Shifty (Part One)
It’s quite easy to be either love or hate this time of year in sports. Even for passionate baseball fans such as myself. As it is the only major American sport that takes place during the summer, most of us get caught up in the spirit of the longball and pitching duels, impressive streaks and “clutch” performances against teams likely out of contention. While the rest of Planet Baseball has just discovered that the Atlanta Braves are quitely making a push for a fifteenth consecutive playoff appearance, they are also in the business of overhyping some teams, crying foul over steroids (ho-hum) and trying to determine (again) if Moneyball really works in Oakland. These days, I’m on the hating side. Ninety percent of that has to do with my assignment to cover the Yankees, but the other ten percent are based on how much I miss having another sport to tune to.
And my goodness, this will be one helluva year in the National Football League.
Other than the playoffs the last two seasons, there aren’t many memorable games and moments in the regular season (other than Terrell Owens yapping his mouth – again – the Colts being whipped back into their stables against a less talented team – again – and Terrell Owens still talking – again). Much of this has to do with the relative lack of veteran player movement in the offseason compared to what existed a few years ago. Sure, Owens and Randy Moss have worn different jerseys, BUT the movement during this offseason has changed the identities and fortunes for many franchises for years to come. We’ll call this part one as you will need an extra hour at lunch to digest it all.
As I wrote “Ching!” last season, I had this dreaded suspiscion that Indianapolis wouldn’t resign Edgerrin James. Sure, he did talk up the chance of playing elsewhere a couple of times in ’04, but if you knew that your employer didn’t exactly show any appreciation for your talents and someone puts a mic to your grill, you may say “maybe playing for my hometown team (Miami) wouldn’t be such a bad idea.” In the meantime, MVP Shaun Alexander was showered with more props and dough than Paul Wall at a grillz convention (yeah, I said it, add the ‘z’ to it). Not to say that Alexander didn’t deserve his contract as he is the engine that makes the Seahawks go, similar to how James allowed for Peyton Manning’s record breaking season in ’04 or the 12-0 mark headed to Seattle last season or the offensive juggernaut the team had been for seven years. Now Edge brings his show to the Desert where there will be many questions about the Cardinals’ offensive line and if the defense can keep the potential scoring machine off the field. Yet, the Colts themselves are going to struggle much more than people realize. In fact, Bill Polian completely underestimated the value of #32 in the backfield. Solid blocker, can catch from the backfield as what was a great fourth or fifth option for Manning and most notably, the sole reason why play action is a thing of beauty. For a guy who had reconstructive knee surgery in 2001, compiling 5,302 yards in the four years since (over 110 YPG in 48 games) shows talent, grit and now, a big pay day. It’ll be interesting to see how much this translates to immediate wins for Arizona, but I am also looking forward to the stat lines when the Cards and ‘Hawks face each other this season.
Speaking of the ‘Hawks, for the past few seasons, there has been this notion that since nobody saw the ‘Hawks outside of the Pacific Northwest, no one knew how good they were and didn’t give them the respect they deserved. Since Seattle isn’t exactly NYC, Boston, Philly, Indy or Dallas, the fans felt neglected and the talking heads felt that they should give them more praise as they became a Super Bowl contender and participant. The cliché lack of respect, right? If no one is going to say it, I guess it’s my job. That’s garbage. Need proof? Explain all of the 49ers fans from the East, such as myself and Marcellus Sexington or the greatest fans in the NFL; the bandwagoner. You know, that guy who was a Cowboys fan in the early nineties when they battled San Francisco in the playoffs who suddenly became a Packers fan when Green Bay won in ’96 who suddenly discovered religion in the Denver Broncos and St. Louis Rams in the late nineties and early zeroes and now idolizes Tom Brady and his band of merry men. Explain how we ignorant easterners remembered that there is a franchise in San Diego thanks in part to LaDanian Tomlinson or that Kansas City has been primed for years as an offensive threat after years of dominating defensively in the late eighties and early nineties. So Seahawk fans, this cry for respect and attention is nothing new. While I agree that people may had found it hard to take the team seriously at first, it’s because of one thing: for years, they flat out sucked. The most significant players between Steve Largent and Matt Hasselbeck were Warren Moon (for about three miserable seasons) and Ricky Watters (who left a winner in SF for perennial losing teams in Philly and Seattle). Especially in the NFL where television broadcasts are king because of the short schedule compared to other sports, there is one key element to gaining respect nationwide. It’s called winning. Did you respect Carolina when they emerged from a 1-15 season in 2001 to become contenders? Did you remember that Nick Saban did a phenomenal coaching job with a no-name Dolphins team this past season? Winning, my northwest friends. Winning.
