The Minnesota Vikings are a mess.
Minnesota folks were pretty happy about themselves when the defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in London two weeks ago. All that's changed now. Three weeks ago, the Cleveland Browns were a mess until they came into Minnesota and took a close one from the Vikings. Yesterday, the Carolina Panthers were a mess until they came into Minnesota and took apart the Vikings. The Minnesota Vikings have a way of getting other teams feeling better about themselves.
There's probably little doubt that Josh Freeman will be the Vikings starting quarterback as soon as he is able. That could be good. It's bad that he'll be taking the reins of a 1-4 team.
There's really only two ways that a game can go if a team is surfing on intense emotion. It can be either a screaming success or a tremendous failure. The Vikings hit on the latter. Adrian Peterson's recent off field tragedy had to have the Vikings on edge. They did explode out of that tunnel at the Metrodome. That momentum built on emotion ran out of gas pretty quick.
Good or bad, a football game can hinge on a play or two. Even a blowout. The Vikings 35-10 loss to the Carolina Panthers, in my opinion, came down to a two play sequence before the game was even five minutes old. The Vikings had a nice game opening drive going. Then, Matt Cassel sailed a pass over the head of an open Greg Jennings right into the hands of Panthers safety Mike Mitchell. Mitchell didn't even have to do a damn thing but catch a ball thrown right to him. The Panthers first play from scrimmage was pretty much a copy of the pass thrown by Cassel. Cam Newton sailed a pass right into the hands of Vikings safety Jamarca Sanford. He didn't have to do a damn thing but catch a ball thrown right to him. I cheered for there was no way that any professional football player would drop a pass thrown right to him. Sanford dropped that easy interception. About nine and a half minutes later the Panthers had themselves a 7-0 lead. The Vikings never really threatened after that. So sad.
There were a couple of moments of promise for the Vikings. Tight end Kyle Rudolph made some plays. He could be such a dynamic player but in five games he's made little impact. He had opportunities yesterday. He needs more. Rookie cornerback Xavier Rhodes is already a terrific football player. He had one play, in particular, that impressed me. It might go down as a failure as he allowed a reception. A diving attempt by Rhodes forced a nice, diving catch, I believe, by Steve Smith. Rhodes was inches away from the deflection. Despite diving, he had the presence to insure that the receiver was down. His transition from defender to tackler in one smooth motion was impressive. Rhodes is real close. Smith also showed how much more Rhodes has to grow. Smith pretty much coerced Rhodes into a drive extending personal foul penalty.
Wow, there really wasn't much positive to pull away from the game for the Vikings. It's a damn shame. They have too many playmakers to play this poorly. There's still time. No one is really taking control of the NFC North. 1-4 sucks but there's some time. Not a lot, but some. The Vikings have little room for error the rest of the season. It's Freeman time.
Another horrible development for the Vikings is the apparent complete explosion of cornerback Josh Robinson's confidence. At times, it seems that he's simply given up. He's got talent. He's got tremendous speed. It's sad to see. Chris Cook and Rhodes should be the starters at corner. I think that this could be a fantastic duo. I'd rather see Marcus Sherels at nickel than Robinson going forward.
I think that the New England Patriots last second win over the New Orleans Saints was the most impressive win of the day. There aren't many teams that I've ever seen as successful at manufacturing wins as the Patriots. Part Brady. Part Belichick.
Question from a reporter to Belichick: "What makes Tom Brady so clutch?"
Answer from Belichick: "He's obviously one of the best players in the league. He's good in all four quarters."
Good to see the Steelers finally get a win.
The Texans are a bigger mess than the Vikings. I don't know how they can get 198 total yards from Arian Foster and still lose 38-13.
The Vikings will be facing more decisions this week than they've faced in a while. The switch to Freeman seems to be a no-brainer if he's comfortable with the offense. The New York Giants will be looking to get better against the Vikings next Monday Night. ESPN is probably wondering why NBC gets all of the great prime time games.
