The Weird, Wacky and Awesome World of the NFL - General Banter thread

bruschi

I liked the first one, because it was something different and funny and original.

now I just find them long boring and the same stuff over and over again. worked once, leave it be.

Arawn

Eli Manning wrote: »

Jaysus it's just a bit of a laugh. It's not a competition.

Where did I mention it being a competition. I pointed out something I didn't like about it. Should I only say how amazing it is??

Realt Dearg Sec

Arawn wrote: »

Where did I mention it being a competition. I pointed out something I didn't like about it. Should I only say how amazing it is??

No but you should definitely escalate it into a massive argument.

Son Of A Vidic

Just a piece of trivia I came across earlier, when Brad Meester signed a 1 year contract with Jacksonville. He, Tom Brady and Steelers wide receiver Plaxico Burress are the only players remaining, from the 255 players selected in the 2000 NFL draft.

Paully D

Corvus Maximus wrote: »

Just a piece of trivia I came across earlier, when Brad Meester signed a 1 year contract with Jacksonville. He, Tom Brady and Steelers wide receiver Plaxico Burress are the only players remaining, from the 255 players selected in the 2000 NFL draft.

I was literally coming in here to post this after seeing it in Peter King's column

Son Of A Vidic

Paully D wrote: »

I was literally coming in here to post this after seeing it in Peter King's column

Great minds and all that sort of stuff.

HigginsJ

Corvus Maximus wrote: »

Just a piece of trivia I came across earlier, when Brad Meester signed a 1 year contract with Jacksonville. He, Tom Brady and Steelers wide receiver Plaxico Burress are the only players remaining, from the 255 players selected in the 2000 NFL draft.

Am Brian Urlacher, Shane Lechler (already signed with Texans), Sebastian Janikowski and John Abraham will all be back next season surely

davyjose

Corvus Maximus wrote: »

Just a piece of trivia I came across earlier, when Brad Meester signed a 1 year contract with Jacksonville. He, Tom Brady and Steelers wide receiver Plaxico Burress are the only players remaining, from the 255 players selected in the 2000 NFL draft.

Brady going at 199, for all the BS reasons like his physique and his 40 times, rather than the guy being a laser armed winner, is exactly why I think someone will get a steal with Barkley in this draft.

I'm not saying he'll be as good as TB, but all Mock's have him going in the second round, but for me he'll be a perennial Playoff QB, and ten years from now will be one of the few skill players in this years draft still playing and starting. And his career will p!ss all over Smith's IMO.

davyjose

Eli Manning wrote: »

Jaysus it's just a bit of a laugh. It's not a competition.

In fairness, that meme, or whatever you want to call it, is not nearly as funny as it used to be. That one was poor.

Son Of A Vidic

davyjose wrote: »

Brady going at 199, for all the BS reasons like his physique and his 40 times, rather than the guy being a laser armed winner, is exactly why I think someone will get a steal with Barkley in this draft.

I must admit, I know sweet FA about Barkley. But has anyone ever got a worse scouting report in draft history than Bradys one? And nobody has ever enjoyed it as much as he has, by ramming it down their throats ever since.:D

Chucky the tree

davyjose wrote: »

Brady going at 199, for all the BS reasons like his physique and his 40 times, rather than the guy being a laser armed winner, is exactly why I think someone will get a steal with Barkley in this draft.

I'm not saying he'll be as good as TB, but all Mock's have him going in the second round, but for me he'll be a perennial Playoff QB, and ten years from now will be one of the few skill players in this years draft still playing and starting. And his career will p!ss all over Smith's IMO.

If Barkley showed he was as clutch as Brady in college I could understand, but after his last year it's easy to see why teams aren't interested.

Red Crow

Arawn wrote: »

Where did I mention it being a competition. I pointed out something I didn't like about it. Should I only say how amazing it is??

You took something that isn't serious at all and got annoyed about it. It's meant to be a bit of a laugh irregardless of whether the content itself is funny or not. There is no need to get annoyed about it.

Chill out man.

