Understandably the web and every other sports media format is abuzz with the chance of Brett Favre actually returning to the Packers. As a fan of Mr. Favre and the Pack I’m clearly biased. That being said the amount of sudden Aaron Rodgers supporters and fans is a bit hysterical. Driving home from work today I listened to a little bit of ESPN radio on the XM which was inundated with Packer fans ga ga over Favre’s return and non-Packer fans upset with his arrogance and what it does to Aaron Rodgers— as if Aaron Rodgers somehow has a birthright on the job of starting QB for Green Bay.
Who cares? Honestly, who cares if Aaron Rodgers is upset? Brett Favre clearly deserves the right to make up his mind to retire and even change that mind if he wants to. The Packers would be crazy not to welcome the guy who was second in MVP voting with open arms. Aaron Rodgers, although talented, has never started an NFL game and hasn’t “earned” the starting job as it is. The idea that the Packers should change Favre’s mind about returning because of what it does to A Rodg is ludicrous. If I were the Packers I’d do this. First I would get Favre to guarantee that he’s coming back for two years. They can then go into the season building around him again for a Super Bowl run. If that upsets Aaron Rodgers and he wants to leave, so be it. They still have Brian Brohm and even Matt Flynn waiting in the wings when Favre really does retire. At this point who’s a better prospect anyway? An unproven Aaron Rodgers or an unproven Brian Brohm in two years?
I like Aaron Rodgers and think he’ll be a decent QB. He isn’t Brett Favre and never will be. The team owes it to its fans to put the absolute best football team on the field. The Packers best team clearly has Brett Favre under center. Windows of opportunity in the NFL are slim. The Packers are in one now and should make every effort to return to the Super Bowl. The fact is he should have never retired in the first place. Here’s hoping he really does come back.
I got my tickets to the game on September 8th excited to see his retirement ceremony. Now I’m hoping to see #4 sprint out on that field in full uniform. Come on Green Bay. Let’s get Favre back and make a play for Jason Taylor.
Comedy gold from Pacman Jones.
“I’m truly upset about the comments,” Jones said. “Obviously Mr. Imus has problems with African-Americans. I’m upset, and I hope the station he works for handles it accordingly. I will pray for him.”
I’m sure Mr. Imus will sleep better an night knowing Imus is praying for him. For example.
“Yes, I can make it rain…right after I’m done praying for Don Imus.”
Clearly Imus was being Imus and got caught because every word he says is being micro-analyzed. I used to listen to him occasionally about a decade ago when he was on MSNBC in the morning. Comments like the Jones one weren’t that unusual. What’s pathetic is his absurd justification for the comment– that he was “defending” Pacman, according to CNN:
Radio host Don Imus said Tuesday he was making “a sarcastic point” that police often unfairly target blacks when he asked about Adam “Pacman” Jones’ race on his show.
According to Imus:
“He’s a football player. He is a lovely kid. He was out there having fun,” Imus said
There’s your offensive comment. Offensive to our intelligence. Many have made the case that Pacman has been unfairly targeted by the police, which could be the case. To say he is a “lovely kid” is more than a bit of a stretch. There’s a reason he was suspended by the NFL for a year without actually being charged with anything. Imus has made a career ripping on just about everybody, a lot of it racially related. His comments post-incident clearly show that the PC climate has even gotten to him. This could again mark the beginning of the end for Imus.
Thank god he has Pacman praying for him.
Some Random Thoughts.
♦ The whole Tim Donaghy situation and Hue Hollins speaking publicly about Dick Bavetta, etc reminds me of the old Saturday Night Live Referee Pittman skit. I’ve heard talk radio hosts make the point that the NBA would be better off to make officials available for interviews after games to remove the distance between game officials and the public. The idea is that it would give them an opportunity to “explain” their calls. Like why the Sacramento Kings were royally screwed in 2002. Which brings us back to Referee Pittman. I’d love to post the Youtube clip to remind viewers of the brilliance of the John Goodman skit but Saturday Night Live has removed everything from Youtube including decades old obscure stuff like this. But thanks to the Internet, we still have the transcript. So, with Dick Bavetta substituted for Referee Pittman, here’s a couple of questions the press could ask the referee in such a press conference— courtesy of SNL.
Audience Member #1: Uh, yeah. It’s great to be here, Ref. Um.. listen, I just wanted to know, um.. are you totally blind, or just legally blind.. uh.. so that, you know, you can make out shapes and degrees of light, you know, that kind of thing?
Dick Bavetta: Well, actually.. I have 20/20 vision. I have mentioned this on the show before. I’m not blind, never have been. Thanks for your question.