Monday, October 14, 2013
Sunday, October 13, 2013
Game Day Thoughts
The events of the last few days in Adrian Peterson's life made football seem very, very small. It's never right to lose a child. There should be some physical law that prevents a 2-year old child from being taken like this. Through this ordeal, we've discovered how important football is to Adrian Peterson. It's his way of coping. It's his release. It so often has been. His decision to play a football game so soon after losing his son is his decision. He's experienced enough heartache in his life to know the right path for himself. I've seen him crucified for his decision to play a game on all of the various social networking avenues. It's pretty damn selfish for anyone to think that their opinion on this tragic matter is the opinion that Peterson should have. It's his life. It's his decision.
Football is so much easier than life. It's often good to get away. From life.
I was watching the Georgia-Missouri game until I discovered that the Eastern Michigan-Army game was available for viewing. Army football. Blaik Field. Michie Stadium. West Point. So beautiful. I've run pass routes on that field. Not so beautiful.
Army running back Terry Baggett had a gigantic day on that beautiful field. 18 carries for 304 yards and 4 touchdowns! His touchdowns accounted for 201 of those yards (4,67,34,96). I found this game as it was coming out of halftime. Army was leading 22-18. It was 43-18 at the end of the third. With today's hyperactive passing attacks, it can be shocking to see a team like Army that can be explosive on the ground. Yesterday's explosion started with Baggett. He had one of those special games where he seemed to playing on a whole other plane from others on the field. He did whatever he wanted. At one point he had the easy math stats of 10 carries for 250 yards. In that light, he was a mere mortal on his final eight carries. Baggett's fellow backs weren't too bad either. Army had 513 yards on the ground. Most impressive.
What is it with Boston athletes and beards? There's some Boston College football players sporting beards that would make the Red Sox proud.
There were several slappies that were pretty vocal about South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney sitting out the season to avoid risking a career-jeopardizing injury. Some of those slappies are the very same slappies that are critical of Clowney's effort and possible injury this season.
Terrific game in Happy Valley. Penn St. upset Michigan 43-40 after four quarters and four overtimes. Penn St. had a last minute touchdown drive to force overtime, a blocked field goal to extend overtime, a bold fourth down conversion led to the winning touchdown. Great game.
It's hard to not cheer for Penn St. So many are trying to crawl out of a hell. Bill O'Brien seems to be the perfect coach to lead this team. He's likely going to have NFL offers coming his way this offseason. For the sake of Penn St., I hope that he stays.
It sure is strange to see Michigan quarterback Devin Gardner wear #98. He's wearing that number for the season to honor Michigan legend Tom Harmon. Nice gesture. It's just strange seeing a #98 under center.
Utah 27 Stanford 21. That's why they play the games.
Alabama 0 Kentucky 0 after the first quarter was a true surprise. Alabama 24 Kentucky 0 at the half was more like it.
Washington looked like they had something going against Oregon when they were down a touchdown, 31-24, at the end of the third. Oregon stepped on the gas and put up two fourth quarter touchdowns. The defense kept Washington out of the end zone and the Ducks had a deceptively comfortable 45-24 win.
It's a tad disconcerting that Cal's defense played their best game of the year and still gave up 37 points. UCLA dropped the Golden Bears to 1-5 with the 37-10 loss. It was actually a pretty heroic effort by Cal's defense. They were down to 3rd and 4th team players in some spots. The only promising thing about this difficult season is that the schedule lightens some from here. Cal has played ranked teams Northwestern, Ohio St., Oregon, and UCLA in their first six games. Every game is rough for Cal right now but at least the defense has now shown some signs of life. If they can string a couple of wins together maybe they can gain some momentum. It starts with Oregon St. next week.
Cleveland Browns receiver/returner Travis Benjamin claims that he got his speed from chasing rabbits. There's a bunch of fast football players that have come out of Belle Glade, Florida. There's a bunch of rabbits to chase. A Belle Glade tradition brings out a crowd to chase the rabbits scattering from the burning of the sugar cane fields. 27 NFL players have come out of the muck of Belle Glade since 1985.
Speaking of speedy, I sure hope that the Vikings find a way of getting the ball into the hands of rookie receiver Cordarrelle Patterson on offense. He's too talented to keep on the sideline.
