Brett Favre Should Retire a Dirty Bird

When and if Brett Favre actually retires (I’m guessing around the age of 50), I vote the Future Hall of Famer should retire as a Falcon. That way it might bring up the value of my Brett Favre rookie card which is only worth about $8.99.

Seahawks Waive LenDale White

It seemed like a perfect match-up.  Former USC Trojan LenDale White, who spent last year playing behind Chris Johnson, was traded by the Titans to the Seahawks on draft day to White’s former coach, Pete Carroll.  Many thought White’s fresh start in Seattle would help the running back find his way back into the starting lineup.

On Friday, the Seahawks abruptly waived the former 1,000 yard rusher amid rumors that White will be facing a 4-game suspension from the league for substance abuse. In the past, LenDale has been accused of general poor work habits and being difficult with coaching staffs and it seemed like the Seahawks were not willing to put up with White’s behavior.

Seattle General manager John Schneider said Friday “it became apparent at this time that LenDale was not ready to be a member of the Seattle Seahawks.”

It is always sad to see a player with potential throw his career away like this.  White was once a 1,000-yard rusher who scored 15 TD’s in 2008 and given the Seahawks lack of a running game, he could easily have made a bid for the starting position.  Hopefully he can get his act together soon and get back on the field.

2014 New Jersey Super Bowl

Want to hear something stupid? The 2014 Super Bowl will be played in New Jersey. Not in the domed-in stadium in New Jersey because that doesn’t exist. No, it’s going to be played in the frigid open air stadium in cold New Jersey in February.

Why would the NFL risk the elements and host the Super Bowl in a cold weather city? Because it’s New York City. I’m aware the stadium is in New Jersey. But the Giants and the Jets are New York teams. The NFL offices are in New York. Do you think Goodell would give the bid to the Browns. Or the Vikings in a few years when there open-air stadium is completed? Absolutely not. New York gets special treatment.

Regardless of the NFL’s relationship with the Giants and Jets, it doesn’t make good business sense to risk putting your single biggest event, and the single biggest event of the sporting world, in a city where complications from weather can easily arise. I know New York has a huge media presence but this event is about including the whole world. That won’t be easy to do if airplanes can’t take off or land due to snow and ice.

Now, I don’t buy the factor of hurting the fan experience. Real fans usually can’t afford to go to the games. They are at home hosting Super Bowl parties, but those in attendance are usually people who have dumped millions of dollars into the Super Bowl either from commercials or just general sponsorship. The NFL’s promise, in return is to try and deliver an excellent game, and if that isn’t accomplished(and it usually isn’t) then it’s their job to deliver a spectacle.

While I’m sure Super Bowl will deliver the same pageantry that it always does, it doesn’t make sense to for your high profile guests to sit through the Super Bowl in the freezing cold. I’m not listening to the argument that they’ll all be up in the luxury box, because someone has to fill those seats in the stadium. There aren’t enough boxes for everyone.

Let’s get back to the game. For the most part Super Bowl games are largely a snooze fest. It’s often a blow out or just generally poor play and doesn’t offer the fans enough to stay interested beyond the commercials. If you put this game in the elements you’re just opening it up for the potential to be worse.

I will say this and stand behind it: games played in extreme elements suck. Always have, always will. We think of them fondly because of one special moment like the ending of The Ice Bowl or the Patriots/Raiders Tuck Rule Game. Ultimately they slow teams down and render them far less effective had they been playing in ideal conditions. Now maybe I’m idealistic but I’d love to see the best team in football be decided by a game where weather isn’t a factor. I’m ok about the journey needing obstacles and weather being one of them. But I’m not ok with it factoring in the final game.

There is a myth about the cold weather team. A team that comes from a cold city certainly is better used to playing in cold weather each season but the idea that elements matter all that much to a team success, like in the case of the phantom Cold Weather Team, is just stupid. Half the players on an NFL roster played there college ball in warm weather like the SEC or the PAC-10. Half of the players grew up in warmer climates like Florida and Texas. I don’t think those guys enjoy playing football when the wind chill is -15 degrees. It doesn’t help. It’s just the way it is.

So, whether we like it or not, the Super Bowl is going to be played in New York, or New Jersey if we are being geographically correct. So now what? Other cold weather cities? Let’s hope this is a one and done idea. Football is fine in the cold, just not the Super Bowl.

Redskins Haynesworth targeted in $10 million paternity suit

Washington Redskins defensive star Albert Haynesworth has not showed up at Redskin Park for off season workouts but that does not mean he is not in the headlines.

The New York Post reported that Haynesworth is being sued for $10 million by a Brooklyn exotic dancer who claims he impregnated her — then abandoned her.

The Post claims that the exotic dancer, a Salma Hayek look-alike named Silvia Mena, is 4 months pregnant and has not been able to contact Hanyesworth in months after being promised to be taken care of by the NFL star.

