Super Bowl Preview

Alex: I’m still a little sour from the Patriots premature exit from the playoffs, so it’s been hard for me to get amped up for the game. That being said, fans of the sport have plenty to look forward to: two historic organizations, Dallas’s beautiful stadium, and perhaps the last game we’ll see in a while. At the beginning of the season, like the rest of the TNIB staff, I picked the Packers to win the Super Bowl, so I have to stick with them here, I’m thinking to the tune of 35-27 and I predict this will be the game that we remember Aaron Rodgers for at the end of his career. I also predict Alex Smith is sitting at home praying that during the game nobody mentions the time the Niners picked him number one while Rodgers fell into the 20s.

Patrick: I’m sticking with the Packers here. That will make my preseason prediction of a Packers Super Bowl win look pretty good, which I need because, like the rest of the TNIB staff, I was crazy wrong about the AFC. Here’s my prediction: Aaron Rodgers will throw for one million passing yards (give or take a few) and will have two rushing TDs to accompany his 23 passing TDs. Those number work out, right? He’ll also throw one interception, but he’ll do it on purpose. Rodgers will throw a pass directly at James Harrison so he can tackle Harrison and put on his wrestling title belt. 

The Packers will win by a score of 175-7. The Steelers lone TD will be a defensive touchdown scored on a fumble caused, recovered, and returned by Troy Polamalu because even though the Packers will win, Polamalu will always win the hair battle, no matter how glorious Clay Matthews’s hair might be.

Walt: The Packers are pretty much a lock for the “moral” victory award, but I think that’ll have to keep them warm during the cold, snowy Dallas night, because to the surprise of absolutely no one I’m picking the Steelers. Mostly out of pure homerism, but I’m also doing it because, dammit, I wasn’t at TNIB for the beginning-of-season picks and SOMEBODY needs to bring a little variety to these proceedings. Predictions: Pittsburgh will get off to a slow start when the entire O-line injures themselves during the coin toss, but receive a lucky break when Harrison decapitates Rodgers in the second quarter. He’ll be charged the first-ever on-field multi-million-dollar fine, which he’ll pay with spare change from his son’s piggy bank.

The Steelers will oversleep during their halftime nap and miss the third quarter completely, but hold Green Bay off and pull it out at the last second when Randle El completes the gadget play everyone’s been waiting for him to throw all season long. Pittsburgh takes it, 24-17, which everyone will complain about until Roethlisberger single-handedly prevents a lock-out and saves the next season, thereby making him a good person again in the eyes of the world.

Ian: Go Pack Go. Like Alex, I’m still sour from the Patriots’ loss, but the Packers have been my second favorite team since they jettisoned Bart Farve. I hadn’t been super-excited about the game, but Lil’ Wayne’s new freestyle called “Green and Yellow” actually got me pumped up (at least more than the Super Bowl Shuffle would have) and so now I’m ready.

As for the actual game, I can’t see the Steelers’ offensive line, especially without Maurkice Pouncey, holding back the front seven of Green Bay, especially B.J. Raji and Clay Matthews who may be the two best players in the NFL at their respective positions. Roethlisberger may be able to make things happen when his protection fails, but it’s likely that he’ll be so hassled that the Steelers won’t be able to do much on offense. On the other side of the ball, the Packers have so many weapons that they’re tough for any defense to stop, and with the emergence of James “Heart like John” Starks it’s tough to look past them for this game.

*Image courtesy of We’ll Never Forget You Brent

Why is Bill Belichick so Hated?

Ask any football fan outside New England (and some of those inside) what they think of Bill Belichick, and you’ll likely get one of the following responses:

“Cheater.”

“Jerk.”

“Arrogant.”

Take one look at fan sites like The Gang Green, or even in multiple national columns such as Gregg Easterbrook’s, and you’ll read the same kinds of things. Belichick is a ruthless competitor who runs up the score on his opponents. He cheated to get where he is and doesn’t deserve his three super bowl rings. And so on.

If you ask me, it’s because they’re jealous.

Think about it. Belichick has qualities that should be admired. He is extremely successful in a league designed to stop sustained success. He preaches hard work, teamwork, and professionalism (he could win 45-3 and still would tell the press that “there’s plenty of things to work on”), and if one of his players doesn’t follow the team system, they get benched (Brandon Meriweather) or let go (Adalius Thomas). His teams all compliment each other and their coach, and they all act professionally both on and off the field, at least more so than many other teams.

