I know what I am about to write is going to offend a lot of Wolverine Nation, but realism is my forte. I need you to relax yourself because what I am about to say is something you don’t want to hear. I want you you to keep reading my blog as a fellow Michigan fan who bleeds blue I want you to appreciate what I generally write. Here it goes….

Denard Robinson is an over-hyped media darling and should not be considered a legitimate Heisman candidate. I felt dirty typing it, but you and I know its the truth. I love watching the guy every Sunday. There is nothing better than seeing him break 3 tackles and run 60 yard td in improperly tied sneakers. He truly is a “Michigan Man”. But I honestly can’t say that when push comes to shove he is a “Heisman Man”. 

The Stats

Lets start with his mind blowing stats.  When he became the first player to throw over 1000 yards and rush 1000 yards in NCAA history his sophmore year under RichRod you knew there was something special about the kid. His feet/speed make him one of the most dangerous players in NCAA history. The problem is the throwing accuracy was/is not on par with those other skills. During his time with Rich Rod his stats were pumped up by the weak non-Big Ten schedule. A quarterback who preferred to run because he knew he could beat his opposition and with his elusiveness rather than waiting in the pocket for a play to develop. It was not until he played against better defenses in the big ten, Wisconsin/Michigan State/Ohio State, that he hit the wall and hit it repeatedly.  His TD/INT were not horrendous with 18 TD to 11 INT, but most of his passing plays came from drawing defenders in pursuit of him on the run, not per say in the pocket. Lets just say he is no Tom Harmon. During the Brady Hoke era last year he was told to stay in the pocket and one could see he was never truly comfortable in there. His TD/INT, 20/15, was worse and he had many questionable throws that were almost int. I know what my eyes saw during that Notre Dame game. I am convinced Brian Kelly must be on God’s crap list from the number of jump ball passes Junior Hemmingway was bringing down in that game. There was even one play during the game where Junior had to run back 10 yards to catch the ball. He only threw for 55% completions and only took 250+ attempts at throwing. Just look at the hesiman contenders last year compared to Denard.

2011BaylorBig 12JRQB29140272.4429310.711.8376189.5

2011StanfordPac-12SRQB28840471.335178.79.43710

169.7

2011Southern CaliforniaPac-12JRQB30844669.135287.99.0397161.2

2011MichiganBig TenJRQB14225855.021738.47.42015139.7

Denard’s numbers are pedestrian in comparison. His accuracy is 14% lower than the closest of the top 3 qbs of last year. His passing attempt numbers 100 less then the closest rival shows that he is still more comfortable running the ball then trusting his arm. Heisman QBs win by putting up big numbers through the air and that just isn’t Denard. Along with the fact the INT are almost double most of the 2011 contenders. Accuracy can only be improved so much during a player’s career. You either have it or you don’t, unfortunately Denard does not. Or at least not at the elite level to get him to do an off field pose with the famed trophy. Reports coming from Ann Arbor say he is more comfortable in the pocket and that his coaches are very impressed. To be honest they are just words until I see it during a real game. We were told similar things last year and game after game I saw him under/over throw passes right to defenders. Do I expect to see improvement in Denard’s game, of course. Just don’t expect it to jump into Heisman worthy numbers. So don’t believe the Sports Illustrated and ESPNs of the world, Denard is a special talent just not one that is going to beat out the likes of Matt Barkley/Landry Jones for the prestigious award. No worries Wolverine fans I still feel a Big Ten Championship/Rose Bowl bid is on the horizon for team 133, just don’t expect to see a Heisman pose… well unless its caught on camera like the picture above.

This was supposed to be the year that defied all years in the past. The year of the Quarterback, where 10 quarterbacks had 4000 yard passing. Doesn’t hurt when the NFL handicaps the defense from hard hits, along with the fact its harder to jam receivers/tight ends; pretty much play any form of defense. Anyways ESPN and all fans, like myself, just thought it was a foregone conclusion for the year if you have an elite quarterback you were probably going to the Superbowl. Defenses just couldn’t stop Green Bay, New England, or New Orleans Saints; they had too many offense weapons and could score at will.  The offenses were so good they were overcoming the terrible deficiencies of their defenses, oddly enough all three were in the bottom 5 of defenses. How was one supposed to stop Drew Brees, the man who broke Marino’s record, when he had Jimmy Graham, Darren Sproles, and what seemed like an army of interchangeable receivers.

Unfortunately for the NFL the playoffs have not exactly played out like the regular season. The old addage defense wins championship still remains true even in a year of such offensive explosion. Three of the four teams left are known for their defense; Giant’s defensive line, Raven’s D, and San Fran’s D. The lone exception is the Patriots who are one of the worst defense in the NFL, but with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick they amazingly are the favorites to win it all by Vegas standards. The point is defense wins consistently in pressure situations. Offense is all about timing and coordination, which can be thrown out the window with the simplest play, but for the most part defense is a consistent. It has shown in the playoffs thus far. Drew Brees had three turnovers in the first half of the 49er game which doomed them. The Packers had three fumbles and a fumble that should of been against the Giants; along with many missed catches. Point is playoff football will always rely on some form of defense and the team that can play better defense will more likely than not come out on top; no matter how hard the NFL tries to tinker the rules for more offensive output. Having an explosive offense is great, but there generally is a point in the season they sputter and it seems like many times it happens when its most crucial aka playoff time. Based on NFL history I expect the Patriots to lose somewhere along the road, just wait and see.

