The Beginning of the End of an Era?

With the retirement of Brett Favre this week, the NFL has officially entered the second half of the current Golden Age of Quarterbacks. A mere two years ago, the league was enjoying a phenomenal run of high profile, exciting to watch quarterbacks. Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Donovan McNabb, and Michael Vick were all "Faces of the League", and all were helping to sell out road games in whatever city they happened to be playing in that week. The fact that guys like Carson Palmer, Daunte Culpepper, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger, Eli Manning and even Philip Rivers were performing at a high level or at least seemed to add to the already high profile of the position just served to add that much more to the feeling that we were seeing an unprecedented level of league wide talent at the position. My, how quickly things change. Vick, as you know, is currently in prison, McNabb may or may not be on his last legs in Philly, and now, Favre has called it quits.

The retirement of number 4 has spawned an alarming amount of discussion on sports talk radio and the internet regarding just how good he really was. After being force fed years of man-love from Peter King and John Madden, the sports punditry has let loose with a backlash that's a little unsettling, to say the least. Is Favre the best quarterback in NFL history? That's not what we're saying. But, to reduce his 17 years to a series of poor decisions, forced throws, and avoidable turnovers is a tad over the top.

Certainly, the "Brett Favre just has fun playing football" notion has been beaten to death, but he did manage to bring a level of enjoyment to watching football that any of the other players mentioned above haven't done, and most likely, won't do. The reason that Favre resonated with the average fan is because he played the game the way that we would like to think we would play it, given the chance. The fact that he made a snowball and threw it at a teammate during the Divisional Round playoff win against the Seahawks underscores that point. Imagine if you were in the backyard, playing your own personal version of the Icebowl in a driving snowstorm. Doesn't that seem like something you would do to one of your buddies if you had just thrown a game turning touchdown pass? Sure it does. That's why Joe Sixpack loved watching Brett Favre. He seemed like one of us. A down to earth type that realized that playing quarterback in the NFL was a blessing and a dream come true. At a time when other players in the league were busy running around with models or pop starlets, Favre was content to live the married life on his farm in the offseason, and stay out of the blinding flash of the papparazzi. When you view him in these terms, it's easy to understand why Peter King and John Madden, as well as casual fans around the country loved to watch him play. As for his place in history, let's discuss that for a moment.

While Favre holds just about every meaningful passing record, he is probably just keeping the seat warm for Peyton Manning. And, yes, he only has the one Super Bowl ring. And, he's probably not in the top five quarterbacks that played in 2007 on the list of "If you had to pick one quarterback to start one game you had to win". With all of that said, Favre still sits at the top of our list for quarterbacks we would pick if we had to make one play to win a game. Time and time again, he seemed to make plays that nobody thought he could make, or should make. Whether it was forcing a pass into double coverage, stumbling out of the pocket and making one of those underhanded tosses like in the Divisional playoff game this year, or drawing up plays in the dirt in the huddle, Favre had a knack for making the most exciting and memorable plays over and over. One such play that defined his career took place in a playoff game that the Packers actually lost. In the fourth quarter of a close playoff game with his team trailing the 49ers, Favre led his team down the field, and threw a go ahead touchdown pass to Antonio Freeman on a play that Mike Holmgren later said was "drawn up in the dirt". With little time remaining, and his team knocking on the door of the endzone, Favre told Freeman in the huddle that he would "audible" at the line, but to run a different route than the audible called for. In fact, the route he told Freeman to run wasn't in the playbook at all. Since the 49ers ran the same version of the West Coast Offense that the Packers ran at that time, the San Francisco defense was extremely familiar with the verbiage and hand signals that the Packers were using. Coming to the line, Favre surveyed the defense, and used a hand signal to change Freeman's route to "Q18", a route in the West Coast Offense that called for him to break off his pattern if he saw the safety playing over the top. In the huddle, Favre told Freeman to break as if he was going to cut the pattern short, and then bolt behind the safety once he had bitten on the underneath route. Once the safety saw the hand signal for "Q18", he certainly knew the route, and was in what he thought to be perfect position to make the play. After the snap, Freeman ran his route as Favre had instructed him, and the safety made only one fateful step forward. Freeman slipped behind him, and Favre threw what Steve Young called "the ugliest duck" of a pass over the safety's head for six. Returning to the sideline, Mike Holmgren uttered not a word to his quarterback, furious that Favre had just run what amounted to a backyard play at a crucial time in a playoff game. If he had, one would imagine that he would paraphrase the manager in "Major League": "Nice throw. Don't ever fucking do it again." That's what made Brett Favre a fan favorite and frequent recipient of slurp jobs from many in the media. If the running soap opera of his will he or won't he retirement over the past couple of years, or the seemingly constant stream of obnoxious praise heaped on him by the media have served to make some talk show hosts or bloggers sick of him, almost everyone will miss watching Brett Favre make plays that he probably shouldn't.

I am ready to headbutt somebody!!! or How two teams I hate made Super Bowl XLII the most exciting one ever.