He’s also a brilliant strategist and has figured out how to exploit the NFL draft in his favor, repeatedly trading down for future picks while still getting the players he wants and eschewing the expensive, high-risk top ten picks except in rare cases. His drafting strategy has paid great dividends this year, as the team is getting fantastic contributions from lower draft picks like Devin McCourty (27th overall, acquired by trading down), Aaron Hernandez (113th overall), Rob Gronkowski (42nd overall), Brandon Spikes (62nd overall), Sebastian Vollmer (58th overall in 2009), not to mention signing undrafted Benjarvis Green-Ellis. With all the trades, the Patriots have extra picks in each of the first three rounds in the next draft, which should keep the team competitive essentially until Tom Brady retires.

But ask some people, and all this is invalidated because of Spygate. Now, I’m not going to break any new ground on Spygate, and that’s the problem. There are people who won’t be persuaded by facts and think that Belichick cheated in each of his Super Bowls when all he did was tape defensive signals in one game, a practice that Jimmy Johnson considered to be no big deal and one that was only publicized because the NFL had sent out a memo specifically telling teams not to do it (which suggests that it was previously somewhat widespread). No practices were taped, nor were the tapes in the Jets game (which set off the whole controversy) used in any fashion by the team (and of course, the Jets would change their signals before the next time they played since they knew their original signals were taped). And, since Spygate, the Patriots:

-were undefeated in 2007 until the Super Bowl

-went 11-5 in 2008 with a backup quarterback

-went 10-6 in 2009

-are 14-2 this year.

I can think of two reasons for the universal hate for Bill Belichick and the staying power of the Spygate myth:

1. Everyone is unreasonable and can’t follow basic logic.

2. Everyone is jealous of the Patriots’ success and continually strains really hard to find a reason to invalidate their success. “Brady’s hair” falls in this category as well.

I can understand hating a team because they’re your main rival. So Jets and Dolphins fans, you’re allowed to hate the Patriots. I can understand hating a team if they showboat, trash talk, or act unprofessionally on or off the field. That’s why I hate the Ravens, Jets, Chargers, and (most of) the Steelers. I can understand hating a team because of their fans (Cowboys, Eagles) but every team has obnoxious fans. And I’m in the minority on this, but I extend my dislike of particular teams to ones with owners who swindle cities and use public money to build themselves billion-dollar stadiums (Yankees) or as a temple for their religious beliefs (Colorado Rockies). But if there’s an opposing team who plays the game the right way, doesn’t show off, doesn’t talk trash, doesn’t assault women, and isn’t involved in shady off-field incidents, but is highly successful, like, say, the Indianapolis Colts, I find it pretty hard to hate them. So why is it so hard for the entire country when it comes to Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots?

(Source: flickr.com)

The Poignant Pause

There was an interesting moment back in Week 13 that I was reminded of recently. On the first drive of the game, Ben Roethlisberger, already stumbling around on a broken foot, got punched in the face by the Ravens’ Haloti Ngata. The punch knocked Roethlisberger’s nose out of alignment, but he rubbed the proverbial dirt in it, took a lap, and played the rest of the game, eventually leading the Steelers to victory. It was the kind of gritty, tough, who-gives-a-crap performance that just begs to be commented on, and Chris Collinsworth stepped up to put it all in context for the Sunday Night viewing public.

 “Say what you want about Roethlisberger…” Collinsworth began. And then paused. It was a short, two-second pause, but one that was quite noticeable in a setting where the goal is to maintain a constant level of patter. Finally, he continued: “I mean, call him a drama queen if you want. But what he’s doing tonight takes real heart.”

I sat up a bit in my seat. “Drama queen?” Did he seriously just say “Drama queen?” Ridiculous. Nobody, given the chance to “say what they want” about Roethlisberger, would ever say that he’s a drama queen. He barely ever talks to the press. He rarely, if ever, complains. He’s had more concussions than most people have had cavities, and he once stopped an oncoming car with his face. “Drama” is not Roethlisberger’s problem.

“Alleged sexual assault,” on the other hand, is most certainly his problem. But then that would have been a harder topic for Collinsworth to make a sound bite of.  “Y’know, say what you want about Roethlisberger, Al, and stay out of night club bathrooms with him, but boy howdy! In football, as in life, he just doesn’t take no for an answer!” Not quite as nice of a sentiment. So, Collinsworth stopped, mid-sentence, knowing that he’d set himself up for danger, and decided to soft-ball it with the random “drama queen” remark. A bit of an awkward move, sure. But what could he do? Sexual assault, and sex in general, does not fit into The Narrative.