Hopefully, Matt Cassel will get the ball into the hands of Patterson. Cassel gets the start while former franchise quarterback Christian Ponder carries a clip board. Both might be on the bench in a week or two when Josh Freeman is ready to play some Vikings football. The Vikings just need to find their quarterback.
Football Sunday!
Football is so much easier than life. It's often good to get away. From life.
I was watching the Georgia-Missouri game until I discovered that the Eastern Michigan-Army game was available for viewing. Army football. Blaik Field. Michie Stadium. West Point. So beautiful. I've run pass routes on that field. Not so beautiful.
Army running back Terry Baggett had a gigantic day on that beautiful field. 18 carries for 304 yards and 4 touchdowns! His touchdowns accounted for 201 of those yards (4,67,34,96). I found this game as it was coming out of halftime. Army was leading 22-18. It was 43-18 at the end of the third. With today's hyperactive passing attacks, it can be shocking to see a team like Army that can be explosive on the ground. Yesterday's explosion started with Baggett. He had one of those special games where he seemed to playing on a whole other plane from others on the field. He did whatever he wanted. At one point he had the easy math stats of 10 carries for 250 yards. In that light, he was a mere mortal on his final eight carries. Baggett's fellow backs weren't too bad either. Army had 513 yards on the ground. Most impressive.
What is it with Boston athletes and beards? There's some Boston College football players sporting beards that would make the Red Sox proud.
There were several slappies that were pretty vocal about South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney sitting out the season to avoid risking a career-jeopardizing injury. Some of those slappies are the very same slappies that are critical of Clowney's effort and possible injury this season.
Terrific game in Happy Valley. Penn St. upset Michigan 43-40 after four quarters and four overtimes. Penn St. had a last minute touchdown drive to force overtime, a blocked field goal to extend overtime, a bold fourth down conversion led to the winning touchdown. Great game.
It's hard to not cheer for Penn St. So many are trying to crawl out of a hell. Bill O'Brien seems to be the perfect coach to lead this team. He's likely going to have NFL offers coming his way this offseason. For the sake of Penn St., I hope that he stays.
It sure is strange to see Michigan quarterback Devin Gardner wear #98. He's wearing that number for the season to honor Michigan legend Tom Harmon. Nice gesture. It's just strange seeing a #98 under center.
Utah 27 Stanford 21. That's why they play the games.
Alabama 0 Kentucky 0 after the first quarter was a true surprise. Alabama 24 Kentucky 0 at the half was more like it.
Washington looked like they had something going against Oregon when they were down a touchdown, 31-24, at the end of the third. Oregon stepped on the gas and put up two fourth quarter touchdowns. The defense kept Washington out of the end zone and the Ducks had a deceptively comfortable 45-24 win.
It's a tad disconcerting that Cal's defense played their best game of the year and still gave up 37 points. UCLA dropped the Golden Bears to 1-5 with the 37-10 loss. It was actually a pretty heroic effort by Cal's defense. They were down to 3rd and 4th team players in some spots. The only promising thing about this difficult season is that the schedule lightens some from here. Cal has played ranked teams Northwestern, Ohio St., Oregon, and UCLA in their first six games. Every game is rough for Cal right now but at least the defense has now shown some signs of life. If they can string a couple of wins together maybe they can gain some momentum. It starts with Oregon St. next week.
Cleveland Browns receiver/returner Travis Benjamin claims that he got his speed from chasing rabbits. There's a bunch of fast football players that have come out of Belle Glade, Florida. There's a bunch of rabbits to chase. A Belle Glade tradition brings out a crowd to chase the rabbits scattering from the burning of the sugar cane fields. 27 NFL players have come out of the muck of Belle Glade since 1985.
Speaking of speedy, I sure hope that the Vikings find a way of getting the ball into the hands of rookie receiver Cordarrelle Patterson on offense. He's too talented to keep on the sideline.
Hopefully, Matt Cassel will get the ball into the hands of Patterson. Cassel gets the start while former franchise quarterback Christian Ponder carries a clip board. Both might be on the bench in a week or two when Josh Freeman is ready to play some Vikings football. The Vikings just need to find their quarterback.
