.

Far too often we forget that these people are human beings before they are athletes.  Just because half the country worships them it doesn’t mean that they are immune, they are vulnerable as we are.  I just ask that we not lose sight of what happened here, the Redskins didn’t lose their Pro Bowl Safety, a 24-year-old man’s life was cut short due to an act of greed.

Just because they are on TV doesn’t mean they aren’t real people.    A father lost a son, a daughter lost her father, and a girl friend lost her lover and the father of her child.  That’s real.  What did you lose?  Your favorite football player?

I hope after last week’s performance everyone is finally ready to admit the truth about Vince Young.  Can we finally stop all the gushing about his inordinate natural talent?  Because the truth is, it doesn’t exist.  You can blame it on his inadequate supporting cast if you’d like, but what does that have to do with his ability to throw it to a guy with the same colored shirt as him?  Somewhere between his 8-5 record last season and being the Madden cover-boy we lost sight of what this man really is: a barely adequate NFL quarterback. 

It’d be convenient to sum up his inability to do his job on something as inane as the mythical Madden Curse.  It does give everyone a nice and tidy excuse.  Enough is enough, it ends here.  We’ve been giving this guy reprieves for two years; it’s time for him to take responsibility for his own shortcomings.   Young’s style of play makes him one of the most electrifying players in the NFL, but being exciting doesn’t mean you’re good.  Hell, watching celebrity boxing is exciting.  That doesn’t mean Dustin Diamond is fit to step in the ring with Floyd Mayweather.

Young is an effective runner, in fact, the man drafted a slot of ahead of him, Reggie Bush, out rushed him by only 13 yards last season on nearly double the carries last year.  That’s no small feat, but as a quarterback his legs should be secondary.  Since when is alright for a quarterback to be a below average passer?   When defenses force him to stay in the pocket and air it out he is rendered ineffective. In his four dates prior to Sunday’s match-up against the Jaguars he was held to an average of 17 rushing yards.  So it should come as no surprise that he also failed to pass for a touchdown in each of these games.

Coming into the league there were questions about Young’s ability to be an effective passer, so this isn’t a new development.  It wouldn’t be such a big deal if there wasn’t so much hype surrounding his every move.  Somehow he got pushed to the forefront of the league without ever accomplishing anything.  Sure, the Titans nearly made it to the playoffs last season, but this wasn’t because of Young’s arm, it was in spite of it.  The guy has never passed for 300 yards in game, his career completion percentage is on the wrong side of 60, and he is among the worst in the league in QB rating.  Supposedly teams have fits drawing up a game plan for him, it appears rather simple: make him throw the ball. 

Again, this wouldn’t be a big deal if the general public wouldn’t have placed him on a pedestal overlooking all the quarterbacks not named Peyton or Tom, when in fact he ranks somewhere in the bottom third of the quarterback hierarchy.  Take away his legs and he’d be dead last.  What’s so mind boggling about this is that as soon as Michael Vick began to falter the buzzards were more than ready to rip him apart limb from limb, but somehow Vince remains invincible to public’s negating eye.

Look at Eli Manning, the poor guy has had his game dissected from top to bottom, from the way he stands in the pocket to the horrible face he makes after a mistake.  Even though he has his team sitting at 6-3 and in position to make a deep playoff push, he continues to be lambasted in the media.  He may be the Tito of the family, but as a quarterback his body of work should allow him to circumvent this type of scrutiny at this point of his career. 

You’d think in this day and age someone would have blown the horn by now, but there have only been whispers of the presence of a false prophet.  Where is the Sports Illustrated cover with the word ‘Fraud’ splashed across his smiling face?  Where are the stories that inundated Vick stating that he would be better suited as a running back?  Young’s stats have already proved that he is guilty; all that’s left is for someone to convict him.