Mena, 25, alleges Haynesworth, 28, met her in Miami, romanced her during Super Bowl week, and invited her to his Tennessee home. She claims in the documents that after learning about the pregnancy, Haynesworth promised to “emotionally and financially support Silvia.” But, “after making such promises . . . Haynesworth has abandoned the pregnant Sylvia Mena . . . He has refused to provide any emotional or financial support of Silvia Mena or his unborn child.”

5 Best Offensive SEC Players in the NFL

The SEC Conference has sent many big name players to the NFL over the years. Let’s take a look at my top five offensive players currently in the league.

Urlacher is a Giant Baby

It must be difficult to be Brian Urlacher. He’s the most famous Chicago Bear of his generation and he’s put together a career resume good enough for the Hall of Fame. He’s had endorsement deals and he’s sitting on a lucrative contract and yet he can’t seem to shed the thin skin that makes him such a baby in the press. You would think the middle linebacker for the Chicago Bears would be tougher than that.

This week Urlacher lashed out at Bears Hall of Famer Gale Sayers for comments he made at a speaking engagement. Before we dissect Urlacher’s reaction, let’s see exactly what Sayers said. When asked about the state of the Chicago Bears Sayers replied:

“Cutler hasn’t done the job. Urlacher, I don’t know how good he’s going to be coming back [from surgery]. He’s 33 years old [Urlacher actually turns 32 on Tuesday]. They need a couple wide receivers, a couple defensive backs. They haven’t done a good job.

“If Lovie [Smith] doesn’t do it this year, I think he’s gone. He had a good team the Super Bowl year. Nothing came together for him the last couple years.”

Here was Urlacher response:

“Let me ask you a question: ‘How many championships did Gale Sayers win?’ ” Urlacher told the Chicago Tribune. “How many playoff games did he win when he played? None. None. None.

“Does it bother me? There are enough people throwing daggers at us right now. Why does one of our ex-players have to jump in? There are enough experts talking [expletive] about us, so why does a Bear, an all-time great, have to jump in? I just don’t like that.”

First, we need to establish something before we proceed. Gale Sayers didn’t say anything inflammatory. Had Sayers come out and said that Urlacher couldn’t play anymore or Cutler was an overrated loser. That would be inflammatory. That would be throwing a dagger at the Bears.

What Sayers said is only guilty of being true. Ask any media member, scout, coach, or fan who watches with a fair eye and they will say the same things:

Cutler wasn’t that good last year. 26 interceptions is proof.

Urlacher is coming off another injury and you don’t know how good he’ll be.

The Bears need a couple of defensive backs because they got shredded all last year.

The Bears need a couple of wide receivers because if Devin Hester is your number 1 then you have no receivers.

And if Lovie Smith doesn’t do a good job this year he will get fired. The reason is because they HAVEN’T had a good team since they went to the Super Bowl.

But apparently if you are Brian Urlacher the truth is throwing daggers. Apparently, if you are a former great it is not ok to criticize your former team. However, if you are a current Bear great, like Urlacher, then criticizing your team is more than ok.

It was last year in an interview that Urlacher said this about his team:

“Look, I love Jay, and I understand he’s a great player who can take us a long way, and I still have faith in him,” Urlacher told Yahoo. “But I hate the way our identity has changed.

“We used to establish the run and wear teams down and try not to make mistakes, and we’d rely on our defense to keep us in the game and make big plays to put us in position to win. Kyle Orton might not be the flashiest quarterback, but the guy is a winner, and that formula worked for us. I hate to say it, but that’s the truth.”

That sounds like criticism to me and it came at a time when he wasn’t out there contributing to the effort. But I guess that’s ok. I guess Sayers should have called Urlacher to find out when to criticize.

But there’s another issue that seems to be baffling to anyone who paid attention to Urlachers cry baby comments: It was his calling Gale Sayers out for not having won anything, as if that makes Sayer’s points and opinions not valid.

Can someone, anyone, please remind me the last time Urlacher won a Super Bowl? Sayers played on some garbage teams in his team. For most years he was the only thing on the team worth watching. It’s certainly not Sayers fault that the rest of his roster stunk. It’s unfair to call him out for his teams failures. I’m sure Urlacher wouldn’t respond well to someone calling him out for the Bears inability to stop the Colts offense in the Super Bowl. I doubt Urlacher would ever step up to fall on that sword.

And he shouldn’t. More so than any other sport except for hockey, football is a team sport and you are only as good as the supporting cast around you. And there are plenty of guys out there with rings from all different sports that have earned them without contributing much.

An opinion isn’t invalid because you never played or haven’t won anything. You don’t have to be a chef to know that a particular food is terrible. You don’t have to have won a Super Bowl to know that the Bears have a lot of work to do if they are going to be back on top.

Urlacher doesn’t care what we think. It’s why in all his years and with all his success he never took the time to learn how to handle the media. He is often standoffish with the press, giving mono-syllabic answers to routine questions. He’s happy to talk when he’s on top and terribly sensitive to criticism when he’s not.

It’s a shame too because Urlacher could have owned this city the way Ditka did. The way Jordan did. The Ernie Banks did. But instead Urlacher is much more content to play the part of a spoiled player in a town that can’t stand spoiled players.