Football Sunday!
Saturday, October 12, 2013
Quarterback Expectations
The quarterback position has become so important in today's NFL that the expectations are no longer fair. Young quarterbacks, rookies, are expected to excel pretty much immediately. Terrific recent rookie performances from Matt Ryan, Cam Newton, Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, and Russell Wilson has only encouraged those high expectations. If those guys can do it, others certainly can. Newton set his own bar so high as a rookie that he's having a rough time simply equaling what he's already done. There's really no learning curve anymore for a quarterback. Those selected in the first round of the NFL Draft are expected to start right away. They are expected to make an impact right away. If they aren't playing like a 10-year, franchise quarterback by year two, maybe year three, the team is looking for someone that will. The San Diego Chargers thought that three years was long enough to wait for Drew Brees to develop into a decent quarterback so they brought in Philip Rivers and started the process again. The New Orleans Saints are sure happy about the Chargers impatience. Teams no longer allow for their young quarterback to grow into the job. That's not the case for any of the other positions on a football team. Young running backs, receivers, and tight ends usually find themselves part of a rotation early in their careers. Even those taken in the early rounds of the draft. Young offensive linemen might get in for a few series each game if they aren't ready to start. They're eased along. They're allowed time to adjust to the professional game. There's less stress. The expectations are lower. There are rotations for young defensive players. Some concentrate on certain defenses. Goal line, nickel, dime. They contribute on special teams. They can make an impact for their team as they slowly learn the game and their positions.
It's unfortunate for young quarterbacks that their position simply isn't like any other position. If you're not the starting quarterback, you're not seeing the field. There's only one quarterback. There's no rotation of quarterbacks. Some coaches may monkey with play packages to utilize special running skills of certain backup quarterbacks. It doesn't usually work for long. The need for one guy to be the guy and the need for immediate positive results has crushed many talented throwers. They no longer are allowed the time that so many need to develop into the best quarterback that they can be. If they can't do it right away, their window will close.
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder might be watching his window close. Barely a month ago, he was the unquestioned starting quarterback for his team. An 0-3 start and a fractured rib later, he's on the bench watching the quarterback, Matt Cassel, that was brought in to sit behind him and assist him win his team's first game of the season. A week later, the Vikings sign former Tampa Bay Buccaneers starter Josh Freeman. Suddenly, Ponder's present and future with the Minnesota Vikings is on incredibly shaky ground. This is the beginning of his third NFL season. He's only started one complete season. It wasn't long ago that one season would just be the starting point. In today's game, that's often the only shot that a quarterback gets. It doesn't seem fair. Every other position on a football team has so much more opportunity to learn from their mistakes and successes. If a quarterback makes a mistake, he's on the bench and maybe looking for a job. The greatest mistake Ponder may have made was assuming that his job was secure. The most important thing for him right now is to not give up. This season and his career is far from over.
It's unfortunate for young quarterbacks that their position simply isn't like any other position. If you're not the starting quarterback, you're not seeing the field. There's only one quarterback. There's no rotation of quarterbacks. Some coaches may monkey with play packages to utilize special running skills of certain backup quarterbacks. It doesn't usually work for long. The need for one guy to be the guy and the need for immediate positive results has crushed many talented throwers. They no longer are allowed the time that so many need to develop into the best quarterback that they can be. If they can't do it right away, their window will close.
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder might be watching his window close. Barely a month ago, he was the unquestioned starting quarterback for his team. An 0-3 start and a fractured rib later, he's on the bench watching the quarterback, Matt Cassel, that was brought in to sit behind him and assist him win his team's first game of the season. A week later, the Vikings sign former Tampa Bay Buccaneers starter Josh Freeman. Suddenly, Ponder's present and future with the Minnesota Vikings is on incredibly shaky ground. This is the beginning of his third NFL season. He's only started one complete season. It wasn't long ago that one season would just be the starting point. In today's game, that's often the only shot that a quarterback gets. It doesn't seem fair. Every other position on a football team has so much more opportunity to learn from their mistakes and successes. If a quarterback makes a mistake, he's on the bench and maybe looking for a job. The greatest mistake Ponder may have made was assuming that his job was secure. The most important thing for him right now is to not give up. This season and his career is far from over.