Paully D

Gay player considering coming out, according to Mike Freeman (CBS):

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/blog/mike-freeman/21946093/some-believe-atmosphere-is-safe-for-gay-nfl-player-to-come-out

Former NFL player Scott Fujita has seen enough. He's tired of the bigotry. He wants it to end. He's not alone.

Players like Fujita, along with a coalition of current and former NFL players, and NFL team owners, a music mogul and others, are working diligently to create a safe atmosphere for the day history will happen: when an openly gay man will be a member of an NFL club. People like Fujita -- brave people -- are attempting to make the issue a non-issue for when that day comes.

And there are serious indications that day may come sooner than later. While I've long believed I would not see an openly gay NFL player for decades, that might be wrong.

Based on interviews over the past several weeks with current and former players, I'm told that a current gay NFL player is strongly considering coming out publicly within the next few months -- and after doing so, the player would attempt to continue his career.

I'm told this player feels the time is now for someone to take this step -- despite homophobic remarks from San Francisco 49ers defensive back Chris Culliver and the controversy arising recently at the Indianapolis Scouting combine, when prospects were asked questions about their sexuality.

This player's true concern, I'm told, is not the reaction inside an NFL locker room but outside of it. The player fears he will suffer serious harm from homophobic fans, and that is the only thing preventing him from coming out. My sources will not say who this alleged player is.

There has never been an active openly gay player in a major American team sport, but the information I've gathered on the player in question comes from several current and former players.

"I honestly think the players of the NFL have been ready for an openly gay player for quite some time now," said Fujita, a free agent linebacker who has played for the Chiefs, Cowboys, Saints and Browns. "Trust me, the coming out of a player would create much bigger waves outside the locker room than inside. The way I've seen the conversation around LGBT issues evolve, especially in the past few years, has been encouraging. Guys are more accepting than they used to be. Even those who raise personal objections to homosexuality, some of whom are good friends of mine, would still be able to coexist and accept a gay teammate."

Over the past few days there's been a flurry of activity on the issue including a brief filed by Fujita and others in support of a marriage equality case before the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday will hear oral arguments on California's Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage. Opponents of the proposition say it discriminates against gay men and women.

To Fujita and others, this is an important case that could have ramifications in the NFL. If the Supreme Court overturns Proposition 8, it would send yet another signal to closeted gay NFL players that the environment is changing for the better.

The brief's supporters are impressive. They include: Giants co-owner Steve Tisch; Demaurice Smith, executive director of the NFLPA; Vikings punter Chris Kluwe, Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo; Marie Tillman, co-founder of the Pat Tillman Foundation; Russell Simmons, founder of Def Jam Records; former UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans; Browns center Alex Mack; and NFL players Connor Barwin, D'Qwell Jackson, Tom Crabtree, Eric Winston and Scott Shanle, among others.

There is a feeling among people who have fought this battle for years that a corner is about to be turned. I don't know. While my faith in humanity remains tepid, it's balanced by my faith in people like Fujita.

JaMarcus Hustle

Won't happen. As long as there's a position called Tight End in the game, there's too many easy jokes for children like me.

Paully D

Great read from ex-player Ryan Riddle on the pressures of being an NFL player on the roster bubble:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1229910-life-on-the-roster-bubble-thoughts-from-a-former-nfl-player

After just under three years of life in the NFL, teetering on the edge of banishment at the bottom of rosters, I can unquestionably affirm the glorious dream job fans may imagine, is rarely the reality.

What is wrong with it you ask? Pain and injuries, media scrutiny, world-class competition, office politics, fear and insecurities, social hierarchies and the expectations of family, friends, coaches and teammates. And that's not to mention unimaginable bodily harm veiled in secrecy, capable of destroying the average man—all for the right to be in a group so rare, so elite, that less than 2,000 premier athletes annually can claim the honor. An honor far too stressful to appreciate while fighting to survive life on the NFL bubble.

According to the NFLPA, the chances of making it on an NFL roster if you played high school football are about 0.2 percent. This feat has been attempted and failed by Heisman Trophy winners, All-Americans, Olympic gold medalists, professional wrestlers, world's strongest men, record holders and everything in between. Once you make it that far, the average career is three-and-a-half years.