I waited a week to write this blog. I wanted to give it some time to sink in and try to take away any bias that I may have; being a Michigan fan.  It’s funny when this whole scandal started to develop with the tattoos I had a feeling it was going to snowball into something bigger.  Every Big Ten fan knew OSU didn’t play by the rules, in today’s NCAA I don’t think it’s possible. If you truly want to compete for the National Championship you have to bend rules in your favor it seems; here’s looking at you SEC. Bending the rules such as lower academic standards, improper benefits, or the ability to give excess scholarships (with the ability to take away the worse prospects when it’s time to make cuts).  Before this year I would have said the Big Ten was probably “the cleanest conference”. That unfortunately took a huge hit this year, resulting in the rest of nation now either laughing at us (OSU) or just frankly being appalled (PSU). To be fair I am not ignorant, I know every big school breaks rule, hell there is an old saying “If you’re not cheating you’re not trying”, but there will always be schools across the nation notorious for such things. It has evolved from the Bo and Woody days, where honor and tradition meant something; it’s now about the benjamins and presenting false images of wholesomeness.

Anyways I have digressed from the main point, when the NCAA finally laid the supposed “smack down” on OSU for “loss of institution control”; I came away disappointed. Now to be fair I want OSU to be good, I had no satisfaction beating an unranked OSU. It just felt like something was missing to it. I want to take goliath out at his peak, not when his knees were already taken out from under him. I also believe if you’re charged with a crime that you deserve to pay the price. Now what was the price the NCAA deemed as fair?  Nine scholarships over five years, one year post season ban, and removal of all 2010 records. Now OSU fans will tell you that was an excessive punishment for players receiving discounted tattoos/cars, especially when they factor in the loss of Tressell and Pryor. It just seems like a slap on the wrist though. What is two scholarships per year really amount to. They lose two 3 star recruits a year.  The rule was put in place to prevent any outside influence of players to come to a school. The only financial benefits a student athlete are scholarships with housing/meal plans. There is also this irony that OSU still gets to play this year’s bowl game, seem like a familiar theme from last year.  You know the one where Terrelle Pryor, Boom Harren, and tattoo co. got to play and beat Arkansas in a BCS bowl game last year; even though next year they had a 5 game suspension.  The NCAA is protecting money making bowls. Let’s be honest the storylines are endless with OSU v. Florida; what has been renamed the “Urban Bowl”.  If the NCAA was really about punishing the team, shouldn’t they had to give up going to the post-season this year, seems odd.

The story doesn’t just end there though. We have a recent example of a team that had a “loss of institution control” in USC.  The backstory was Reggie Bush took money from agents in exchange for him being their client once he graduated. An assistant coach was involved in setting the two up. They were hit with two year bowl game suspension along with 10 scholarships lost over the next three years. All records of Reggie Bush or any team he was on were for the most part removed from the books. So for the same labeled penalty how did two schools receive different penalties.  Shouldn’t there be some sort of standardized form of punishment for schools being labeled as losing institutional control. How does a coach covering for multiple students, who were receiving improper benefits from car dealers and tattoo artists, deserve less severe punishment than one football player, who got improper benefits from an agent? It doesn’t make a sense since they both were labeled the same crime. So the question is what was the real difference between the two cases?  It lies in how they reacted once everything came to light.  USC acted arrogantly and almost dared to come at them with whatever they had. OSU admitted guilt off the bat and focused the blame on Tressell and Pryor as the scape goats. They also very lightly punished themselves thinking that would suffice the NCAA and if not the NCAA would add very little more to give the public and image that the NCAA did something. So when OSU now comes out saying it is shocked that the NCAA is banning from a post season next season it’s almost laughable. They knew it was coming they are just playing to the NCAA’s ego. Otherwise if they were “so shocked” and if it was “so unfair” why did they not challenge it at all? That is the thing that’s so appalling about this whole situation shouldn’t one you have been determined to commit a specified crime it should be the same punishment across the board.  In our judicial system if you are charged of committing a specified crime it’s generally a uniform punishment that can be modified later on based on good behavior depending on severity of crime. The NCAA has flipped the script on this notion. Halfheartedly fess up to your mistake then lightly slap your wrist, and for the most part the NCAA will let you walk; maybe add a little more to show they are “enforcing”. It’s a joke and the system needs to change.  OSU should be thankful, because any other judiciary body would of given them a worse sentence.

After four months of being locked out the NBA season is about to tip off in less than one week. The question to every true NBA fan is whether the lockout has/will make any difference for how the league runs? Will there be competitive balance in a league of “haves” and “have nots”. The answer to both is quite simply no. Nothing changed outside of BRI shifting in favor of the owners, knocking players share from 57% to 50.5%. Otherwise the lockout was for no purpose; no hard cap or anything. The owners would rather point their fingers at the players and scream “collusion”. Hell Dan Gilbert will write a 5000 word letter in Comic Sans for you and put emoticons at the end, if it takes the onus off him and his fellow owners.  The real problem is the owners need protection from their General Managers and most importantly themselves.  In order to build a champion it requires luck, chemistry, and smart cost effective building.  The owners fail to see the last one and repeatedly fail to see the errors of their way. They give massive contracts to low/mid-level talent.  Why should Charlie Villanueva a 6’10 player allergic to the paint make 35 million in five years? Why should Rashard Lewis make 110 million over 6 years, putting him in the echelon of Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett? It’s preposterous when you realize that no one was bidding on him besides Orlando for that price tag. If you smartly build a team around a superstar with good drafting and not overpaying marginal talents chances are we wouldn’t have “The Decision”, or “Melo Saga”, or “CP3 Trade”.  The elite players won’t care where they play if it’s resulting in rings. They want a legacy like Jordan, they know the shoe deals and Gatorade ads will be there if they win; but more importantly the fan adoration is what they crave.  With a four month lockout the owners blew it; blew the chance to protect themselves from themselves. So it’s up to one blogger to state what the NBA really needs to do in order to restore competitive balance.