Audience Member #1: Okay, thank you.
Rock Clark: Okay, next?
Audience Member #2: Uh, yes, I wanted to ask you about last Sunday’s game.
Dick Bavetta: Yes. Go ahead.
Audience Member #2: Yeah, I was just wondering, were you watching a different game while you were officiating? Like, on a little mini-TV, or something like that?
Dick Bavetta: No, I wasn’t. I was concentrating on the game I was officiating.
Audience Member #2: Oh, wow! You know, because it seemed like your calls were related to a game being played somewhere far away.
♦ Speaking of the Referee Pittman show long time MLB umpire Tim McClelland actually has a radio talk show in Des Moines during the offseason. Of course everyone’s too nice in Iowa to call McClelland and ask some Referee Pittman type questions. Such as:
Radio Caller: Yeah, uh, hi, great show. I saw the last game, and I just want to know, do you find it helpful to keep your head up your rear end? I mean, why during the game? It seems that during the game you want to have your head, you know, out and in the open air so you can see the plays. I mean, is it comfortable, or is it for the warmth, or what?
Tim McCelleland: [ thinking ] No. No, nope, never done that. I wouldn’t even know how to go about it, it’s an interesting position, but, uh.. nope.
♦ As far as SNL and Youtube, Why? They removed all the videos but it’s been months and there is still no sign of “Fly High Duluth” on the SNL site, one of the best SNL skits I’ve seen in the last decade. Under Will Forte’s bio they mention the skit but don’t have it on the site— even though they have at least ten McGruber clips. Good luck ever seeing Referee Pittman again.
♦ Thank You New York Giants! Thank you David Tyree. With the Celtics on the brink of an NBA championship it’s Mr. Tyree and Mr. Eli Manning who have saved us from the fact that Boston could have held the titles concurrently in all three major sports. There would have been a wee bit of arrogance coming out of Beantown.
♦ I saw my first smart car on highway 100 North this morning. I’m all for high gas mileage and saving the environment but I saw this little car in the left hand lane going about seventy sandwiched between a big Ford Pickup and a Lincoln Navigator. For all the chain reaction rear end episodes I’ve witnessed on that stretch of road over the years I’d hate to see what would happen in the above mentioned scenario.
♦ To use an overused Denny Green quote, Livan Hernandez “Is what we thought he was.” I’ve been a backer, touting his performance early on, but the league may have once again caught up with him. With the Twins sliding into the 78-82 win team we thought they were I’m wondering how long they’ll keep trotting him out there. With Perkins in the rotation and Liriano potentially on the way in the second half there may not be a rotation spot long. It’s hard to even write about the Twins right now as it is.
♦ I’m sorry, I just can’t watch it. I don’t know if its due to the fact I’m nearly out of the 18-34 demographic, but the NBA finals have become virtually unwatchable for me. This is coming from a guy who loved the Celtics in the 80’s. I don’t know how they’ve done it but the NBA has lost it’s mojo and just can’t find it. I can’t pinpoint exactly why but the product just doesn’t entice me anymore. Tuesday night while at my hotel room in Iowa I found myself watching a a minor league baseball game between Peoria and the Quad Cities on the telly rather than watching the NBA finals.
Roger Goodell clearly just wants the whole Spygate thing to go away. The NFL is just too much of a gravy train with biscuit wheels. Any controversy isn’t good for the league and thus the league will slowly but definitively sweep the whole Spygate issue under the rug. Here are some thoughts:
1. This thing has come a long way from simple spying on divisional opponents for use in future games. If this is the case why spy on the Chargers in 2002 when you don’t play them again for three years? Why spy on the Pittsburgh Steelers in the NFC championship game? The fact that they spied on Pittsburgh during the championship game, both offensively and defensively, could only be to use that information later in the game. What would be the point?
2. If we accept the fact that they spied on the Steelers in the NFC championship game are we to believe they didn’t use the cameras to spy on teams during the Super Bowl victories? The Super Bowl, more than any game, is perfect for spying and deciphering signals. The TV timeouts are longer than usual and halftime is thirty minutes long. The team that is known for making all the right adjustments could have very well made those adjustments in less than honorable circumstances. Keep in mind that all three Super Bowls were won by three points margins. Also keep in mind the numerous late game defensive plays where they always seemed to be in the right place at the right time.
3. Why go through the whole production of filming signals, then down and distance, then signals? Matt Walsh himself indicated that he would hand off the taps to the mysterious Ernie Adams, the Patriot assistant legendary for the supposed “photographic” memory. If anyone doubts the ability of people to pick up signals you only have to look at the great baseball signal stealers over the years. Major League baseball has long been known to have coaches who’s only job is to decipher and steal signs. Why would Ernie Adams and the Patriots be any different? Here’s an interesting and detailed article on Adams.