Speaking of winning, one of the toughest divisions in the L will be the AFC North. With all due respect to the other divisions, even the horrid NFC North, the changes made in the offseason will make these division pushes down to the wire… so we hope. The AFC North doesn’t get as much respect in terms of competitiveness compared to the NFC East, but they happen to have the Super Bowl champs in Pittsburgh, a hungry team in Cincinnati and a rekindled fire in Baltimore. Even Cleveland should be markedly improved. Pittsburgh is going to have to prove how good they really are without Jerome Bettis, Antwaan Randle-El and Kimo von Offen, and as the defending champs, everyone is out to get them. It is hard to dispute that they are reslilent, becoming the first titleist to win all playoff games on the road, but without significant additions, it can be a tougher road ahead. The ‘Nati has that cocky strut about them, but they aren’t surprising anyone anymore (as Seattle will also learn, as Atlanta figured out and as Philly as proven). B’more’s addition of Steve McNair hasn’t been spoken of as much, but should be. In my opinion, it’s more significant than T.O. going to Dallas or Edge in Arizona because at days’ end, someone has to deliver the ball. Jerry Rice, the greatest WR in history, is my favorite player and athlete of all time, yet, he wasn’t in the trenches. Walter Payton and Jim Brown were unbelievable in their day, but they both needed a somewhat competent signal-caller to win championships. McNair’s real question is health, but the Ravens have a veteran line that can buy a little more time than the young Titans line he left behind. Some experts are giving the division crown to Cincy while others say Pitt. For me, it changes with each day. It’s hard to count Baltimore out, in fact, with the wild card out there as well, it will come down to the last game of the season with three teams fighting for two or three spots and positioning in the wild card round.
More to come tomorrow.
Say What?!?!: I had the fortune to interview Alex Belth a few weeks ago. Belth is a writer for SI.com and hosts a well-known Yankee blog, but is also the author of “Stepping Up: The Story of Curt Flood and His Fight for Baseball Player’s Rights”. I recommend the book not only because of the interview and he’s a cool cat), but because for those of us who appreciate sports history have wondered why is Flood not mentioned in the patheon of important sports figures. It is the first comprehensive look on his life, career and the sacrifice made in order for baseball, as well as all of American sports, to thrive into this millenium.
And my goodness, this will be one helluva year in the National Football League.
Other than the playoffs the last two seasons, there aren’t many memorable games and moments in the regular season (other than Terrell Owens yapping his mouth – again – the Colts being whipped back into their stables against a less talented team – again – and Terrell Owens still talking – again). Much of this has to do with the relative lack of veteran player movement in the offseason compared to what existed a few years ago. Sure, Owens and Randy Moss have worn different jerseys, BUT the movement during this offseason has changed the identities and fortunes for many franchises for years to come. We’ll call this part one as you will need an extra hour at lunch to digest it all.
As I wrote “Ching!” last season, I had this dreaded suspiscion that Indianapolis wouldn’t resign Edgerrin James. Sure, he did talk up the chance of playing elsewhere a couple of times in ’04, but if you knew that your employer didn’t exactly show any appreciation for your talents and someone puts a mic to your grill, you may say “maybe playing for my hometown team (Miami) wouldn’t be such a bad idea.” In the meantime, MVP Shaun Alexander was showered with more props and dough than Paul Wall at a grillz convention (yeah, I said it, add the ‘z’ to it). Not to say that Alexander didn’t deserve his contract as he is the engine that makes the Seahawks go, similar to how James allowed for Peyton Manning’s record breaking season in ’04 or the 12-0 mark headed to Seattle last season or the offensive juggernaut the team had been for seven years. Now Edge brings his show to the Desert where there will be many questions about the Cardinals’ offensive line and if the defense can keep the potential scoring machine off the field. Yet, the Colts themselves are going to struggle much more than people realize. In fact, Bill Polian completely underestimated the value of #32 in the backfield. Solid blocker, can catch from the backfield as what was a great fourth or fifth option for Manning and most notably, the sole reason why play action is a thing of beauty. For a guy who had reconstructive knee surgery in 2001, compiling 5,302 yards in the four years since (over 110 YPG in 48 games) shows talent, grit and now, a big pay day. It’ll be interesting to see how much this translates to immediate wins for Arizona, but I am also looking forward to the stat lines when the Cards and ‘Hawks face each other this season.