Hard Cap

The funny thing was this was one of things the owners were adamant needed to happen.   A hard cap for those who are not familiar with the term means an upper limit a team can spend; the amount a team can spend cannot exceed the set monetary value. The current NBA system has a soft cap, which means when they exceed the set monetary value they get taxed a dollar for every dollar over said cap number. So if the cap is say 60 million and the New York Knicks decide to spend 75 million they owe an additional 15 million to the league, this is to dissuade going over the cap.  It’s a soft cap because once the team is X amount over the cap it can’t acquire anymore free agents, unlike baseball. For small market/mid-market teams it’s effective since they do not have as large of a fan base; along with this fact they are generally not on national tv as much, less merchandise sales, and lower figures for network deals.  See how this happens to help big market teams like Los Angelos, New York, Boston, and Chicago. Big cities have more potential viewers to bring in revenue, thus luxury taxes do not impact them as much. Smaller market teams fear the luxury tax and avoid chasing after more talent for this reason. Meanwhile larger markets still give the go to spend.  Hence why James Dolan let Isaiah frivolously spend money. He knows he could put a team of old geezers  in Knicks jersey and still make money on the franchise; that and his Comcast company allows him to take any financial hits from Knicks that other team owners couldn’t afford to take. The hard cap allows for teams to all be equal in the amount of spending. Not to mention that with a hard cap it wouldn’t be feasible to pay the Heatles all the money they truly deserve. All three or one of them would have to agree to take a hugeeeee pay cut, in order to make cap feasible to surround them with reasonable talent.  There is only so much Lebron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh are willing to leave off the table.  A hard cap might prevent them from getting paid the proper amount; thus dissuade them from joining together. If they still want to join forces, but yet get paid what they feel is appropriate, they will have very little cap left.  The point is the hard cap plays an equalizer for small and big markets. It also provides another obstacle for superstars to band together.  The hard cap also would make teams more stringent on spending. You think Rashard makes 110 million with a hard cap? Hell no! Would Travis Outlaw get 35 million for 5 years? I think not! Teams will have to be cost conscientious with their cap space, which is what every NBA fan wishes his team would do when he sees such preposterous signings.

Contraction

Contraction was something thrown out by Lebron last year when he said he wished the NBA was more like the NBA of the 80s. Later on he was forced to retract his statement due to the threat of castration by Derrick Fisher and the Player’s Union. You know that era when teams were 10-12 men deep instead of 7. Take the 89 Pistons you could put Joe Dumars on the bench and put Microwave in and there would not be much of drop off in team play; or Lambeer could be replaced by Rodman or Salley no difference in impact. Want a less homer example, how about the 86 Celtics where Robert Parish or Kevin Mchale could sit on the bench and Bill Walton could come into the game.  Could I say the same about the 2008 Celtics? NO! If I took out Kevin Garnett and put in Leon Powe or Big Baby, outside of increased saliva production, I am considerably dropping the quality of team play. You know what the difference between the 80s and 90s were? The NBA over expanded compared to it’s talent pool.  Teams nowadays can go at most 7 deep and even that is questionable at times. Nowadays when teams go to their bench there is a considerable drop off in play.  Players who are low/mid-level talent are getting paid as though they are hot commodities. Seriously 17 million for 4 years for J.J Barea because he had a good playoffs run; did Kahn take into account he played with one of the most deadliest offensive forces in Dirk Nowitski, who needed to be doubled at all times. Or that maybe the Lakers backcourt just doesn’t have the legs anymore to cover speedy pgs? Anyways the NBA needs to contract if it wants the teams with depth in talent like they did in the late 80s. If a player is on a team with deep depth and they feel they are competing, there is no reason a superstar would want to leave for “greener pastures”. So what I suggest is that we contract 8 franchises; Sorry Minnesota, New Orleans, Charlotte, Sacramento, Orlando(once Dwight leaves), Memphis(I know they are good now, but there is no true fan loyalty here they are bandwagon fans),Toronto(It’s a hockey country anyways), and Cleveland(Haven’t they suffered enough with the heart break). We now set up a draft with the new pool of talent with the worst standing team getting the top pick moving up to the top team.   To be honest this would be the greatest thing for the NBA, but it’s not feasible for the owners since they make more money by the existence of these franchises. More franchises equal more games and more playoff games, which leads to more revenue.  Along these lines it provides more markets and more chance for exposing possible new fans to buy their franchises memorabilia and jerseys.

Refs

One of the problems the NBA just can’t seem to shake is the idea that games are fixed. It started when the Lakers beat the Kings in the 2000 playoffs and it hasn’t really died down since.  People will claim David Stern orders the refs to blow the whistle in favor of the superstar, I will disagree vehemently as I am a big David Stern fan; but that’s another discussion for another day.  Anyways people love that offense has gone up, the only problem is that there are too many tacky fouls. I think refs need to be mandated to swallow the whistle when players drive carelessly into the lane; unless it’s a blatantly hard foul. People like points scored, but not when it turns into a free throw contest.  We need to return to a balance between the game nowadays and the game back in Jordan’s day where defenses were going to knock the crap out of you if you tried to drive in the lane. If you took Jordan from the late 80s early 90s and put him in today’s NBA he’d pound the defenses like Charlie Sheen would to a room full of strippers. Anyways Jordan would easily average 50 points a game with the amount of free throw attempts he would get in today’s NBA. The point is the superstar unintentionally gets the call because it’s very hard to judge with the pace of the game. The refs need to just swallow the whistles to prevent the trend the NBA is going, which is to drive recklessly and hope the refs bail the superstar out. It should also be mandated the last 2 minutes of a game the refs swallow their whistles, unless it’s an absurd foul. This is the basketball I want to see it played as though it was at Rucker Park; and I want to see real offenses not offense bailed out by refs.