Announcer-wise, there are two major types of Narrative that a star player can go through when he has legal trouble: the Redemption and the Downfall. The tropes are well known; you can probably recite them by heart, and commentators live off of them. But when sex gets brought in, things get interesting. How do you pull off a Redemption narrative when, every time you talk about it, you have to remind viewers that the guy whose passer rating you’re praising is, in fact, kind of gross? And not in, like, a drug-abuse or nightclub-fighting way. I mean a really oogie way. How do you talk about that?

The answer is simple: you don’t. You ignore it, you skirt its edges, and if you absolutely have to address it, you use the vaguest language possible. You speak of the player’s “off-field troubles,” or reference his “difficulties” in the off-season. And eventually, gradually, you pave over the problem with Narrative. Then, next season, you can pretend like it never happened. (See: Vick, Michael.)

The key to all of this is misdirection. But misdirection is getting harder and harder these days, what with the tweetsings and the Facespaces resulting in a sports-fandom that’s much more informed than before. It makes it tough on announcers looking for ways around a topic. Somewhere in their lizard brains, most of them are probably thanking their respective deities that Brett Favre got so beat up this year, because it means we can talk about his Downfall without also having to mention his unfortunate taste in footwear. What would they have talked about if he’d actually been good this season?

Of course, the obfuscation of The Narrative is not an evil or amoral thing. It’s just a thing that needs to happen for TV sports to work. It keeps us from thinking too deeply about the guys playing the game that we love, as we cheer them from our living rooms. They’re not real people, after all: they’re cardboard characters inhabiting a fantasy world of physical prowess, and we can tune in to watch them kick the crap out of each other weekly. And that’s fine. We can be inspired or saddened by whatever Narratives we’re being fed, and everyone who knows the backstory can also chuckle as we watch guys like Collinsworth tap dance through the minefield of icky sex stuff. It’s a win-win!

But, of course, Narratives have ties to real life. Behind the cardboard cutouts are real people, icky and skeezy and otherwise. I was reminded of the Week 13 “Drama Queen” moment when the news broke about Roethlisberger’s hush-hush-but-no-really-you-guys engagement to a girl who, we can all hope, was treated to a safe, sophisticated, and nuanced courtship. (Print media, it will be noticed, can talk a little more easily about the sex stuff. The written word is a distancing tool.) The news reminded me of Collinsworth’s split-second hesitation, because as far as the NFL is concerned, Roethlisberger’s engagement is the culmination of Roethlisberger’s Narrative, and just in time for the postseason, too. Big Ben has finally Triumphed Over Adversity, Turned His Life Around, and can now head into the playoffs with announcers discussing his impending nuptials instead of possible court proceedings.

I seriously hope that, in this case, the Narrative turnaround is a personal one, too. I really hope Roethlisberger goes on to a saintly life of both physical and ethical achievement. As a Steelers fan, who has happily been cheering the team all season, I want nothing more. Because if he manages to pull that off, that holiest of holies, that True Narrative Turnaround, then that means soon I’ll be able to wholeheartedly support my beloved team without being subtly reminded of just what made Collinsworth pause every time Big Ben shakes off a defender and stays alive in the pocket.

*Photo courtesy of Joey Gannon via Creative Commons license

NFL Picks: Midseason Check-up

Alex: It looks like we were right about the west divisions being a crap shoot. In the AFC, the Chargers look like a mess, but after pulling out a win against Tennessee, I won’t rule out their typical second half surge, especially with Vincent Jackson’s return on the horizon. A record of 9-7 could win the division. In the NFC, I stand by my selection of Seattle, especially since 8-8 could win over there. What I feel great about is that I was the only one to pick the Steelers, Giants, and Falcons to all win their divisions. I also feel good about the Patriots, though omitting the Jets from the playoffs could prove to be an oversight, but somebody good is going to miss the AFC playoffs. My NFC wild card picks, however, are a mess. I totally whiffed on the Cowboys; I should’ve known better. They have an awful secondary and the worst O-line in the NFL. The Lions, however, I insist would’ve been in the mix had Stafford and others not gotten hurt, and for you gamblers out there, the Lions, while only 2-5, are 6-1 against the spread.

