NFL: Season 2005/05

[Mock]

Yuck

Along with Super Bowl XXXV, that was one of the most boring playoff—screw it, football games—I've ever seen, other than the Randle El gadget play. Just my opinion.

 

[FicusFan]

Perhaps there is just a sports curse on 2005/2006. I was thinking something like how the Chinese have the year of the dog, or rooster or cow. Is there one that isn't good for athletics, and is it just coming or finally going ?

The Pro Bowl was awful. I mean it is not really a serious game, but on Sunday Manning had 3 or 4 interceptions ( and he usually does well at the Pro Bowl), and McNAir had 3 or 4 fumbles taking a snap from the Center at the end of the game !!

Then there are all these Olympic athletes being carried away on stretchers in the past couple of days, Michelle Kwan having to pull out, and the NHL betting scandal. Whatever is going on, I hope its over before the next football season starts because the mind boggles at what might happen next.

 

[FicusFan]

Well does anyone have anything to say about free agency for their team ?

Our has sucked. I can't believe they let McGinest and Givens walk, and now it looks like we are going to lose Adam and Troy Brown. I hate that they won't pay people what they are worth.

Then we either have to bring in outside FAs and pay them the same or more, and sometimes they suck, like last year (Chad Brown, Monty Biesel, Duane Starks). Or we bring in draftees or people off the street, and spend years coaching and training them, and then when they get really good -- they leave because we won't pay them the going rate.

Looks like TO finally found a home. Will be interesting to see him work with Drew and Terry Glen - both prima donnas in their own right.

I tried watching a couple NFL Europe games. They are better than the Arena Football games, but it still doesn't grab me like the real thing.

 

[kater]

I figured it wouldn't be long before you got onto this when I saw a great piece by sportsguy on it the other day, if you haven't seen it - try this: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/060315

 

[FicusFan]

I have been on it for quite a while. Like the stages of grief. I keep hoping it isn't true, and that Willie will be back. It just sucks. I know he only had a year or two left because of his age, but damn I wasn't ready to let go so soon. He probably had 2 of his best years the last 2 and he deserved more respect, and so did the fans.

I think we are doomed. Not just because of him, but becasue of the rigidity of the front office in following their system. It isn't just a system its the players too, and you don't get better by ripping your heart out and throwing it away. And if the Pats have dumped him and keep any of those useless wonders: Chad Brown, Monty Biesel or Duane Starks, there will be hell to pay.

They should have put in an exemption for keeping older players. I don't root for the uniform, but for the player in it. Maybe I will have to become a Cleveland fan.

The thing is losing Adam will not be good, but he has spent all of last year talking about us in the past tense. People know he is all about the money and wants to move on. He has lost the respect of a lot of the fans here. And he is soooo stupid because in any other market he is just going to be a kicker, and one they will tear down if he doesn't perform 100% of the time. Here he does TV commercials and is a star. But if he thinks he can go to another team, and then come back here when he retires and pick up where he left off as 3 time SB star -- he has another thing coming.

 

[Davis Ashura]

The thing is losing Adam will not be good, but he has spent all of last year talking about us in the past tense. People know he is all about the money and wants to move on. He has lost the respect of a lot of the fans here. And he is soooo stupid because in any other market he is just going to be a kicker, and one they will tear down if he doesn't perform 100% of the time. Here he does TV commercials and is a star. But if he thinks he can go to another team, and then come back here when he retires and pick up where he left off as 3 time SB star -- he has another thing coming.

I think at this point in his career, I could readily understand why he would be all about the money. There is a fine line between taking less than the market will bear so that you can play for a winner vs taking all the loot you can haul in. In Vin's case, if some team offers to pay him 500k more per year with 1-2 mill extra from the signing bonus than what the Pats would... well that would be very difficult to turn down. His football career is finite and even though kickers kick well into their late 30's and even mid 40's, the career will still end. Also, I remember one dumb-ass kicker celebrating a field goal (I think with a Florida team) and ripping his ACL. All it would take is for Vin to tear one on any icy field in NE and he'd been done - except he'd have at least 500k less.
I've noticed that bitter feelings tend to subside in these kind of circumstances after a few years. I remember Eric Davis as a young centerfielder for the Reds was awesome. He was fragile as an egg though and would always go down with an injury. He was booed mercilessly in his last few seasons with the club. Five years later, he's a Red again, and he and the fans had a season-long love affair with one another. The same could easily happen with Vin.