4. The whole hullabaloo over the Rams “walkthrough” is a convenient diversion. Common sense would tell me the actual filming and deciphering of signals during a game is more important than a walkthrough with no access to play calls or signals.
The whole thing stinks and the whole NFL power establishment just wants it to go away. Belicheck’s legacy is clearly tarnished, as it should be. He’s been less than truthful in the whole process and not until finally confronted with evidence did he fess up. When he finally did fess up he divulged a filming system that is a lot less widespread than what Walsh has brought up. The bottom line is Goodell just wants this all to go away so the NFL can go back to being the most dominant sport in the history of mankind.
Arlen Specter may be a grandstander but in this situation I hope he grandstands to the fullest. The Patriots got away with this and a measly fine and loss of a draft pick is a pittance.
ESPN is all over the latest Ozzie Guillen rant, comparing it to the epic Lee Elia Rant. For those of us in the Twin Cities it brings up memories of the famous Jerry Burns rant about Bob Schnelker and Alfred Anderson. Burnsie is in rare form.
Here it is.
“I love Anderson”
As a Packer fan I’m clearly biased. I’m just not buying the Strib sports headline that boldly states “Few chosen, few needed.” Yes, the Jared Allen trade was a solid trade for the Vikings, as where several of the offseason moves. I’m just not sold on the idea that an 8-8 team from last year is now so complete that the draft is of little consequence. They’re practically planning the Super Bowl championship parade route here in town. From Barreiro:
But how about we get sustained success, winning games we have to win (did the Vikings do that when Washington came to town late last season or did they spot the Redskins a 25-0 lead before making it look deceptively respectable?), enjoy a winning season, see how we cope with the pressure associated with some real expectations, before we lay it on quite this thick? For the second time in several years, the Vikings say they are so stacked at so many positions that the draft really didn’t interest them all that much.
From Jim Souhan’s article we get this howler in describing how the Vikings are better under center than most people think:
(Tarvaris) Jackson was often erratic in 2007, yet he went 8-4 as a starter and outplayed Eli Manning head-to-head while beating the eventual Super Bowl champion Giants in New Jersey.
Yes, the Vikings beat the Giants, and yes he did outplay Eli Manning. To allude that the Vikings won the Giants game because of Jackson outplaying Manning is ludicrous. The Vikings won the Giants came because Manning played so brutal. Manning threw four interceptions, three that were returned for touchdowns. The interception that wasn’t returned for a score turned into an eight yard Viking touchdown drive. Wow, tough to outplay that performance. Please.
Get ready for a QB controversy in Minnesota. The fans are going to be making a John David Booty call early.
Brian Brohm: Nice luck by the Packers in having Brian Brohm fall into their lap. I’m not in the group who thinks it puts even more pressure on A Rodg to have Brohm in the wings. You can never have too much depth at QB. Brohm played in a pro passing style offense at Louisville and by college QB standards will probably be ready to step in earlier than most. I have a much better feeling about the future of the Packers knowing there’s another option under center should A Rodg get injured or not work out. The guy clearly has what it takes to be a good NFL starter, just like Rodgers. Taking Matt Flynn from LSU in the seventh round provided even more insurance.
Here’s some Queen for my man Tarvaris Jackson. Under Pressure live from Wembley Stadium in 1986.
With Jared Allen in the fold T-Jack is now officially under a lot of pressure. In a Strib poll today nearly 30% of Viking fans who responded think the team is now a Super Bowl contender. I do agree the Allen trade will make the Vikings solid defense even better, but its still a big jump from missing the playoffs to Super Bowl contender. With the exception of your occasional Trent Dilfer or Jeff Hostetler it’s pretty rare a team with such below average QB competes for the championship.
One thing for sure, it was a joy coming to work today and facing my Viking fan friends and co-workers. There’s nothing like being a Packer fan in Minnesota. The retirement of Favre and the Allen trade has upped the confidence of Viking fans a wee bit. I have one question: why would a rebuilding team give up such a talented young player with such popularity? Do they know something the Vikings don’t?
Here’s a prediction: There will be a game late in the year that the Vikings really need to win. The defense will be stout but the offense will sputter. The Vikings will have a late lead. A more experienced capable quarterback on the other team will lead his club to a late game drive to score the winning touchdown. On this drive the Vikings defense will be unable to get pressure on the QB. People will be wondering where Jared Allen was on the final drive— the defense will be exhausted from being on the field all day because of too many three and outs. Tarvaris and the offense will be unable to mount any offensive threat. It’s inevitable.