The Scrubs

From the minute you arrive on an NFL team as a late-round pick or undrafted free agent, you're instantly hit with a shrewd eyeopener. A distinct disparity between the guys who have established themselves, and the guys who are looked upon as temporary, nameless bodies. Here today, gone tomorrow.

This realization can be emotionally devastating, especially to guys normally used to being the big man on campus, often the stars of their respective teams for years. Several friends and former teammates have quickly succumbed to such harsh environments and left the teams they were on before training camp ended. Stories like that of Dwight Jones are far more common than many may realize.

The utter lack of respect toward such low-ranking members by coaches, teammates and the organization can be enough to weed out several guys each year.

A good friend of mine from college was signed to the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent. I recall stories about how he felt in camp that year—struggling to handle the feeling of being utterly worthless, cast aside by the coaches and players.

He described Patriots head coach Bill Belichick as a major (insert expletive here), as he was treated like a human sled dummy. It became obvious to him that any real opportunity to make the team was too much of a long-shot while the bodily damage and torture necessary to see it realized was nowhere near worth it. He left camp after a couple of weeks.

Fortunately, I was more resistant to the details of this reality, as it had been a familiar position throughout my entire career. Even in high school I was overlooked, as I made a habit of surprising people in regards to what I was capable of on a football field.

Another former teammate of mine who signed as an undrafted free agent with the Green Bay Packers never made it to training camp. He left on his own accord after realizing the workload and commitment to daily pain and suffering didn't match his passion for the game. To put this into perspective, he left the unbearable stress of the NFL bubble to go onto become a U.S Marine officer.

I suppose we all have our breaking points. Mine just came a little later.

Unfortunately, the NFL has never been an equal opportunity employer. If you're signed to a big contract, you're given numerous chances to succeed. Naturally, organizations enjoy a return on their investments and love when their decision-making process is affirmed, even if it's a contrived manifestation through a contradictory act of self-preservation.

In other words, it looks bad for the decision-makers to pay big money to guys who don't see the field, or worse yet, don't make the team.

As a result, guys on the bubble are relegated to minimal reps in practice, held to a higher standard of error-free football, and generally ignored by position coaches, who spend most of their time getting the projected starters ready. But when your name is called, you better be ready, it could be your only chance to prove yourself.



The Pressure to Perform

People may have a basic concept of what the pressure is like to perform in the NFL, but I'm certain the experience of it can be much more consuming. College football was huge and loaded with pressure and importance. But relative to the NFL, where everyone around you is fighting for their livelihoods, college was a fun, light-hearted game.

This pressure to perform with so much at stake, so much money on the line, so many people counting on you to make them proud, can literally strangulate the blood right out of your limbs. If you let it get to you, you're in for a very short career. This is why the line between cocky and confident is so often blurred with superstar athletes. In many ways, it's the chicken or the egg relationship. One begets the other.

This was a major undoing of my NFL career. My greatest struggles with this issue came after I was emotionally down, having surrendered NFL idealism following my subsequent release from a team for the first time in my entire athletic existence.

I was on the New York Jets after being picked up on waivers by then-head coach Eric Mangini. He had a style of coaching which demanded the most out of each player, motivated by shame, ridicule and realized threats.

He routinely would hold verbal pop quizzes in our morning team meetings where he would call out a player and ask him a question about something that was talked about yesterday in a position meeting, or was revealed in nightly film study.

In theory, this sounds like an awesome approach to coaching. But the execution of this was a lot different. It became a way for Mangini to use proven veterans as examples for knowing their stuff by asking them questions he knew they would get correct by prompting them beforehand or asking something they were sure to know. In contrast, he would pick a guy on the bubble who may be playing on offense, and ask him a question which would only pertain to a defensive player.

If you were a guy on the bottom of the roster, there was no telling what you could be asked in the team meetings. I would go into those meetings every morning far too nervous to focus on anything helpful toward my preparation. I was not alone in feeling this way. Mangini had his team caring so much, he had inadvertently created extreme performance anxiety throughout the organization.

This carried over onto the field and in the games as well. I hate to admit it, but there came a stretch in New York where I was actually thankful to be deactivated for a game because it meant I at least couldn't mess anything up and be humiliated in front of the whole team just before being sent home without even a goodbye or good luck.