The above play literally made me jump out of my chair and look for someone or something to headbutt. I was so excited about the Patriots not winning the Super Bowl that as I perused this here internet earlier today, several thoughts came to mind. First, you can almost hear this guy crying. Priceless stuff. Also, another thought ocurred to me: what happened to Donte' Stallworth? Jabar Gaffney? And other than the pass interference call in the end zone, Ben Watson? Far too many names that weren't called last night for the Pats. All of that adds up to the result we all saw. Anyway, in keeping with the general theme of elation, this clip is good for a hindsight chuckle or two, and these guys have put together a pretty comprehensive compendium on the history of choking. All in all, a pretty good day for a Monday. I'm just glad that we won't have to listen to the Patriots for the next 35 years talking about how they are the only team to go 19-0. Mercury Morris is surely annoying, but Rodney Harrison (he of the HGH suspension), Tedy Bruschi (did you know he had a stroke?), Mike Vrabel (did you know that they sometimes use him as a goal line tight end?), Juniour Seau (pile jumper), Tom Brady (did you know he's dating a supermodel and fathered a child out of wedlock with his actress ex-girlfriend?) and Bill Belichick (cheater) would be much worse. Combine that cast of undesirables with the obnoxious Boston fanbase, and the NFL would be almost unwatchable for the forseeable future. Having to live in a world where Eli Manning is a Super Bowl MVP is a fair trade in my opinion.

Finally!!!

After a 6+ month layoff, we have decided to wander back to the keyboard, and start banging out useless crap nobody reads. We are just over a week away from the merciful end of the football season, and we absolutely can't wait for it to be over. As with most folks who grew up in the hotbed of college football that is the southeastern United States, we love us some football, but, by the end of college football and the NFL playoffs, we feel like a kid at the end of the school year: exhausted and ready for a vacation. Such are the consequences of living and dying with your teams. So, we eagerly anticipate the ending of the football season, and the rejuvenation that comes along with March Madness, MLB, golf, and even tennis. After all, it won't be that long before training camp starts and it's time for fantasy drafts. Enjoy the respite people, it doesn't last long.

A little visual evidence that backs up that whole tennis thing.

NFL Draft Special Part 1

The top ten picks are in and we are beside ourselves in disbelief. What follows is our analysis of the top ten picks. We had a funny feeling after the first three picks, but nobody was prepared for the bombshell at nine.

• Jamarcus Russell, LSU
  Oakland Raiders. This makes sense and it was expected, so we won't spend too much time on it. Big guy, big arm, fits the Raider mentality. Maybe Randy Moss wil be happier with him throuwing the ball.
  
• Calvin Johnson, Georgia Tech
  Detroit Lions. While this may have raised some eyebrows a month ago, this became a virtual lock earlier in the week. It remains to be seen whether the Lions will try to package him and trade with another team or not. If they can't, then they still end up with the consensus best player in the draft.
  
• Joe Thomas, Wisconsin
  Cleveland Browns. A mild surprise that would foretell more and bigger surprises in the top ten. Even though Thomas is a solid player, we're not sure that he was the best value at three. Brady Quinn would have been an ideal pick here, but Cleveland decided to go in another direction for some reason. Poor Brady. More on him later.
  
• Gaines Adams, Clemson
  Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Expected to be off the board early, we're surprised that he lasted all the way to four, and even more surprised that he was taken by Tampa. This slot was generally thought to be where Calvin Johnson would go if he was still available, and if not, then Brady Quinn. The freefall continues for Quinn.
  
• Levi Brown, Penn State
  Arizona Cardinals. Considered by some to be the top rated offensive lineman in the draft, we are a little gun shy about players from Penn State. Too many busts out of there in the last few years. Certainly fills a desperate need for the Cardinals.
  
• Laron Landry, LSU
  Washington Redskins. Another surprise in that everyone expected Washington to trade out of this spot. We're a little disappointed that Landry didn't last to eight, where the Falcons have a big need at safety. Good player, and we're kind of a fan because his brother played at Georgia Tech.
  
• Adrian Peterson, Oklahoma
  Minnesota Vikings. Great value for Minnesota. Brady Quinn would have been a nice fit, but the Vikings have cast their lot with Tavaris Jackson. Peterson should excel on the carpet in the dome, and he will split time with Chester Taylor, allowing him to preserve himself a little.
  
• Jamaal Anderson, Arkansas
  Atlanta Falcons. After losing Patrick Kerney, the Falcons had a huge need on the defensive line. Anderson is, in our opinion, a little overrated. Not great value here, but he might be a solid contributor. We think that the Falcons were a little shellshocked by the Redskins taking Landry at six, and they had to scramble to find a fit. We're just glad the Falcons didn't waste a pick on Leon Hall from Michigan, who is slower than all of our contributors.
  
• Ted Ginn, Jr., Ohio State
  Miami Dolphins. The first real "wow" moment of the draft. Quinn seemed like a lock, given the fact that Daunte Culpepper is unreliable, and their other two options are Cleo Lemon and some dude from Indiana that we have never heard of. Certainly the worst pick in the top ten in terms of value, we're not sure why the Dolphins made this selection. Ginn doesn't make sense on any level. He doesn't fill a need, and he's not a good route runner. If the Dolphins were not going to take a quarterback, then Dwayne Jarrett or even Steve Smith make more sense. Good for Ginn, bad for the Dolphins.
  
• Amobi Okoye, Louisville
  Houston Texans. After trading for Matt Schaub, quarterback was not a need, so another disappointing selection for Quinn. We are of the opinion that Houston is taking the right mindset in trying to build defense, since the only way for them to succeed in their division is to try and stop the offensive juggernaut in Indianapolis. Okoye is only 19 years old, but he is a genetic freak along the lines of Lebron James. They are both grown men before the age of twenty. Tremendous upside here. He might be a bit of a project, but the Texans have the time to invest in him.

Poor Brady Quinn. Not selected in the top ten, he and his family left the green room to have some privacy. He may not be selected until 23 by Kansas City, and we don't know why. First Cleveland, then Miami passed on him, and the freefall was on. We will have more posts throughout the day, so stay tuned.