Sayers didn’t throw a dagger at the Bears. He hit them with the truth. Sorry if Urlacher can’t take it. It’s Chicago. He needs to man up or shut up. But what do I know? I never a won a Super Bowl either.

Hall of Famer Stan Jones dies; Zach Thomas Retires

The NFL said goodbye to 2 great players this week.  One, a Hall of Famer, passed away and another great retired.  NFL and College Football Hall of Famer Stan Jones died last Friday at 78. Jones was an All-NFL guard in 1955, 1956, and 1959 for the Chicago Bears in 1954. After his playing days, Jones was a defensive line coach for 18 seasons with the Broncos, finishing his last term with the team in 1988.

In 1991, Stan Jones was inducted into the Hall of Fame. After retiring, Jones worked on Lou Saban’s staff in Denver for five seasons. He would later follow Saban to Buffalo during the 1972 season. He rejoined Denver in 1976, helping to create the “Orange Crush” defense under Joe Collier.

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Critics said he was too small to make it in the NFL but after 13 seasons proving them wrong, LB Zach Thomas signed a quick contract this week with his old team, the Miami Dolphins, and promptly retired.

Thomas played 12 of his 13 seasons with Miami and the ceremonial deal insured he would retire as a Dolphin.

Thomas was a fifth-round pick out of Texas Tech in 1996 and despite his small size, 5′ 11′, 230 pounds, Thomas quickly became a dominant forced on the Miami linebacker squad. The seven-time Pro Bowler and five-time first-team all-pro retires with more than 2,000 tackles in his NFL career.

Zach Thomas lays a monster hit on Heath Evans.

Brett Favre to Return? Undergoes Surgery On His Ankle

The off season drama of whether or not quarterback Brett Favre would retire from football took a positive turn for Minnesota Vikings fans Friday afternoon when renowned orthopedic specialist Dr. James Andrews was reported to have operated on Brett Favre’s injured ankle at the Andrews Institute in Gulf Breeze, Fla.

Favre had noted earlier that he would need surgery on his ankle if he were going to be able to play in the 2010 season. The clear indication here is that the surgery was performed to have Favre ready in time for the season.

It is estimated by ESPN that Favre would need four to six weeks of recovery time to be ready to report for training camp and is a huge difference for the team. Without Favre, the Vikings would have to rely on backup QB Tarvaris Jackson to help Minnesota try to win the competitive NFC North Division.

Although Favre had not officially given his word on whether he would return for the 2010 season, many fans had speculated he would return to the team after coming within an overtime field goal of the Super Bowl last year.

Personally, I’m glad to see the old man return to the NFL. He makes the Vikings a competitor again and invigorates the fan base. Even with all the drama and debate, Favre still led the league in jersey sales last year.

Dr. Andrews cleaned up scar tissue and other elements of the joint to allow Favre a better range of motion, sources said.

A source close to Favre said the 40-year-old signal-caller would likely need four to six weeks of rehabilitation before beginning a running program that would put him on schedule to report to training camp “either at the beginning of camp or shortly thereafter.”

ACC Inks 12-year, $1.86 billion deal with ESPN

The ACC has beefed up its TV contract with a substantial pay raise of an additional $80 million a year. ESPN won ACC football and basketball TV rights in a bidding war with Fox Sports. The competition was surprisingly close, industry sources say, and as a result made the conference several million more dollars.

The old ACC deal was around $67 million annually and the new contract of $155 million annually puts the ACC near the level of the huge SEC deal (between CBS and ESPN) of $205 million annually. For comparison, the Big Ten is around $165 million annually and the Big 12 is only at $73 million annually.

That Fox made such a competitive bid could be considered a heartening development for the Pac-10 and Big 12 conferences, which are next in line to negotiate new media contracts. Both have rights expiring in 2012.

Turner Sports, which recently acquired with CBS the NCAA’s rights to broadcast the men’s basketball tournament through 2024, could be a factor in future rights negotiations as it seeks regular-season college programming to go with its NCAA package.

Those networks might provide some much-needed competition in the college space for these conference deals, which have been dominated by ESPN. [via]

The new deal makes it interesting for the Pac-10 and Big 12 who have TV contracts up in 2012 and are exploring, along with the Big 10, expansion of their conferences. All three conferences could score even bigger paydays by expanding their product with more teams.

Chad Ochocinco Cut From Dancing With The Stars

Cincinnati Bengals six-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Chad Ochocinco became the 100th talent to be eliminated from “Dancing with the Stars” this week after judges voted him off.

Ocho was teamed up with two-time “Dancing” champ Cheryl Burke, and Ochocinco gradually improved each week he danced. Even though Chad and Cheryl received their highest marks on Monday’s performance show, the couple’s scores were the lowest of the four remaining competitors at the end of the night.

ESPN’s Erin Andrews did survive the round and moves on to the next level with 2 other couples, Nicole Scherzinger with Derek Hough and Evan Lysacek and Anna Trebunskaya.

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