It's easy to see the destructive nature of this mindset. But it's amazing what massive amounts of pressure can do.

Throughout my career I played through serious injuries by refusing to alert the medical staff to my issues.

To this day, I still have a weird popping and grinding feeling in my neck from a play that happened on a kickoff in the annual preseason opener, known as the Hall of Fame Game. That was the first game of the year and I secretly was never the same afterward. I never even told my parents in an effort to not worry them.

Guys on the bubble understand the need to stay healthy in order to keep their NFL dreams alive, so they abide by the rules of secrecy, inner strength and necessity to remain physically available. Meanwhile, the veterans have the luxury to sit out practice because of a tight hamstring or a tender pinkie finger.

While on the Baltimore Ravens, I received my first real concussion on the opening kickoff of a game. Running down to make a tackle, I lost my balance and slipped, falling into the guy trying to block me and hitting the side of my helmet on his knee. It was a fluke accident that left me cloudy and in a dream state for well over 30 minutes.

This was the final preseason game of the season and the last chance for many of us on the bubble to make the team. I knew there was no way I could sit this one out.

Adding to the motivation, I was playing against the Atlanta Falcons, a team who had promised me certain opportunities in an attempt to lure me away from the Jets, who were also looking to re-sign me for the offseason. Needless to say, I signed with them in late December (burning a bridge in New York) only to be released in May after buying a house there.

I was hellbent on revenge against the Falcons and wasn't going to let a concussion ruin it. I wanted blood in the worst way. Knowing that my opportunity was going to come in the second half of the game, when they let the backups in, I figured I had time for the symptoms to wear off.

Soon, the fog lifted, and I was relatively back to normal. This was my chance. I was playing the backup position to Terrell Suggs, which was where I was born to play.

Oakland and the Jets had tried to turn me into the next Tedy Bruschi, which I was actually making strides at. But pass-rushing was my true talent. I ended up sacking the quarterback for the Falcons two times that game, giving the Ravens their only two sacks of the game.

The next day I was brought into the team meeting room with some rookies and washed-up veterans where head coach Brian Billick put up a list of names on the projection screen listing who was released. My name was on that list.

Defeated, deflated and on my way out of the facility, I was stopped in the hallway by Rex Ryan and ushered into his office. He closed the door and sat me down, looking into my eyes with concern. Understanding the nature of the situation, he candidly divulged his thoughts on my ability as a football player. He explained the reasoning and thought process behind the decision.

Apparently I was not valuable enough on special teams to hold a roster spot as an unproven backup. I was also ineligible for the practice squad because I had accrued a full season on a 53-man roster.

He also said that they had an undrafted rookie who had a solid preseason and they didn't want to risk losing him to another team. He let me know I was one injury away from being called back to the team. I thanked him for the opportunity and drove back to the hotel.

That was my last time in an NFL facility.

The Wear-down

The stress of the NFL is unlike anything most people will ever know. After being cut by the Falcons in my brief stay with the organization, I was so defeated and emotionally compromised, that I wouldn't even return my agent's calls. He was trying to get a hold of me because the Dallas Cowboys and Baltimore Ravens were interested in bringing me in for a work out.

I just couldn't handle any more uncertainty and instability in the face of everything I was sacrificing, waiting for my opportunity. I did eventually give in and go to Baltimore, figuring I was going to treat this experience as if I had nothing to lose.

Imagine a profession where you are contracted to build an entire house alongside 15 other guys doing their own version in direct competition to you. The prize is a $300,000 reward. Each person is expected to show up every day on time without any excuses beyond death itself.

You personally drill, chop, saw hammer and erect this house with your own hard work and muscle, putting your signature on it piece by piece for half a year. After six months of blood, sweat and tears, the company that contracted you picks one of the 15 different houses to be fully completed.

Meanwhile, the other houses are ordered to be destroyed and the losing builders are sent home with a check for a couple thousand dollars.

Take away injuries and physical destruction, and you may get a glimpse of what it's like to fight for an NFL roster spot year after year.