Flopping

It seems like the foreign European and South American players have brought the ugly art of flopping from soccer to basketball. It is the most annoying thing to see a 6’10 player who weighs 300lbs fall 15 feet after mild contact from a 6’1 200lbs guy. It’s unrealistic that they should move that far. The solution is quite simple; refs are allowed to give a flopping penalty that would be equivalent to a technical; automatic free throw attempt for opposing team. Two flopping penalties per game gets the player ejected. If a player has three games where they are ejected for flopping penalties, it counts as a one game suspension. Every game ejected for flopping penalties is another game suspended. Is this extreme, yes, but I don’t want that stuff in my NBA.  

Conclusion:

Some of my ideas are practical the hard cap and the reffing. Some are probably extreme like flopping penalties. All in all the NBA needs to make more changes than it did to improve its image and show that there can be parity in the league. Otherwise it’s going to be impossible to fully capture the public’s fascination like it once did.

Mike Brown

During the NBA playoffs the Lakers decided to bring in fresh blood with a focus on defense. Naturally they came to the conclusion Mike Brown would be the best coach that could fulfill this.  And it’s true you can look at his experience as a head coach and the Cavaliers were always top 5 in all categories; the problem was the offense was stagnant with no originality. It was let Lebron dribble around and make something happen, which sadly worked until playoff time when they faced superior defenses; whether it was the Pistons in earlier years or the Celtics in the latter years.   Anyway it was apparent he never truly had Lebron’s respect.  Lebron was never held to the same standards as his fellow teammates, which many teammates resented.  Shaq and Delonte West both confirmed such reports.  Now he is expected to take over for one of the greatest coaches in the history of NBA in Phil Jackson.  Phil was the one coach who was able to control Kobe and able to mold him into a more team oriented player.  Kobe will always have a struggle between trying to do too much on the offense end in order to break records and show he is just as dominant as Jordan was; the problem is he will never accept the truth that he will never have a legacy like MJ. We have seen legendary coach Rudy Tomjanivich attempt it and retire mid- season; I can’t imagine a guy who failed to control Lebron will have similar success to the Zen master. Especially when Kobe and Derrick Fisher; the leaders of this squad, both endorsed Brian Shaw who shown the door. Almost like a slap in the face. What I have learned from my NBA watching experience and Joe Dumars 7 coaches in 12 years; is that coaches are a dime a dozen they generally bring nothing to the table and only a handful actually improve a team and it’s not because of their X’s and O’s.  It has more to do with the ability to control personalities and relationships.  From Mike Brown’s experience he has shown he lacks the capability for that.

The CP3 trade that happened but then didn’t happen

There is an old NBA motto “Never trade big for small”. The Lakers committed this sin X2 with that trade. They gave up their biggest strength to improve the point guard position without any return on big men. Yes CP3 is one of the best point guards in the game, but you can’t give up your entire front line for him, especially when you left the big man who has shown to have multiple long term injuries on his knees in Andrew Bynum. There is no guarantee that Kobe would mesh with CP3 to start off with since they both want the ball in their hands. Although I would be more optimistic about them meshing compared to D-Wade and Lebron; seeing as CP3 likes to dish the ball and doesn’t feel compelled to score big unlike Kobe; and we already know Kobe would assert himself as the alpha male. But still outside of Jordan’s Bulls no team has been able to win it all without a great big man. From 99-2007 the team who had Shaq or Duncan won it all; aside from the 04 Pistons who had Rasheed Wallace and Ben Wallace. Since 2008-2011 the teams still had dominant big men in KG/Gasol/ and Dirk Nowitski with Tyson Chandler. The point is big men are and still will be key to the championships; its just a proven fact. They are closer to the basket with higher percentage shots from the floor, along with ability to anchor defenses making guards lives easier.  The Lakers were giving up too much for CP3, unless there was some absurd trade in the back end which would of netted them Dwight Howard or another great big man this team was not going to be a contender. David Stern saved the Lakers from themselves; if the owners were smart they would of let the trade go through since the Lakers would of screwed themselves. **On a side note** To say this trade wasn’t fair for New Orleans was clearly BS, the only reason I understand this trade doesn’t go through is because Kevin Martin, Lamar Odom, and Luis Scola are not exactly headliner names and thus impossible to sell the franchise to a real owner instead of the NBA owning its own franchise. ** end side note**

Now the Lakers clearly had their priorities wrong. If they wanted to make a trade they should have offered Bynum/Odom (if Orlando doesn’t like that then use Gasol instead of Odom or Bynum) with draft picks to Orlando while taking back Turkoglu to secure the deal. That would make sense for the Lakers they give up a lot of value, but get the best player in the deal who happens to be a big man. Dwight doesn’t need the ball technically although probably will demand the ball since he has turned into a diva since the first time he donned the superman cape for the slam dunk contest. The Lakers also take back a bad contract from Orlando. If I am Orlando I probably would be looking for a better deal, but I believe the other offers are not going to be much better for the big guy. So might as well get .75 cents on the dollar and in what is an awful East the team would still be a top 4 team in the East.

Lamar Odom for trade exception

This is the trade that really makes me wonder if the Lakers lost it.   I understand they had to move Odom after the failed CP3 trade, because he took it very personal. I remember reading his comments from the LA times post failed trade, you could tell he was offended and really did not want to be where he was wanted.  Lamar should know that the NBA is a business and to be honest CP3 fills the seats more than him. The thing people know about him is he is dating a Kardashian.  Outside of that he is a fantastic player to be on a team’s starting line up or as a 6^th man. He has great versatility and has a place on any NBA team.  The problem is after the trade failed the Lakers panicked knowing that Lamar would take this personal; they rushed and traded him for a trade exception and a draft pick. The problem is they traded it to probably the one team in the West conference that was the obstacle in their way of getting to the Championship; the Dallas Mavericks. You can’t give the Mavericks quality players when they just won a championship and were reeling from losing Tyson Chandler. You never trade with your top rival unless you’re getting equal or better value, the Lakers can’t walk away from that trade saying they did this. Not only that but Odom could have been a valuable chip to acquire Dwight without having to give up Gasol or Bynum. Overall this trade was a dumb trade. Now Lakers have to give up Gasol and Bynum in order to get Dwight.