More Brett Favre “comeback” speculation from SI.com. I’ve been in the column of the folks who firmly believe Favre is retired for good. I’m also not buying the rumor that he’d come back to another team— that just doesn’t seem like something that would be in his DNA. Many Packer fans would see that as the ultimate betrayal. And why go to another “contender” when the Packers were an overtime loss away from the Super Bowl last season?
This latest comment by Favre, that he’d come back if Aaron Rodgers were injured, is the first time Favre himself has spoke of coming back in any situation. The concept of Rodgers getting injured isn’t out of the question. He’s played very little in both preseason and regular season yet has suffered two injuries that forced him to miss a large amount of time.
Think about this for a second. You’re Chris Henry. You get paid a half a million dollars a year to play professional football. Clearly you must have skill because if you didn’t the Bengals would have given up on you a long time ago. All you have to do to keep collecting your paycheck is to stay out of trouble. That’s it. Plain and simple. Don’t punch somebody, don’t get arrested, don’t get a bunch of underage kids drunk, don’t vandalize anything, and lay off the weed. The unbelievable thing is he just can’t do it. This time he gets in trouble for punching an eighteen-year-old. What professional football player is hanging out with seniors in high school? Scratch that last sentence, what NFL player other than Mark Chmura, is hanging out with high school kids?
Somebody will give him a chance. As Chad Johnson said on Sportcenter yesterday, he can play. The only reason the Bengals got rid of him is because of all the PR issues the team has had the past few years.
It may not be in the same category, but then you have the case of Matt Leinart. Come on Matt. College is over, you’re a highly paid professional now. Grow up, find yourself a classy lady and get past your obvious need to house college chicks. It may be just me but I haven’t come across any pics of Peyton Manning or Tom Brady holding a beer bong for a bunch of twenty-something sorority sisters. You can still hang out with your boy band buddy— just class it up a bit. At least confiscate the digital cameras at the door.
What kind of confidence can his club have in this guy as a leader?
It’s official, the Packers and the Vikings will square off September 6 on Monday Night Football from Lambeau Field. Let the Aaron Rodgers era begin. With Favre retired the Vikings will see the game as an opportunity stake their claim as the class of the division. Plus they’re going to want to avenge the 34-Donut November loss. If Carl Gerbschmidt were a real person he’d be counting down the days already. As a Wisconsin native and Packer fan in Minneapolis I can only imagine what the lead up to this game is going to be like.
Staying on the Minnesota football theme, I’m interested in checking out the movie Leatherheads starring George Clooney, Renee Zellwegger and John Krasinski. It’s loosely based on the book Leatherheads of the North by Chuck Frederick. It’s the story of Superior, Wisconsin’s Ernie Nevers and the 1927 Duluth Eskimos. Ole Haugsrud, also from Superior and the owner of the Eskimos, rescued the failing Eskimos franchise by signing Nevers an All-American from Stanford to a massive contract. Due to a variety of factors the Eskimos played an all road schedule that year which provided the inspiration for the book and the movie. An interesting bit of trivia about Ole Haugsrud is that he was one of the original owners of the Minnesota Vikings, due to a deal the NFL made with him back when the Eskimos franchise was eliminated. In Superior, legend has it that he played a factor in naming the team after the Superior Central High School Vikings— a high school once attended by Mr. Viking himself, Bud Grant.
Sal Paolantonio, resident ESPN Philadelphia Eagles rube, has created quite a firestorm of controversy by knocking the legend of Brett Favre down a bit. In in a widely read ESPN column Sal Pal plays the devils advocate to what he believes is a little too much adulation for Favre. His main point, which I disagree with, is that Bart Starr is the greatest Packer QB based on his NFL championships. And that Favre does not rank with the Mt. Rushmore of signal callers, i.e. Bradshaw, Aikman, Young, Montana, Brady, etc. I beg to differ.
The ongoing joke around the family is that if the Packers went to the Super Bowl I was going to change Aisley’s name to Aisley Favre Barrette. In fact it was so discussed prior to the Pack losing their heartbreaker to the Giants that Aisley now seems to think her middle name is Favre. And as Costanza would say…”not that there’s anything wrong with that.”
Brett Favre is my all time favorite athlete— topping even Larry (Basketball Jesus) Bird. In fact he’s my all-time favorite person. Melissa can’t get over the fact that there is no one else on earth– living at least— that I would rather meet than Brett Favre. That includes any supermodel, head of state, actor, athlete, you name it. The man didn’t miss a day of work in 16 years. Even his biggest detractors would always admit Favre’s greatness.