Eisen's Soapbox

I really like the NFL Network's Rich Eisen. He brings a nice combination of silly and serious. Best of his talent is his remarkable rapport with the players, past and present. In his time with the Network, he has often latched onto some aspect of football and started politicking for a change. First it was the infamous "tuck rule". That's a good one. I actually think that the intention of the "tuck rule" is fine. It's the enforcement of it that's pathetic. The Flea Flicker will attack the "tuck rule" at another time. I'll probably combine it with the Calvin Johnson TD catch rule, another poorly enforced rule. For now, I'll deal with Rich Eisen's new favorite topic. For the past several years both the NFL Network's and ESPN's draft coverage have shown the team phone calls to the drafted players, both at the event and in some of the homes. Eisen hates this. He doesn't want the teams calling the players. He wants each selection to be a surprise for the audience and the players when Roger Goodell announces it. My first thought was that Eisen's crew is doing the televising. They are ruining the surprise to at least the audience. I'm all for surprises, but I have always liked that the teams are the ones to inform the players of their selection. I'd actually prefer that both networks kept their cameras away from the players special moment. Keep the cameras out of the Green Room and the homes. I'm fine with Goodell's announcement being a surprise to me and the rest of the audience. I don't need to see the players initial surprise. Seeing their resulting joy is enough.

I've always enjoyed Rich Eisen's fan's view of the NFL. This new platform of his just seems a bit much. You can surprise the audience but let the players be.

Camp Ponder

Today is the day that about a dozen Minnesota Vikings players gather in Florida to do some actual football work. Wow, professional football players actually playing some football? In a sign of impressive leadership at such a young age, rookie QB Christian Ponder has called this meeting. Fellow QBs Joe Webb and Rhett Bomar will be there, but Ponder seems to be taking the lead. The incredibly versatile Webb can still make a significant contribution to the offense even if Ponder is starting. His unique set of skills will give defensive coordinators headaches no matter where he lines up. This gathering of Vikings is such a promising sign. The most significant sign, possibly even greater than Ponder's leadership, is the expected presence of receiver Sidney Rice. Currently, Rice has no contract. Whenever this idiotic lockout ends, the Vikings first order of business is re-signing Rice. His being at these workouts is a pretty good indication that he is looking to remain with the team. Fellow receivers Percy Harvin and Emmanuel Arceneaux and tight ends Visanthe Shiancoe and rookie Kyle Rudolph will be there. I'm a little disappointed that I haven't seen Bernard Berrian's name on the guest list. He's had a somewhat rocky past two years. Injuries have played a role, but he needs to get it together. This would be a good place to start. When at the top of his game, Berrian completes a very dynamic trio with Rice and Harvin. I hope that Adrian Peterson and his backfield mates can be there. Centers John Sullivan, rookie Brandon Fusco and Jon Cooper would do well to be there. The center-QB exchange is always very critical to the success of an offensive play. I can't wait for Camp Ponder. Seeing Steve Hutchinson, Kevin Williams, Chad Greenway, Antoine Winfield, Jared Allen, EJ Henderson, Brian Robison and the rest at the camp would make it all better. Sure can't wait for this ridiculous labor mess to end.

O' Canada

It's not aboot hockey. It's still all aboot football. The Flea Flicker is going international today. Not too far. Going to our neighbor up north, Canada. There was a time when many NFL quality players went north for some football. There were many reasons for this. The pay used to be much closer. If a player couldn't get that raise with his NFL club, he could find it in the Canadian Football League. In the late '70s, Warren Moon discovered that some in the NFL didn't much care for a black man throwing a football. He went north and did some crazy things with the passing game. Doug Flutie was way too short. He went north too. Both came back and proved that they had NFL skills. Moon showed that the color of his skin had no impact on his ability to throw the ball. He made it to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Fewer and fewer players have taken the CFL route to the NFL. One player may have changed that pattern. The Miami Dolphins found a tremendous pass rushing linebacker in Canada. After two years with the British Columbia Lions, Cameron Wake has sent scouts sprinting across the border. Racking up 14 sacks in a season will open some eyes. The Philadelphia Eagles hope that defensive end Phillip Hunt will have a similar pass rush impact. They found him in Canada. The Eagles were at the front of a long line of teams pursuing Hunt. A couple pass catchers are joining the Canadian pass rushers this year. The Vikings signed BC Lions receiver Emmanuel Arceneaux to a 3-year contract. The length of the contract indicates a greater than passing interest in Arceneaux. The Bears beat out several teams to sign Saskatchewan Rough Riders receiver Andy Fantuz. The NFL is always on the lookout for talent. There are skilled football players everywhere. Even Canada has a few.

LA Is Doin' Some Courtin'?