Conclusion:

The Lakers have made numerous questionable moves this off season. Maybe they will have something up their sleeve I am not seeing. But they have made their team worse not just talent wise, but chemistry wise too. It will be interesting to see how the rest of the off season, but the NBA needs the Lakers and Kobe to be in position to compete for championships its just the honest truth; this coming from a Pistons fan who hates them with a passion. 

Makes sense the day after I wrote a blog about Tebow that Urban Meyer officially becomes Ohio’s coach. One of the biggest sleaze bags in the NCAA let the worst kept secret finally out of the bag. It’s official Ohio got the man they were after the day The Vest was let go. Luke Fickel couldn’t of been that naive to believe he had a chance, he was already booted from the job the first day he was named interim coach. It was a good hire its hard to refute a man who won 2 rings, ohio native, and passionate buckeye fan.  But the people should know the truth this man is the biggest hypocrite in the NCAA, the honor used to belong to Nick Saban, but not even Saban would stoop this low.

It starts two years ago where Urban Meyer after a national championship year, where he left for a game or two for vague medical conditions, he magically is well enough to coach in SEC championship and national championship game. He temporarily decides to retire coaching leaving Florida in disarray to find a coach, but then un-retires a couple of days after the fact. At this point you know red flags all over the country are flying up. That year his Florida team competes, but it isn’t able to hang with the top dogs of the SEC. It was clear to Urban Meyer at this point the cupboard he had taken to the promise land twice was now empty and bare. He knew he no longer could keep up with the Les Miles and Nick Sabans of the SEC. The perfect time to leave with the perfect excuses already built in; this inexplicable medical problem, and along with wanting to spend more time with the family. He decides to join ESPN for a season to be a broadcaster. And now suddenly after a year away from the game he is healthy enough and had enough time spent with the family to return to the game he loves; Smell the BS America? Doesn’t hurt when a job like Ohio turns up too.

Here is the question though. How does a 18 year old trust that Urban Meyer is going to stay when the going gets tough. When the pressure to not just beat Michigan, but to beat his previous SEC breathen on the recruiting trails and on the football fields. Is he going to bail like he did in Florida? Is this health condition going to magically arise again? Will he miss his family? But I suspect many 18 years olds will be mesmerized by the 2 rings to ask such questions at first. How do parents officially trust the future of their children in someone as hypocritical as Urban Meyer? And thats the problem you really can’t.

It’s amazing how polarizing Tim Tebow can be. In theory his story should make him the lovable protagonist in a movie that the audience adores. He fits the story line Americans love to here; the hardworking guy who is told he will never will achieve his dream, but with hard work, determination, and faith he has proven them wrong thus far with a 4-1 record.  In a time where good characters are few and far to find and bad news bears out in the open(see Penn State, Syracuse, Vick, and Big Ben) it seems like this is the guy we as sports fans and Americans should be behind. The problem it’s as though the opposite has happened, many of us root for this guy to lose even though he is the cleanest athlete you will find in today’s sports world. So why can Americans not get behind him.

Faith

The first problem is his religious views. I am not saying they are wrong or inappropriate, but whether its an interview, post-game, or even a cutesy anti-abortion commercial with his mom it feels as though its crammed down our throats. To many he represents some mythical aura produced by the Extreme Right Wing Catholic Church that we cringe to talk/listen to. They will tell you that he can do no wrong, as though God himself/herself has guided him to victories at UF and now with the Broncos. Hell Tebow will tell you that himself. The problem is the extreme view of this right wing religious group rubs many Americans the wrong way. As though Tebow is proof that they are right in their beliefs; They are not its just football, but that’s the impression I get when I watch him.  In a society where the stress of desegregating is important the right wing religious seems to do the opposite. It becomes see Tebow the amazing he is wholesome and christian, if you accept Christ as your savor amazing things can happen to you too.  I don’t think Tebow is actively trying to recruit people to Christianity, but its just seems like many of his supporters believe the prior statement.

Urban Meyer Effect  

Lets just be honest Urban Meyer is an arrogant jerk who clearly is full of himself. His stench is all over Tebow even though Tebow exudes none of these qualities. It’s hard to get over those Florida teams leave a bad taste in your mouth; especially for me in 2006^1.  Anyways the smugness of Urban has rubbed off and tainted Tebow at least to us Non-SEC fans^2. Its hard to root for a consistent winner when he doesn’t play for your franchise. Hence why its easy to hate on the Lakers, Yankees, and Patriots. Let’s be honest Tebow had turned Florida into a powerhouse like the above mentioned.

Unconventional

He threatens to make a radical change to the game of football. Many old schoolers on ESPN have been throwing around non-sustainable, but if thats the case shouldn’t defensive coordinators have been able to stop this offense after the 5th game. When your QB only completes one pass in a half, or 2 an entire game its concerning it threatens the frequency of pass plays. I love when my qb runs, hell I cheer for Denard Robinson, but I like to think I am paying to see the ball going through the air too.  People want to see the Tom Brady’s, Peyton Manning’s, and Aaron Rodger’s of the NFL with deep passes to talented receivers. Tim Tebow threatens the logic of old School NFL; you know the one where QBs stay in the pocket and full or halfbacks run the ball. It’s a scary thought, who wants to watch a game with a total of 9 passes, not me that’s for sure. The problem is there are more Tim Tebows in the college pipeline, although they are more proficient passers. The QBs in college are becoming more dual threats who instead of reading the defense would rather tuck the ball and run. Is Tim Tebow the sign of the future for the NFL, if so thats scary for football because no one wants to watch a game with 50 runs and 10 pass plays. That my friends isn’t the football fans really want to pay to see.

