When will they show up?
On Sunday night during NBC's coverage of the night football game, the commentators were discussing the big upsets of that day; Oakland over Pittsburgh and Jacksonville over Philadelphia and how the two favored teams just didn't seem to show up.
Terry Bradshaw offered a hypothesis that they went out too cocky and didn't have their egos in check. It's like these players forget that bad teams are still made up of professional athletes, and that nothing is sweeter than an upset. It's not as if there has ever been a football season where every game was predictable and it's not as if the team that looks best on paper will always win.
I can just picture the locker rooms before the game, with Pittsburgh writing it off as a sure win while the Raiders were pumping the hell out of each other. They Raiders had the opportunity to humiliate the defending champs. It's almost sweeter that they did it with their own offense playing like dirt, and by taking advantage of Roethlisberger's mistakes.
As I mentioned, the commentators chalked these games up to who wanted it more. If that's the case, then what needs to happen for Roethlisberger and McNabb to want it? Winning a Super Bowl matters, but it's not enough to win once. Maybe it would have been for Dan Marino, but it's the legacy that impresses. Watching last year's champs go to 2 - 5 is sad, even for a Steelers hater like me. And McNabb is a fool if he thinks that he doesn't still need to redeem himself for two years ago.
There are so many people itching to get into this sport, and there are people who work their asses off to prove their worth. Jake Plummer will never be John Elway and he is reminded of that all the time at Mile High Stadium. Tony Romo won his first start as a Cowboy and that's all it takes for fans in Dallas to forget all about Drew Bledsoe. Everyone wants to be the next great guy so to watch two superstars suck at it week after week is just dissapointing.
On the other side of this you have Peyton Manning, often considered the best QB right now, unafraid to give it up to Viniateri for saving the game and the Colts' undefeated status. You have Rex Grossman, who is bringing a football renaissance to Chicago and rejecting the super star status he deserves. You have Steve McNair who gets kicked out of the Titans' locker room, gets berated for his poor offense, and answers with an inspired performance and a huge win for Baltimore.
I look forward to the eventual upsets of the Colts and the Bears because I don't want the same teams to win every week. I love when Pro-Bowlers sit out and watch rookies rush for 100 yards in their places. That is what makes good football and I would never argue that it would be better if the "best teams" were always winning. But football season is 16 games short and every single one matters. I don't care if the best team is playing the worst team, because these athletes are being paid to try, they should check their egos, and they should always show up.
Terry Bradshaw offered a hypothesis that they went out too cocky and didn't have their egos in check. It's like these players forget that bad teams are still made up of professional athletes, and that nothing is sweeter than an upset. It's not as if there has ever been a football season where every game was predictable and it's not as if the team that looks best on paper will always win.
I can just picture the locker rooms before the game, with Pittsburgh writing it off as a sure win while the Raiders were pumping the hell out of each other. They Raiders had the opportunity to humiliate the defending champs. It's almost sweeter that they did it with their own offense playing like dirt, and by taking advantage of Roethlisberger's mistakes.
As I mentioned, the commentators chalked these games up to who wanted it more. If that's the case, then what needs to happen for Roethlisberger and McNabb to want it? Winning a Super Bowl matters, but it's not enough to win once. Maybe it would have been for Dan Marino, but it's the legacy that impresses. Watching last year's champs go to 2 - 5 is sad, even for a Steelers hater like me. And McNabb is a fool if he thinks that he doesn't still need to redeem himself for two years ago.
There are so many people itching to get into this sport, and there are people who work their asses off to prove their worth. Jake Plummer will never be John Elway and he is reminded of that all the time at Mile High Stadium. Tony Romo won his first start as a Cowboy and that's all it takes for fans in Dallas to forget all about Drew Bledsoe. Everyone wants to be the next great guy so to watch two superstars suck at it week after week is just dissapointing.
On the other side of this you have Peyton Manning, often considered the best QB right now, unafraid to give it up to Viniateri for saving the game and the Colts' undefeated status. You have Rex Grossman, who is bringing a football renaissance to Chicago and rejecting the super star status he deserves. You have Steve McNair who gets kicked out of the Titans' locker room, gets berated for his poor offense, and answers with an inspired performance and a huge win for Baltimore.
I look forward to the eventual upsets of the Colts and the Bears because I don't want the same teams to win every week. I love when Pro-Bowlers sit out and watch rookies rush for 100 yards in their places. That is what makes good football and I would never argue that it would be better if the "best teams" were always winning. But football season is 16 games short and every single one matters. I don't care if the best team is playing the worst team, because these athletes are being paid to try, they should check their egos, and they should always show up.