The people of Minnesota, the state legislature in particular, should start quaking in their mukluks. AEG CEO Tim Leiweke was in Minneapolis this week and met with Vikings owner Zygi Wilf and other team officials. AEG and Leiweke are searching the country for an NFL team to fill their proposed downtown Los Angeles stadium. Unlike Minnesota, Los Angeles actually seems to want an NFL team even though they have never been very successful at keeping one.

Leiweke did have business, other than kidnapping the Vikings, in the Twin Cities area. He also has a relationship with the Wilf family. The Vikings officials primarily were inquiring about the idea of developing an entertainment district around the hoped for Vikings stadium in Arden Hills. Leiweke has loads of experience with this sort of endeavor and the Vikings were simply getting some information. I don't really care how innocent this meeting was. I want it to scare the "powers that be" in Minnesota into action. They must realize how critical the Vikings stadium situation has become. The lease with the Metrodome ends after this season. This waffling has to end now. The Vikings could be gone this time next year and the team could be having an entirely different conversation with Leiweke. We are way past saying "time is running out". Time has run out.

100

The Flea Flicker is 100 today. I really can't believe that I've done 100 of these already. Time flies when talkin' football, even with a lockout. I never would have it made it to 1 if not for Mrs. Flicker. My amazing wife got me started on this little adventure. Her support is all I need. She's the best.

I wonder what the next 100 brings. I hope that one somewhere short of 110 is about a new labor deal. I hope that 200 is about Christian Ponder being named the Minnesota Vikings opening day starting QB. I hope that somewhere around 300 I'm writing about the Vikings winning the NFC North, putting the Packers and Bears back where they belong. About 40 after that, I'll hopefully be writing a bunch about the Super Bowl Champion Minnesota Vikings. Good times. No matter what happens in the football world, the Flea Flicker will be there. Football's fun.

Throwback Thursday: Sue Wallen

The fans drive the league. The players and owners should think about that a bit more. Despite the importance of the fans, few make the pages of the NFL history books. No one is to blame for that as it is far too difficult to single them out. Sue Wallen did impact the early Green Bay Packers, and she is remembered. Until football salaries exploded, many football players spent the season in hotels. They just couldn't afford all the homes. With year to year contracts, they never knew where they might live each year. Many had to bolt town as soon as the season ended to start their offseason jobs. There was no home for many players during the season. Sue Wallen provided a little bit of home for many early Green Bay Packers at the Astor Hotel into the 1940s. Sue worked the front desk. She had seen every Packers game played since 1919. She knew all there was to know about every player. When coach Curly Lambeau needed to locate a player, he called on Sue. During World War II, she corresponded with dozens of players. Letters came in from all over the world. The first thing a Packer said when he ran into a teammate far from Green Bay was, "Have you heard from Sue?". She listened to their problems, sent them money, gave them advice and helped them all with warm affection. She was a fan, a friend, a receptionist, even a Mom. None of which was a part of her job description at the Astor. At one point, the hotel changed management and Sue was going to be let go. The Packers rose up in revolt and threatened to tear the new owner apart if Sue left.

It takes the "town team" atmosphere of little Green Bay to have a story like that of Sue Wallen. The quaint nature of the Green Bay Packers really annoys me as a Vikings fan. The Packers are hard to hate. Not like the Bears. There used to be more little town teams and more fans like Sue Wallen that truly were part of the team. Now, there's just the Packers.

DeSean Jackson, Crusader

Over the past several years, few players have been the target of my criticism more frequently than Eagles receiver DeSean Jackson. I have never been more disappointed in a player from my school, Cal. Jackson thrilled me for three years with his breathtaking football skills. His field vision is beyond compare. Players like former Lions back Barry Sanders can make defenders miss. Jackson can also make defenders miss, but he often doesn't have to. He can see his path to the end zone like no other that I have ever seen. He seems to see the defenders moves before they make them. Jackson is an unbelievable player, and an unbelievable jerk. I don't think that any college coach likes to see his players leave early. They still usually support the decision. Cal coach Jeff Tedford was at the press conferences for Aaron Rodgers and Marshawn Lynch to announce their early entry into the NFL draft. He supported them. Tedford wanted no part of Jackson's exit. Jackson destroyed the Cal locker room. All by himself, Jackson took apart a once promising season in 2007. He was a cancer at Cal. He's been a jerk in the NFL. He's also the first player that I have seen step out of bounds rather than take on a punter.

All that being said, I have to give Jackson some much deserved applause right now. DeSean Jackson has been incredible in taking a stand against school yard bullying. It's horrible to see children take on the hatred that we so frequently see in adults. If Jackson can change the views of even a few, he will have done more than most of us. The Flea Flicker salutes DeSean Jackson.