A NEW SPORTS RESOLUTION: "GET A LIFE"

So this is what it's coming to.  Win and you're the toast of the town, lose and.... 
Fans call out players and then coaches. Somebody has to go, somebody has to be responsible.  Yee-gad.  We just witnessed one of the more entertaining Super Bowls ever and in the next few days, take a look what's moving on twitter.

"Tom Brady is a CLOWN," tweeted Andrew Lucid (@TheFriarMan). "Selfish, choke artist, arrogant."


"Can't catch that lollipop? go focus on [your] mustache," Sean Hayden (@Irishsph) tweeted of Welker.


"Fire Belichick, trade Brady, kill Welker. I'm out," sent @VinnyDamato.
Charming.



Were these three men not sorrowful enough?  Didn't they hear about Brady sitting with a towel over his head for 18 minutes afterward, inconsolable?  Didn't they hear Welker fighting back tears as he said, "It comes to the biggest moment of my life, and I don't come up with it"?  Didn't they see Belichick standing on the podium looking as if somebody had just stabbed him in the big toe?  -from Rick Reilly, ESPN

Apparently there are some fans that felt let-down.  Hmmmmm.  If I'm not mistaken, the Patriots played in their fifth Super Bowl under the Belichick-Brady tandem.  In those five title games, they've won three and suffered two last minute defeats.  Not bad for a team that needs to make immediate overhaul, right?   

At last glance, there are four teams that have never played in the Super Bowl.  How'd you like to be fan of the Cleveland Browns, Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars or Houston Texans...then maybe, there would be a reason to complain. 

Bottom-line, the "sporting life" is getting far, far to scary.  Social media has taken us to an all-time low as far as fandom.  In the good old days, things were much different. Let's relive a few poignant times in our sports history:
 
"Remember 20 years ago, when Duke stunned Kentucky in arguably the greatest game in college basketball history on Christian Laettner's 17-footer at the buzzer?  According to "The Last Great Game" by Gene Wojciechowski, thousands of people cheered those Wildcats upon their arrival in Lexington.


Jack Nicklaus won 18 majors.  But he finished second 19 times. Did anybody call him "the former Golden Bear"?


What happened to grace?  To "it's just a game"?  To "thanks for a great season"?  Fans are lashing out at their team with the kind of vitriol reserved for Court TV villains".

And if he had dropped this, then what?

ESPN Writer Rick Reilly wrote a great piece on this subject, which I've taken a few lines from.  Here is his capper on the article. 

"As the NFL gets more and more behemoth, the more of this kind of Super Overreaction I see. The more of this two-faced loyalty.  The more of this I'll-never-get-over-this or I'll-never-forget-this reaction.  When San Francisco punt returner Kyle Williams muffed two punts leading to the 49ers' loss to the Giants in the NFC title game this season, he got numerous death threats.  Sick.


The players see all this and put up even bigger walls between themselves and the fans. Can you blame them? Who wants to pet a dog that might bite three seconds later"?

I can remember as a little guy, that each win and loss was the focal point of my day.  I had my game face on and you could tell how my favorite team had done by the demeanor I carried.  The end result ruled my emotions and how I treated others.  I'm not sure when, but some time over the years, I mellowed.  The losses weren't nearly as debilitating when I let them roll off my back.  The wins?  Of course they were satisfying...but not my end-all. 

So next time you get your shorts in a bundle.....slow down and take a deep breath.  And get a life.  After all, it's only a game.

Thanks for reading,

John


 

ALL-STAR GAMES?? ALL-STAR GAMES??

There were two games of supposed note this past weekend involving professional athletes, the NFL Pro Bowl and the NHL All-Star contest.  The key word is "supposed". 

I tuned in Sunday afternoon to watch the NHL stars, but I have to say, it looked more like a pee-wee scrimmage.  Maybe its been a long time since I've watched one of these, but I was shocked.  No checking,  no pushing, just a lot of passing and shooting and an occasional stop by a goalie.  What a disappointment.  The night before, I viewed some of the NHL skills competition and there was some really interesting moments....but this, ye GAD.  If I had thrown some money at a ticket for that, I'd be screaming for it back.  Heck, they'd be better off having every forward and defenseman take three shots at a goalie....most goals by a team is the winner in a shoot out and forget about the game.  That was just pathetic.  Just sayin.....

As disappointed as I was in the NHL contest, little did I know what I had in the offing for that evening with the Pro Bowl.  Before I say anything, let's have Aaron Rodgers say a few words.

"Criticism of the play in Sunday's Pro Bowl reached a new level when Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers blasted the effort of some NFC teammates Tuesday.

"I'll be honest with you," Rodgers said on ESPN 540 in Milwaukee. "I was a little bit disappointed.  I felt like some of the guys on the NFC side embarrassed themselves."
The AFC routed the NFC, 59-41, in a game that drew boos at Aloha Stadium for its lack of early intensity.  Rodgers, who started and played the first quarter for the NFC, didn't name specific players.

Let's be Honest......

I was just surprised that some of the guys either didn't want to play or when they were in there didn't put any effort into it," Rodgers said.  Avoiding injuries in a meaningless All-Star Game is a high priority for many players.  Rodgers, however, said that playing half-speed isn't the answer.

"I've always found that when you're going that tempo, that's when the injuries are going to happen, not if you're going full speed," Rodgers told ESPN 540. "You're more likely to get an injury standing around a pile or just going through it half speed."

I'm not sure why Rodgers stopped short of calling the game a disgrace for both the AFC and NFC.  It would have been better served to play flag football or leave virtually all lineman at home and play seven-on-seven.  Because that's pretty much what it amounted to.

We've got two more of these all-star games in the upcoming months.  First off, the NBA will showcase it's stars with the Ball Hog show.  Whoever shoots the most gets the MVP and all the attention.....and then this summer comes the MLB All-Star game.

If you're looking for some fire, some intensity and at least an effort that would cause someone to want to buy a ticket or watch, then watch baseball's version.  At least the winner of the game between the American and National League gets home field advantage in the World Series.  Which means the game means something.....rather than a vacation and a way to make some "chump" change.  Yowsa!!

Thanks for reading,

John