Patrick: Not too bad with my picks, I guess. If last week’s game against the Steelers was any indication, the Saints are about to pick things up and, most importantly, play defense like we all know they can. I probably shouldn’t have picked the Bengals, but whatever. As much of a mess as that team is, I’ll still root for a team with both Ochocinco and Terrell Owens. That’s just fun. Also, Dhani Jones wears really fly bow ties. At least I picked the Ravens for one of the wildcard spots. Either them or the Steelers will win that division, while the other gets one of the wildcards. I was dead wrong about the Panthers also, but that’s okay because I feel like the Bucs have a real shot at one of the NFC wildcards. I hope that happens, because then maybe someone in Florida will finally be able to watch a Bucs game on TV. I still feel good about the Rams taking the NFC West because the Seahawks and everyone else in that division couldn’t beat the 1-8 WSU Cougars. I propose we give the NFC West division to the AFC West, and let the Chiefs and Raiders both make the playoffs.

Ian: This is a mess. I think I can get a pass for the Cowboys and Vikings picks, as they have the talent, but complete breakdowns due to penalties and poor coaching are pretty hard to predict. I’d like to assume that if someone is one of the lucky 32 who gets to be an NFL head coach that they kinda know what they’re doing. But I have no excuse for my Broncos and 49ers picks other than “The divisions are awful, so it’s a crapshoot” and “Hey, I picked Bradford in the TNIIB Fantasy league.” I guess six of my picks have a shot. I don’t have much faith in the Bengals or Redskins either.

Watching Michael Vick

Earlier this week on Tony Kornheiser’s radio show, Michael Wilbon said that so far, through the first three weeks of the NFL season, Michael Vick has been the best player in the NFL. He then went on to repeat this statement on PTI and in his Washington Post column. At first I didn’t know why, but every time I heard or read that statement, it stuck with me. The more I thought about it, the more I realized it tugged at me because he’s correct. The only player who might have as much impact on a game as Vick would be Peyton Manning. Yes, I just used Peyton Manning and Michael Vick’s name in the same sentence. As Wilbon pointed out, only Manning and Jay Cutler have a higher passer rating than Vick, but they don’t have his running ability that keeps open the possibility of a 30-yard gain even in the face of a surefire defensive sack. (If anyone’s name doesn’t belong in that sentence, it’s Cutler’s.)

Michael Vick is a little bit like Ken Griffey, Jr. in one way: he absolutely must be seen to fully appreciate his performances (which is why I included a highlight video in this post). His electrifying performances are what makes every broken tackle and 20-yard scramble pull me in two directions. It’s impossible to ignore that the player who at times pulls off seemingly superhuman stunts is the same guy who operated that dogfighting organization. I’m not the only one who feels this way. There’s talk of “the old Vick,” a “new and improved Vick,” and a Vick who is “finally playing up to his potential,” all of which imply that Vick is playing out of his gourd while hinting at a man who has either left his past behind or learned from it. Some people are already jumping on the storyline of redemption while Vick’s opponents will cling steadfastly to the thought that no amount of time in prison could make up for the cruelty he showed those dogs.

Here’s the interesting thing: both of those responses are understandable. People tend to think in binaries, but Vick’s presence on a football field occupies that gray area between right and wrong. One could argue that he should never have been allowed back on a football field because of the crimes he committed, because professional athletes are supposed to be role models, and a number of other reasons. That person would be correct. Someone else could argue that he paid his debt to society by serving the sentence given to him, that playing football is just a job provided by an employer, and that everyone deserves a second chance. That person would be correct, too. Both people might also be a little bit wrong. So what do we do? I don’t know. I don’t really have an answer. I can speak only for myself, and I all I can do is hope that this quiet, humble Michael Vick isn’t just another act but is, in fact, a sign that people can learn from their mistakes. What it really comes down to might not be about Michael Vick at all, but instead is about applying my feelings about second chances and debts to society to any person.

Review: The Tillman Story

One of the tasks of sports journalists is to bring the human side of athletes home to the fans. With the rise of blogs and increased accessibility to anyone’s ideas, a rift has grown between traditional journalists, who have sworn on a sacred parchment to uphold a strict ethical code, and online journalists, who can write whatever they want without having to answer to a boss. But as traditional sports media has proven over and over, just because a journalist has a press pass and is allowed in a locker room doesn’t mean he or she will portray everyone fairly. Think of the spin around Ted Williams. Williams should have been known as a classic American Hero, piloting planes in two wars and being a star on the field, but he was frequently lambasted in the media because he was ornery and held grudges. He famously only won two MVP awards, falling short even in two Triple Crown years as some writers whom he had shunned left him off their ballots entirely. More recently, we’ve seen reporters ignore rumblings about steroids in baseball until the elephant in the room was too gargantuan to ignore, and we’ve seen journalists base their careers upon negative, unfair portrayals of athletes as the adage “any publicity is good publicity” holds true. But we’ve also seen the increased access to knowledge and information, and the increased connections between people made possible by “new media” make a dent in the walls of what the official story is supposed to be.