Friday, October 11, 2013
Trust
National Football Post had an interesting column by NFL player agent Jack Bechta on the "most trusted" teams in the league. Bechta took his own informal poll of his fellow agents to determine which teams they trust the most while doing business. He used the following categories:
-Fairness in contract negotiations
-Open, honest, and direct communication about clients
-Injury settlements
-Medical care and the business decisions that go along with it
-The development of young players
Bechta pointed out that not every agent has dealt with every team in the last few years. There have also been some recent regime changes (Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs, etc.) that might not factor fairly into this poll. The poll still covered a great deal of the league. Collectively, the agents that Bechta polled represent over 250 active players.
Here are the top five teams mentioned the most by the agents polled with Bechta's comments:
Green Bay Packers-All but one agent polled had the Packers in the top five. There is no doubt that the Packers unique ownership structures helps to create an environment of accountability and openness.
Seattle Seahawks-The Seahawks are as easy going as their head coach and general manager. They don't play games and quickly let you know where you stand.
NY Giants-The Giants have a no nonsense professional approach that agents appreciate.
Minnesota Vikings-The front office people run the Vikings in a manner that agents seem to trust. They are not afraid to keep and pay their best players.
Jacksonville Jaguars-Despite their current struggles, agents know where they and their clients stand with this team. The owner is going to be patient during the rebuilding process and the decision makers are not panicking and are looking towards building for the long term. The brass is always responsive and quick to give you honest feedback on your clients.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints, and San Diego Chargers also received some love.
Sure is cool to see the Vikings on this list.
It's also great to see Jacksonville listed. I've heard a few interviews with Jaguars owner Shad Khan. He's new to the league and he's really trying to do things the right way. It's a slow, tough go right now but the dedication really seems to be there. Brighter days will come.
-Fairness in contract negotiations
-Open, honest, and direct communication about clients
-Injury settlements
-Medical care and the business decisions that go along with it
-The development of young players
Bechta pointed out that not every agent has dealt with every team in the last few years. There have also been some recent regime changes (Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs, etc.) that might not factor fairly into this poll. The poll still covered a great deal of the league. Collectively, the agents that Bechta polled represent over 250 active players.
Here are the top five teams mentioned the most by the agents polled with Bechta's comments:
Green Bay Packers-All but one agent polled had the Packers in the top five. There is no doubt that the Packers unique ownership structures helps to create an environment of accountability and openness.
Seattle Seahawks-The Seahawks are as easy going as their head coach and general manager. They don't play games and quickly let you know where you stand.
NY Giants-The Giants have a no nonsense professional approach that agents appreciate.
Minnesota Vikings-The front office people run the Vikings in a manner that agents seem to trust. They are not afraid to keep and pay their best players.
Jacksonville Jaguars-Despite their current struggles, agents know where they and their clients stand with this team. The owner is going to be patient during the rebuilding process and the decision makers are not panicking and are looking towards building for the long term. The brass is always responsive and quick to give you honest feedback on your clients.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints, and San Diego Chargers also received some love.
Sure is cool to see the Vikings on this list.
It's also great to see Jacksonville listed. I've heard a few interviews with Jaguars owner Shad Khan. He's new to the league and he's really trying to do things the right way. It's a slow, tough go right now but the dedication really seems to be there. Brighter days will come.
Thursday, October 10, 2013
Throwback Thursday: Just Catch The Damn Ball
I can't believe that it's been over two months since I traveled to Canton to see Cris Carter inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. I will probably revisit that weekend and Carter's incredible day many, many times. I was prompted to do so now when I saw this quote from Carter:
"I catch the ball. You throw the ball, I catch it. Throw it close to me, I catch it. If you make me do something crazy to catch it, I catch it."