Speaking of the ‘Hawks, for the past few seasons, there has been this notion that since nobody saw the ‘Hawks outside of the Pacific Northwest, no one knew how good they were and didn’t give them the respect they deserved. Since Seattle isn’t exactly NYC, Boston, Philly, Indy or Dallas, the fans felt neglected and the talking heads felt that they should give them more praise as they became a Super Bowl contender and participant. The cliché lack of respect, right? If no one is going to say it, I guess it’s my job. That’s garbage. Need proof? Explain all of the 49ers fans from the East, such as myself and Marcellus Sexington or the greatest fans in the NFL; the bandwagoner. You know, that guy who was a Cowboys fan in the early nineties when they battled San Francisco in the playoffs who suddenly became a Packers fan when Green Bay won in ’96 who suddenly discovered religion in the Denver Broncos and St. Louis Rams in the late nineties and early zeroes and now idolizes Tom Brady and his band of merry men. Explain how we ignorant easterners remembered that there is a franchise in San Diego thanks in part to LaDanian Tomlinson or that Kansas City has been primed for years as an offensive threat after years of dominating defensively in the late eighties and early nineties. So Seahawk fans, this cry for respect and attention is nothing new. While I agree that people may had found it hard to take the team seriously at first, it’s because of one thing: for years, they flat out sucked. The most significant players between Steve Largent and Matt Hasselbeck were Warren Moon (for about three miserable seasons) and Ricky Watters (who left a winner in SF for perennial losing teams in Philly and Seattle). Especially in the NFL where television broadcasts are king because of the short schedule compared to other sports, there is one key element to gaining respect nationwide. It’s called winning. Did you respect Carolina when they emerged from a 1-15 season in 2001 to become contenders? Did you remember that Nick Saban did a phenomenal coaching job with a no-name Dolphins team this past season? Winning, my northwest friends. Winning.
Speaking of winning, one of the toughest divisions in the L will be the AFC North. With all due respect to the other divisions, even the horrid NFC North, the changes made in the offseason will make these division pushes down to the wire… so we hope. The AFC North doesn’t get as much respect in terms of competitiveness compared to the NFC East, but they happen to have the Super Bowl champs in Pittsburgh, a hungry team in Cincinnati and a rekindled fire in Baltimore. Even Cleveland should be markedly improved. Pittsburgh is going to have to prove how good they really are without Jerome Bettis, Antwaan Randle-El and Kimo von Offen, and as the defending champs, everyone is out to get them. It is hard to dispute that they are reslilent, becoming the first titleist to win all playoff games on the road, but without significant additions, it can be a tougher road ahead. The ‘Nati has that cocky strut about them, but they aren’t surprising anyone anymore (as Seattle will also learn, as Atlanta figured out and as Philly as proven). B’more’s addition of Steve McNair hasn’t been spoken of as much, but should be. In my opinion, it’s more significant than T.O. going to Dallas or Edge in Arizona because at days’ end, someone has to deliver the ball. Jerry Rice, the greatest WR in history, is my favorite player and athlete of all time, yet, he wasn’t in the trenches. Walter Payton and Jim Brown were unbelievable in their day, but they both needed a somewhat competent signal-caller to win championships. McNair’s real question is health, but the Ravens have a veteran line that can buy a little more time than the young Titans line he left behind. Some experts are giving the division crown to Cincy while others say Pitt. For me, it changes with each day. It’s hard to count Baltimore out, in fact, with the wild card out there as well, it will come down to the last game of the season with three teams fighting for two or three spots and positioning in the wild card round.
More to come tomorrow.
Say What?!?!: I had the fortune to interview Alex Belth a few weeks ago. Belth is a writer for SI.com and hosts a well-known Yankee blog, but is also the author of “Stepping Up: The Story of Curt Flood and His Fight for Baseball Player’s Rights”. I recommend the book not only because of the interview and he’s a cool cat), but because for those of us who appreciate sports history have wondered why is Flood not mentioned in the patheon of important sports figures. It is the first comprehensive look on his life, career and the sacrifice made in order for baseball, as well as all of American sports, to thrive into this millenium.
posted by Jason Clinkscales @ 10:55 AM
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