Conclusion

In all honesty I want to cheer for Tebow. He is a genuine guy who works hard and proves the doubters wrong. But due to his religious views, his winning past, and unconventional ways of winning it rubs the public the wrong way.  It has nothing to do with Tebow its what he represents and what he threatens in the public eye. Tim you’re a great guy I wish I could root for you, but sometimes it is just more fun to drink the hater-aide.

Footnotes

1. My Wolverines deserved that rematch against OSU yet Gary Danielson and CBS stated wholeheartedly that once a team is beaten they shouldn’t get a rematch and that an SEC team deserved the honor. Funny how that works when we come to a Alabama LSU rematch for the national championship and Gary Danielson and CBS are stating the exact opposite arguments they had in 2006, well I guess you can’t bite the hand that feeds you right?

2. Hey Urban just stop the charade you left Florida because you knew it was a rebuilding effort again with stiff competition in the SEC.  You used your health as an excuse to leave and wait out another good job, enter OSU. Now all of sudden you can coach again can anyone smell the BS people. Why is this guy getting off easy. Can’t wait to for us to wipe the smirk off your face, you sleaze ball. Hope the rest of your career plays out like a certain OSU coach named John Cooper.

As you probably have heard Kobe was recently offered 6.4 million tax free dollars to play for an Italian team. The fact that Kobe is mulling the offer is troubling to a die hard NBA fan such as myself. It is never a good sign when the face of the NBA, sorry Lebron/Wade/Durant,  is thinking about bolting rather then to stay on the sidelines and be a vocal voice of the players’ union. In fact its a cop out.  The union already stated it will back any player’s decision to play ball outside of the U.S, but come on where is the solidarity in that. How can a union truly show strength when its members are fleeing for “greener pastures”.  You can’t, its impossible. Its also one of the numerous reasons why the players’ union is bound to eventually lose to the owners.^1 Kobe is the leader of the players, whether he wants to admit it or not^2. Players will follow his lead, quotes will be tossed around such as “Well if Kobe did it why not me?”  People will argue a superstar has already done this in Deron Williams. Don’t get me wrong Deron is a great player, but he isn’t a true superstar. The honor belongs to a select few try Kobe, Wade, Lebron, Duncan, Durant, and Howard; that’s it those are the players you can truly build a championship contender year in and year out knowing they are the corner of your franchise^3. If Kobe goes expect the rest of the league to follow suit trying to snatch up the limited remaining spots/cash of Europe, Turkey, and China. The players union thinks this gives the players a chance to put pressure on the owners.  The opportunity to cash in is not worth it to Superstars in reality. They are adding meaningless mileage on there bodies along with an increase chance for significant injuries, which could mean voiding of their big NBA contracts.^4  Not to mention they easily can make their contract back with advertisements.  You think Nike won’t do ads without you Kobe? Even if the NBA is locked out, you’re a household name for god’s sake. Owners may fear they could lose their superstars to injuries, but the owners aren’t stupid they know eventually the player’s union will crawl back and take the hit. That increase in revenue the owners will make by whatever deal they pass will most likely pay off in the long term; compared to the short term loss of a player injury. The players need to know they are fighting a losing battle, the owners are not afraid to sacrifice a year as shown by how few meetings they have had with the players’ union to begin with.These guys are millionaires for a reason, they know how to run other companies. They can rely on their other businesses for income, how many players in the players’ union can really do that?  They can’t and the owners know that. A season lost is damaging to a player due to a small limited window of years for potential income.  The average career span for a player in the NBA is 5 years at best. Everyone can agree  the Owners need to protect themselves from themselves.  The NBA NEEDS shorter guaranteed contracts to ensure they don’t saddle themselves with an albatross like Eddy Curry or Jerome James. Can you imagine half a decade of paying 13 million per season for a player like that.  I mean the Pistons spent 90 million on two bench players.  The Knicks spent 60 million on Eddy Curry to play a year and a half and sit at home the other 3.5 years.  That shows the NBA has a major problem. The NBA NEEDS to figure out a way to get competitive balance to prevent big cities like LA, Chicago, and NY from hoarding all the talent by player collusion. Kobe if you really want to help your NBA brethren, stay at home and show solidarity on the lock out battle field, its the only way the players union will take less of a shellacking.  

1. Well that and the fact over half the league is not educated on how to wisely invest money. They dole out money to relatives, bad product ideas, fancy cars/houses/women. Many live pay check to pay check. Even though they make millions of dollars they spend it so recklessly it makes the average American’s head spin.

2. Derek Fisher is head of the players union, and in my opinion a great one. But still after the failed 04’ Dream Team, it was Bryant who made it cool to represent America again with the Redeem Team.

3. I would accept Chris Paul as another one, but due to his teams recent struggles to get in the playoffs or barley make the playoffs makes me put him a notch below the players mentioned above.

4. Sorry Eddy Curry even competitive eating injuries could void your contract.

As a life long Lions fan it seems like clockwork every year. The Lions dominate the preseason and the fans around the area get excited. The sayings like “this is finally the year we turn it around” or “the roar is restored” are echoed all through southeastern Michigan.  If there is one thing I have learned as a Lions fan it’s never to buy into the hype until the season starts.  Otherwise you are 16 weeks in wondering why the hell you cheered for an 0-16 team. It was the mantra of the Matt Millen era, every year it was a different excuse be it an offensive coordinator change, numerous head coaches with different philosophies or just believing a new wide receiver was the solution to all our problems; or at least that’s what Matt Millen wanted the public to think. So pardon me if I don’t jump in on the hype of Super Bowl possibilities by Peter King or the fact that Robert Kraft anointed football was back in Detroit^1.  While I will agree the Lions have made great progress from the Matt Millen era, they seem to be headed in the right direction under Jim Schwartz’s guidance.  Don’t expect this team to be anything greater than a .500 team this year. My False Start colleague, Ryan Berlin, will argue that the Lions are a 10+ win team. I will be ecstatic if that happens, but at the same time I need to see it first hand after 16 weeks of play to really believe it. There are too many holes the Lions have yet to address on this team to think they are anything but a .500 team. 