It was with this in the back of my head that I watched The Tillman Story, a documentary that gets to the truth behind the numerous spins put on the life and death of former Arizona Cardinal Pat Tillman. As I’m sure most readers know, Tillman was a star safety for the Cardinals who gave up a multi-million-dollar contract to nobly join the Army Rangers and fight in Afghanistan against the Taliban. Except he wasn’t a star, really—he was a seventh-round pick who had become a starter through hard work, and while he showed plenty of promise, he wasn’t (yet) a Pro Bowler and only had three career interceptions. The contract he so nobly gave up to serve his country was of course more than most people will make in their lives, but not enormous for a pro football player: $3.6 million for three years, on the low end for a starter. And even his reasons for joining the Army are only speculation, as he specifically refused to discuss them. Unfortunately for Tillman, it’s impossible for our media circus to simply respect one’s requests for privacy, especially when there is so much at stake.

The movie spends much time dissecting the narrative that Tillman was boxed into after he was killed by friendly fire in April of 2004. As you know, it was first reported that he was killed by enemies after being ambushed, which of course fit the heroic archetype the powers that be wanted him to fill. It was not until three weeks later that further circumstances of his death were made public, and as we see in the documentary, his family is still searching for the truth to this day. We follow Tillman from his childhood through his college career and through his time in the Army. We see footage from his private life, and then are given a detailed analysis of the circumstances surrounding his death. We see the government dodge questioning and inquiries, and watch the mainstream media leap to conclusions and then backtrack as Tillman and his family don’t fit into their assigned roles.

The film does a good job of telling the Tillman story from a point of view sympathetic to his family, yet still detached—at no point do we delve into Michael Moore-style sentimentality. Staying away from showing crying mothers and confronting those the film attempts to expose, as lesser filmmakers may do, in fact makes the film’s argument stronger. At no point does director Amir Bar-Lev engage in any of the tactics that his opponents in traditional media and the Army did: ascribing qualities to Tillman without evidence, changing details, or otherwise trying to shoehorn him into something he wasn’t. It’s through this direct filmmaking that we remain engaged in the story and perceive the story as accurate. While it would be tempting for Bar-Lev to take Tillman’s interest in Noam Chomsky and his comments on the Iraq invasion and portray him as the opposite of the official narrative, he refrains from doing so and makes a more convincing movie.

Starter: Mark Dantonio

Who Is He? Can a coach be a starter? Sure! Dantonio is the head coach of the Michigan State Spartans. He’s also served previously as the head coach at Cincinnati before Brian Kelly and defensive coordinator at Ohio State under Jim Tressel. Up until a few days ago, his tenure at Michigan State had been relatively mild with an overall record of 43-34 and 1-3 in bowl games.

Benchwarmer: Reggie Bush

Who he is: Reginald Alfred Bush is the 3rd down/backup running back for the Saints. His salary this year is $8 million (up from 2.6 million last year) with the opportunity for another three million in bonuses. This came after modifying his original six-year, $52.6 million dollar deal. His base salary goes up to $11.8 million next year. Saints starting running back Pierre Thomas, on the other hand, will make just under $1.7 million this year. In case you’re curious, Thomas has 20 touchdowns over the past two years to Bush’s 14. He also USED TO BE a Heisman winner.

Preseason Playoff Picks 2010

There’s No “I” in Blog recently turned one year old, so we’ve decided to celebrate our birthday by doing what we did for our very first post: clumsily scrawling our NFL preseason playoff picks for all to (attempt to) read. Football season is almost here! Hooray!

We all like the Colts, Patriots, and Packers to win their divisions. Alex thinks the Saints will fall off a bit and go something around 9-7, while Ian and Patrick have them winning the NFC South. The other divisions are pretty much up for grabs, either because they’re pretty good (NFC East, AFC North) or because they’re terrible (both AFC and NFC West). Ian believes Mike Singletary and his floor-bound pants will lead the 49ers to the playoffs, Alex thinks Golden Tate’s love for maple bars is reason enough to pick the Seahawks, and Patrick picked the Rams because why not? The NFC West sucks so horribly.

None of us think Rex Ryan’s F-bombs will lead the Jets to the playoffs, but we all picked the Packers to win the Super Bowl. Even though making these picks might make us all be totally wrong and look like idiots, the Packers pick gives me an excuse to link to this awesome Brent Favruh shirt.