Otto Skadelig

Riddle writes some very good articles on Bleacher report

davyjose

JaMarcus Hustle wrote: »

Won't happen. As long as there's a position called Tight End in the game, there's too many easy jokes for children like me.

Or Defensive End...

Son Of A Vidic

After reading the Ryan Riddle article, I found myself thinking, What's the alternative? There are 53 rosters spots available in a dog eat dog sport. There is no nice way of whittling it down to the final roster. Now Mangini's approach seemed pretty ridiclulous and counter productive and players trying to disguise injury is always very disturbing. But it's a tough cruel game where even hard work guarantees nothing. Maybe some guys enter into it with blinkers on and with unrealistic expectations. Yet the tone is set before guys ever turn professional.

The combine could be viewed almost in the same light as a sort of slave trade. Players are physically measured and evaluated, according to a set of tasks their new owners might need them to perform. The same way as African slaves were once paraded in the market place and traded off as field slaves or house slaves ect. Of course I'm not really suggesting that NFL players are modern slaves. But I do see the similarity in how they are viewed as pieces of meat for their new potential owners.

The NFL is almost falling over itself in a panic, introducing new measures like the latest tackling criteria introduced last week. We all know that it's nothing more than an PR, damage limitation excercise. Because the league is terrified of current/future litigation that's coming their way. Yet looking at the process Riddle described, it's clear many players do get treated like shít.Unfortunately the focus right now is only on players safety, but minding their mental health isn't even on the menu.

The house building analogy Riddle gave was excellent and it really brings the pressures home. How these guys can give everything, come so close, move on and start again is really beyond me. I wouldn't even be able to get out of bed with that kind of disappointment. But as I said earlier, what's the alternative to the hard reality of roster selection? Because for me, there is none.

eagle eye

I just love this. Yesterday I read this article and today I see the second headline. :pac:

Dez Bryant praised by Dallas Cowboys for his maturity

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000153272/article/dez-bryants-maturity-earns-praise-from-dallas-cowboys



and then today this one..

Cowboys' Bryant: I can be first WR with 2,000-yard season

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000154109/article/dez-bryant-wants-to-be-nfls-first-2000yard-receiver

eagle eye

eagle eye wrote: »

I just love this. Yesterday I read this article and today I see the second headline. :pac:



http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000153272/article/dez-bryants-maturity-earns-praise-from-dallas-cowboys



and then today this one..





http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000154109/article/dez-bryant-wants-to-be-nfls-first-2000yard-receiver

Confidence does not equal immaturity.

eagle eye

And the moment we have all been waiting for has finally arrived, the new Dolphins logo. Somebody probably got paid a lot of money for this which is a bit ridiculous.



Here is the old one for those who don't remember,

Son Of A Vidic

^ ^ ^

What muppet came up with that? The new logo conjures up images for me of a dolphin sanctuary. I thought their old logo was absolutely grand.

helimachoptor

Prefer the old one,has some attitude at least

theRB

The new dolphin looks too much like an airplane for my liking :P

3hn2givr7mx1sc

I like the new one.

Hazys

lol the slightly menacing look on the Dolphins face just reminds me of this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOvNQXDLoi4

Was Matt Groening the designer?

JaMarcus Hustle

I like the new logo, it's very slick and classy - but the old logo was an institution. And the biggest crime of all, they got rid of the bloody helmet on the dolphin. That's blasphemy!

Copper_pipe

http://www.joe.ie/sports/us-sports/picture-nfl-player-turns-into-human-hulk-in-off-season-0035915-1

davyjose

JaMarcus Hustle wrote: »

I like the new logo, it's very slick and classy - but the old logo was an institution. And the biggest crime of all, they got rid of the bloody helmet on the dolphin. That's blasphemy!

Not as drastic as ditching Pat for the flying Elvis though, was it?

JaMarcus Hustle

davyjose wrote: »

Not as drastic as ditching Pat for the flying Elvis though, was it?

I probably would have been opposed to it at the time, but I was only 5/6. All I've known is our current logo, but the Pat logo on the helmet of our red throwback jersey the last few years is beautiful. Looks really classy, and one of my favourite throwback uniforms in the league.