Cris Carter's amazing ability to perform the supposed simple task of catching a football is what made me appreciate him so much. He had the best hands that I've ever seen. I can't recall ever seeing him drop a pass. If he could get those hands on the ball, it was a catch. Too many receivers take this essential skill for granted (terrell owens). It's unbelievable. Carter never took it for granted. He worked as hard on his pass catching at the end of his career as he did at the beginning. Catching hundreds of balls after practice. Hundreds one-handed. Hundreds with both hands. He was probably better a catching the football with one hand than many receivers (terrell owens) catching with both hands. He took nothing for granted. He also took care of his hand. Hot wax to keep them soft. That sort of thing.
It wasn't just his emphasis on catching the ball that made him great. It was his attention to all of the little details involved in playing the position of receiver. Route running, body positioning, footwork. He worked on all of the things that got a receiver open. Then his hands finished the job. It was amazing to see him put it all together on a football field. I wish that more receivers practiced the little things.
"I catch the ball. You throw the ball, I catch it. Throw it close to me, I catch it. If you make me do something crazy to catch it, I catch it."
Cris Carter's amazing ability to perform the supposed simple task of catching a football is what made me appreciate him so much. He had the best hands that I've ever seen. I can't recall ever seeing him drop a pass. If he could get those hands on the ball, it was a catch. Too many receivers take this essential skill for granted (terrell owens). It's unbelievable. Carter never took it for granted. He worked as hard on his pass catching at the end of his career as he did at the beginning. Catching hundreds of balls after practice. Hundreds one-handed. Hundreds with both hands. He was probably better a catching the football with one hand than many receivers (terrell owens) catching with both hands. He took nothing for granted. He also took care of his hand. Hot wax to keep them soft. That sort of thing.
It wasn't just his emphasis on catching the ball that made him great. It was his attention to all of the little details involved in playing the position of receiver. Route running, body positioning, footwork. He worked on all of the things that got a receiver open. Then his hands finished the job. It was amazing to see him put it all together on a football field. I wish that more receivers practiced the little things.
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
Three Of A Kind
Christian Ponder
Matt Cassel
Josh Freeman
That's an interesting group of quarterbacks for the Minnesota Vikings. Not many teams have three quarterbacks that have started in the NFL. I can't think of any team that has three quarterbacks that were recently considered the present and future of a franchise. Kansas City traded for Matt Cassel in 2009. Based on his one season starting in place of an injured Tom Brady in New England, the Chiefs thought that Cassel could be their franchise quarterback. Initially, it looked like they could be right. He made a Pro Bowl! Things haven't been so peachy since 2010. Tampa Bay drafted Josh Freeman with the 17th pick of the 2009 NFL Draft. The Buccaneers thought that he could be their franchise quarterback. After a terrific 2010 season, it looked like they were right. He made a Pro Bowl! The Buccaneers, led by Freeman, were a dynamic, up and coming football team. Everything fell apart in 2011. The team couldn't get out of their own way. Head coach Raheem Morris was fired. While Freeman had some excellent moments in 2012, things weren't quite comfortable with new coach Greg Schiano. That relationship exploded this season. Minnesota selected Christian Ponder with the 12th pick of the 2011 NFL Draft. The Vikings thought that he could be their franchise quarterback. After just under two years worth of starts, his performance has been mixed, at best. He's had some good to great games. He's had as many mystifying games. Ponder hasn't made a Pro Bowl. Now, three one time franchise-quarterbacks-to-be are competing for one job on one team. It likely comes down to a competition between Ponder and Freeman as I think that the Vikings view Cassel as a backup. A solid, competent backup.
There's little doubt that Josh Freeman is the most accomplished of the three quarterbacks. He was getting close to star status after only his second year in the league. I think that many people outside of the Buccaneers were shocked that everything fell apart so quickly with the team and their young quarterback. I sure was. It was clear that Schiano and Freeman had sailed well past the point of no return. While the signing of Freeman is no vote of confidence for Ponder, I wouldn't shut the door on his role as the Vikings starting quarterback. He's got the skills to be a very effective starter. He has to start playing with greater confidence and consistency. If he wasn't motivated before, he should be now. The Vikings have shown that they won't wait forever for his development. They really can't afford to wait.