Reason 1: The Running Game 

MF: Last year many people were shocked the Lions jumped back into the first round to grab Jahvid Best.  Schwartz made a joke about how he went home at night and watched Jahvid Best clips on Youtube as though it was pornography. Best is part of the new breed of running backs, like Chris Johnson, that have the speed and elusiveness that cause fans to drop their jaws in awe.  The knock on Best in college was his previous injury history.  It was after week two that most Detroiters couldn’t stop talking about him after he dropped 78 yards rushing and 154 yards receiving against Philly. But his health history eventually plagued him as a Lion, after the first couple of weeks he had turf toe that lingered the rest of the season robbing him of his explosiveness.  Like last year, the Lions have no suitable backup. Mikel Leshoure, the 2nd round draft pick from Illinois, was supposed to be the brute force that would finally help out the running game, but as with all Lions luck he tore his ACL within the first week of training camp. Behind Best there are a plethora of waiver wire and free agency pickups, most notably is Jerome Harrison. I don’t expect Best to last an entire season due to his previous injury history.  He already had a concussion in pre-season. So what we are relying on is serviceable free agents and waiver wire backs to fill in a non-existent run game that was one of the league’s worst last year. Does this sound like a championship caliber squad to you?

RB: Yes the loss of Mikel Leshoure will hurt and the o-line has some holes.  However, with a year under his belt and finally being healthy, minus the concussion, Jahvid Best is going have a great year.  We saw flashes of the brilliance he can bring to this team last year.  Like Feldman said a healthy Best can drop three tds with 78 yards rushing and 154 yards receiving anytime.  I believe there are three keys to Best having a great year.  First and foremost is his health.  Obviously if he can stay healthy and play in all 16 games he will do well.  The second key for a Best to have a successful year is Matt Stafford.  If Stafford is around and plays this will open things up for Best.  Stafford is capable of being an elite QB.  He can open things up downfield with Calvin and Burleson, hit Pettigrew on an out route and then of course hit Best in the backfield with the screen pass. The screen pass can be the Lions best friend.  With Jahvid’s speed and elusiveness he can get away from almost any defender    ^2.  The third and final key to having a successful Jahvid Best is Jerome Harrison’s presence in short yardage and goal line situations.  With a big physical back like Harrison who can take the pounding inside, it will give Best a chance to sit out some plays and not allow his body to take the beating, thus allowing Best to stay healthy. 

REASON 2: Lions Secondary 

MF: The Lions did a nice job filling the holes they had at linebacker with Steven Tulloch and Justin Durant. The issue last year, and still this year, is the cornerback position. Eric Wright is OK, but expect big play receivers to burn this secondary.  Unfortunately the Lions schedule has plenty of big time QB-Receiver combos this season. Aaron Rodgers-Greg Jennings X 2, Matt Ryan-Roddy White, Brees-Colston, Romo-Austin Miles/Dez Bryant, Rivers-Jackson, and to a lesser degree McNabb-Harvin X 2. Right there I named over half the schedule that can and probably will probably will burn our secondary, if Silver Crush doesn’t disrupt the QB timing.  Compound this with reason one and it’s easy to see why this team is going to have a tough time being an above .500 team.

RB: Detroit has arguably the best front seven in the NFL.  Yes the secondary is a little weak but if the front seven penetrates like they should and don’t give the QBs time to make their reads, the DBs will make plays.  Everything starts up front.  Third year DB Alphonso Smith is the perfect example of how a strong front seven can benefit the secondary.  In just 12 games last year Smith had five picks.  Smith’s interceptions came off of Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, Sam Bradford, Donovan McNabb and Mark Sanchez.  It doesn’t matter who the QB is, if the d-line and linebackers get through like they’re suppose to then the secondary will make plays.  As long as the Lions have the biggest, strongest and meanest defensive lineman in the league, the secondary will be in good shape.

REASON 3: Health 

MF: Health could be the biggest reason the 2011 Detroit Lions may not be anything more than a 6-10 or 8-8 team.  Remember it was May when Zach Follett called Matt Stafford a “China Doll”.  We have seen two straight seasons where Stafford has dislocated his shoulder.  Over his two year career he has been sitting on the pine more than he has been on the field.  Although Shaun Hill and Drew Staton put up valiant efforts when they were in the game; it doesn’t take even the most astute observers to see the tremendous down grade the offense becomes when Stafford is not playing. If you had to bet your life on the Lions being better than a .500 team would you trust that dislocated shoulder? Mind you he is the same division where he sees Clay Matthews, Julius Peppers, and Jared Allen twice a season. Once a shoulder is dislocated it has an easier chance of popping back out.  Let’s just say I will be cringing every time I see Stafford take a shot. This along with the fact that Best, our best running back, has a bad health track record too.

RB:  When speaking about health and the Detroit Lions three names come to mind, Jeff Backus, Gosder Cherilus and Stephen Peterman.  Backus was responsible for injuring two quarterback.  He was unable to keep Stafford and Hill healthy.  I know you are going to say that Backus had a great year and he only gave up a few sacks.  This is true but it was two of those sacks that took out Stafford and Hill.  This is going to have to be a big year for Gosder.  In order for the Lions to Succeed he really needs to step his game up.  It’s his job to open holes for Best and keep Stafford on his feet. So far in his four tear career he has not quite been able to put it all together.  If this is the year Gosder finally gets it then watch out because at ‘6”7 325 he is the quintessential right tackle.  Finally, Stephen Peterman, what can I say about Peterman other than this guy sucks.  He is really a horrible offensive lineman.  What Schwartz should do in order to help keep his team healthy is move Big Jason Fox inside to right guard.  I believe that this is the best way for the Lions to remain healthy.  Having an o-line with Backus, Sims, Raiola, Fox and Gosder gives the team the best option to win.