 

[kater]

I think sportsguy had it right, when it's a player that has been at the club for 8-10 years, who a team brought up and took a chance on as a rookie then there should be cap space outside the year-by-year changes budget to keep them. A team shouldn't be punished for producing a quality or even great player. You can't fault the player too much for following the money either though I think, maybe not so much kickers because they do have quite a long potential career-span as Radone said, but the impact guys really do only have short careers and with all due respect to many of them - it's not like they're going to do much afterward. Financial security is understandably their main priority - that being said I could probably retire quite comfortably off the average yearly salary in the NFL

 

[FicusFan]

I think at this point in his career, I could readily understand why he would be all about the money. There is a fine line between taking less than the market will bear so that you can play for a winner vs taking all the loot you can haul in.

But thats just it. He will make more here outside of football than he will anywhere else. He is doing it now, and will be able to do it full-time here once he retires. His popularity here will more than fill in for any shortfall that the Pats offer has. Or at least that was true until recently.

I've noticed that bitter feelings tend to subside in these kind of circumstances after a few years. I remember Eric Davis as a young centerfielder for the Reds was awesome. He was fragile as an egg though and would always go down with an injury. He was booed mercilessly in his last few seasons with the club. Five years later, he's a Red again, and he and the fans had a season-long love affair with one another. The same could easily happen with Vin.

Well I remember another story. There is a man named Bill Buckner who played for the Red-Sox. This was before they won the World Series, back in 1986. They were in the last game to decide the World Series I think and he let a ball get through his hands. The Red Sox lost the game because of that and lost the pennant.

The fans never, to this day, have forgiven or forgotten. He eventually had to move his family out of New England because not only was he reviled, taunted and threatened pretty regularly, but so were his kids and the rest of his family. People take sports very seriously in NE, and if you are loved you are golden forever, but if you aren't, or you fall from grace, your life is practically in danger.

Its pretty obvious that Adam is on his way down in the estimation of fans here and very unlikely he will ever get to come back and be the hero again.

 

[Davis Ashura]

Well I remember another story. There is a man named Bill Buckner who played for the Red-Sox. This was before they won the World Series, back in 1986. They were in the last game to decide the World Series I think and he let a ball get through his hands. The Red Sox lost the game because of that and lost the pennant.

The fans never, to this day, have forgiven or forgotten. He eventually had to move his family out of New England because not only was he reviled, taunted and threatened pretty regularly, but so were his kids and the rest of his family. People take sports very seriously in NE, and if you are loved you are golden forever, but if you aren't, or you fall from grace, your life is practically in danger.

Bill Buckner was a completely different situation than Vinatari. Buckner lost the World Series with that ground ball through his legs. Vinatari is a champion, on the other hand, and that makes all the difference in the world. You can't ever look back nostalgically at Buckner as a Red Sox without thinking of the World Series that he lost. That play will always make you feel sick. Remembering Vinataeri will be inspire much better feelings.
And this passion isn't unique to NE. When the Bills lost the SB to the Giants, the kicker who missed the 40 yard field goal was let go almost immediately and hasn't played in the NFL since, and if you ask Bills fans about him, they won't have kind words to say.

 

[NeonKnight]

Bill Buckner was a completely different situation than Vinatari. Buckner lost the World Series with that ground ball through his legs. Vinatari is a champion, on the other hand, and that makes all the difference in the world. You can't ever look back nostalgically at Buckner as a Red Sox without thinking of the World Series that he lost. That play will always make you feel sick. Remembering Vinataeri will be inspire much better feelings.
And this passion isn't unique to NE. When the Bills lost the SB to the Giants, the kicker who missed the 40 yard field goal was let go almost immediately and hasn't played in the NFL since, and if you ask Bills fans about him, they won't have kind words to say.

Just a couple comments to clear up these situations. Of course I remember very well what happened in the games, after all I was rooting like hell for the other teams, in both situations. The 1986 World Series was the last time my beloved NY Mets won a world championship, and of course 1990 was the last time the GIANTS won the Super Bowl.

Technically Buckner did not lose the World Series. The Mookie grounder he blew only tied game 6, the winning run scored later. Of course the Sox would have won the series had Buckner made the very routine play, but the Red Sox still had the chance to win game 7, which of course they failed to do.

As for the Bills kicker Scott Norwood (WideRight), the field goal was a 47 yard try, not a 40 yarder. 47 yard field goal are not gimme chipshots...

On Free agency, I think the GIANTS have done a pretty good job on their secondary, expecially Sam Madison and Will Demp. I am against signing Arrington, I think he is an underachiever who takes too many plays off.

 

[FicusFan]

Well now Adam has gone and to the hated Colts no less. And it seems he called them, so he is pretty much toast in NE. People will remember his last kick which he muffed in Denver, and that he is a traitor. At least we dodged Vanderjerk -- that would have been the final blow.

All we have signed is someone who bombed for the Chargers I think.