Matt Cassel
Josh Freeman
That's an interesting group of quarterbacks for the Minnesota Vikings. Not many teams have three quarterbacks that have started in the NFL. I can't think of any team that has three quarterbacks that were recently considered the present and future of a franchise. Kansas City traded for Matt Cassel in 2009. Based on his one season starting in place of an injured Tom Brady in New England, the Chiefs thought that Cassel could be their franchise quarterback. Initially, it looked like they could be right. He made a Pro Bowl! Things haven't been so peachy since 2010. Tampa Bay drafted Josh Freeman with the 17th pick of the 2009 NFL Draft. The Buccaneers thought that he could be their franchise quarterback. After a terrific 2010 season, it looked like they were right. He made a Pro Bowl! The Buccaneers, led by Freeman, were a dynamic, up and coming football team. Everything fell apart in 2011. The team couldn't get out of their own way. Head coach Raheem Morris was fired. While Freeman had some excellent moments in 2012, things weren't quite comfortable with new coach Greg Schiano. That relationship exploded this season. Minnesota selected Christian Ponder with the 12th pick of the 2011 NFL Draft. The Vikings thought that he could be their franchise quarterback. After just under two years worth of starts, his performance has been mixed, at best. He's had some good to great games. He's had as many mystifying games. Ponder hasn't made a Pro Bowl. Now, three one time franchise-quarterbacks-to-be are competing for one job on one team. It likely comes down to a competition between Ponder and Freeman as I think that the Vikings view Cassel as a backup. A solid, competent backup.
There's little doubt that Josh Freeman is the most accomplished of the three quarterbacks. He was getting close to star status after only his second year in the league. I think that many people outside of the Buccaneers were shocked that everything fell apart so quickly with the team and their young quarterback. I sure was. It was clear that Schiano and Freeman had sailed well past the point of no return. While the signing of Freeman is no vote of confidence for Ponder, I wouldn't shut the door on his role as the Vikings starting quarterback. He's got the skills to be a very effective starter. He has to start playing with greater confidence and consistency. If he wasn't motivated before, he should be now. The Vikings have shown that they won't wait forever for his development. They really can't afford to wait.
Tuesday, October 8, 2013
Change That Name
It surprises me that it has taken 80 years for people to take seriously the offensive Washington Redskins name. The Redskins have been called the Redskins since 1933. Long time. People have been questioning the naming of so many sports teams after Native Americans for decades. I've always found the use of Indians, Braves, Seminoles, Utes, Sioux, etc, as actually complimentary. We pick people and animals that are strong to be the symbol of our teams but I'm not standing in their shoes. Even as a wee tyke, I couldn't see Redskins as anything but offensive. I thought that it was a ridiculous name. As I learned more about football history and became aware of longtime Boston and Washington Redskins owner George Preston Marshall, I understood better the source of the name. It was clear that Marshall had some racist views. President John F. Kennedy had to strongly suggest that he finally integrate his team in the early '60s. Marshall may not have seen the name of his team as offensive because it didn't offend him. As college mascots have been changed over the past few decades simply because of the possibility that some Native Americans might find the names offensive, Redskins, the most offensive name of all, has always seemed to be untouchable. I never understood this.
Now, President Barrack Obama has spoken about the need to change the Washington Redskins name. Current Redskins owner Daniel Snyder seems as firm about the name as his predecessor, George Preston Marshall. There seems to more movement now than ever to pressure Snyder to make a change. On Monday, representatives of the Oneida Indian Nation conducted a symposium in Washington, D.C. regarding the name of the local NFL team. The date and time was aimed at coinciding with the league's quarterly meetings to be held in Washington. NFL representatives were unable to attend the even, due to those quarterly meetings. But the NFL will be meeting with representatives of the Oneida Nation next month. The league has stressed a willingness to engage in a constructive and meaningful dialogue regarding the issue of the Redskins name. It doesn't seem that little Danny Snyder has the same willingness. He's stressed on many occasions that he has no interest in changing the name of his team.
I found it interesting that the Oneida Nation is stepping forward. The Oneida Football Club, of Boston, was the first to establish organized rules for the new game in 1862. The first football team gravitated toward the Native Americans to name their team. It just seems fitting that those same people are trying to straighten out the team that went too far.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)