Schedule:

Tampa Bay

MF: L-Close game but I’ll give edge to the Bucs.

RB: W-Suh will not allow LaGarett Blount to run anywhere and with an aging Ronde Barber and really no other great defenders I give the edge to the Lions 

Kansas City

MF: W-Matt Cassell head gets torn off by Suh. Come on he has to entertain the home fans somehow right? After the total domination from a home game.

RB: W-With all the hype surrounding the Lions this year Ford Field is going to be rocking and the Lions will not lose their home opener

Minnesota-

MF: L-Just something about being in the Metrodome and that creepy Viking mascot. Jared Allen and the defensive line of Minnesota give Stafford a hard time.

RB: W-This will be a lose one but if the Lions are healthy the Vikings won’t be able to keep up with the Lions Screen pass.  Stafford and Best could be like McNabb and Westbrook in their primes.

Chicago-

MF: W-Its Monday night football in the D. All Calvin Johnson catches in the end zone will be ruled TD’s by the ref as to make up for robbing last year’s game. 

RB: W-This is where the Lions show they are for real.  Put it on the front page, back page or middle page, it doesn’t matter.  The Lions will not lose on Monday Night.  I repeat: the Lions will not lose on Monday Night.

Dallas-

MF: W-Let’s just say Matthew Stafford burns his home town team a new one at the greatest stadium on earth.

RB: L-After a short week the lack of rest catches up with the Lions and they finally lose one.

San Francisco-

MF: W-Jim Harbaugh tells the press after the game. “Seriously guys we signed Alex Smith for one reason. To help us get Andrew Luck,”

RB: W-The Niners are improving but they aren’t there yet.  Another win for the Lions.

Atlanta-

MF:L-Who said nerdy white guys can’t ball? Doesn’t hurt to have dominant receivers in Roddy White, Julio Jones, and Tony Gonzalez. 

RB: L- Matty Ice, Michael Turner and Roddy White prove to be too much for the Lions.

Denver- 

MF: W-The Broncos have a new QB controversy when John Elway decides to suit up after the crap he sees behind the O-Line

RB: W- The Broncos have no true identity and no big play guys.

Chicago-

MF: L-Jay Cutler finally gives a damn for something outside his own selfish needs.

RB: L- The Bears will steal one at home.

Carolina-

MF: W-When your newly drafted QB has a problem reciting a play for Jon Gruden it’s a red flag. Steve Smith tells Cam after the game “I like you, but god damn you are stupid.”

RB: W- Easy win for the good guys.

Green Bay Turkey Day-

MF: L-They don’t call them the Champs for nothing. Rodgers gets rid of the ball quick enough that he won’t have to worry about being sacked by Suh and the rest of Silver Crush. Although that doesn’t mean Suh won’t take a shot anyways, he doesn’t mind 20k fines folks. 

RB: W-In both meetings last season the Lions gave the Packers a run for its money.  Another national game will give the Lions a chance to prove they are for real.

New Orleans- 

MF:L-Who Dat makes the Lions into Who Dem?

RB: L-The Lions are for real but they aren’t ready to take that elite step.

Minnesota-

MF: W-Donovan’s age finally shows up in this one.

RB: W-If all is right in the world the Lions will remain healthy and dismantle the Vikings again this season.

Oakland-

MF: W-Al Davis’s track stars realize there is more to the game then just running up and down a field. Can’t wait for the next top 40 time to be drafted by Al.

RB: W-The RRRRaidas are nowhere near the Lions level.

San Diego-

MF: L-A Norv Turner team during the back end of the schedule are generally impossible to beat, well until playoff time then they fold over themselves.

RB: L-Antonio Gates proves to be the X-factor.  The Detroit Native will have a ridiculous game and just beat up on the Lions.

Green Bay- 

MF: L-Did you know it was in 1991 the last time the Lions won at Lambeau. Let’s just say Lions continue this wretched streak of awfulness.

 RB: L-I agree with Feldman.  However it will be close.  The NFL didn’t schedule this game in the last week of the season for no reason.

OVERALL Record MF-8-8 RB-10-6

Conclusion:

This is an 8-8, Berlin believes 10-6, team this year and in the retched NFC that is possibly good enough to back into a wildcard spot. No one should be disappointed with the 8-8, or 10-6, record as it will be the the Lions first time being .500, or above .500, in almost 11 or 12 years. To come back from such a retched era as the Millen Era in only three years is an impressive feat. All credit should be given to Martin Mayhew and Jim Schwartz.  As I looked at the schedule I felt the Lions have a legitimate shot at beating all the teams on their schedule on any given day, but being a Lions fan and for reasons stated above I am not going to jump the gun on them^3.  They are building a nice core and adding slowly and patiently, like all great teams do. Lions’ fans will have nothing to be ashamed about this season, since this team will play with passion and hard work. They are turning the corner, but it’s too early to say this team has arrived yet. The future is bright for the Lions, but they still have a ways to go to become the team we always dreamed about.

 FOOTNOTES

1.    Since when does Robert Kraft’s opinion on football matter. Yes he owns one of the greatest franchises in the NFL over the past decade, but outside of that decade the Patriots never won a championship.  Mr. Kraft’s opinion is valuable on the amount of cheese I want on my macaroni noodles, but outside of that meaningless.

2.     I just got a boner.

3.    Ryan ate the cornbread and drank the kool-aid.  He believes and bleeds Honolulu Blue.