The Divide Between Analysis and Understanding

As America gets reacquainted with the NFL, there are plenty of people having live fantasy drafts over a few beers, rummaging stores for grills in order to tailgate and praying that their preachers speed up Sunday services for the next five months.

We already know what has made the NFL king of American entertainment over the last decade-plus; a few seasons of parity, a more passer-friendly style of play (though not exactly better) and the heavy dependence on the game for live viewing by partner TV networks. The latter, which provides the league revenue streams and advertising beyond comprehension, has been the bread and butter for the NFL since the 1960s under the stewardship of the late commissioner, Pete Rozelle.

With talk about the league pitching an additional eight-game Thursday night package to networks and some scheduling additions made by current league partners, there’s more to consume for the pigskin fan than ever before. 

However, one grossly overlooked aspect of this larger landscape for the NFL is that whether they care to admit so or not, there are still millions of fans that are not as savvy about every nuance of the game of football. [Honestly, the same goes for us media folks.]

Think of how many times Monday Night Football color commentators Ron Jaworski and Jon Gruden give the breakdown of a play and the terminology they use will go over your head. Even for those who know that there are multiple names and variations of the same football plays, it’s not easy to keep up with what ‘Jaws’, ‘Chucky’ or any commentator that played or coached will spit out.

With the bandwidth for programming that networks like ESPN and even the league’s own network possess, there’s plenty of room for a show that can actually explain what in the hell these commentators and analysts are talking about. Who needs another hour of highlight reels or fantasy football uber-analysis when there can be a program or two that will demonstrate what a dig route is or why there’s a need to have different personnel for defensive schemes.



Courtesy of Fort Hayes State Univ.



For those who have known and loved football for years, a show like this can be a way of refining, if not outright testing, your knowledge of the game. Sure, you might have a Master’s in Madden Football and you probably like to debate at the water cooler, but there’s a good chance that you may have thought the Wildcat formation was invented four years ago (single-wing, anyone?). 

Fans who have been introduced to the game in recent years would get a better sense of what makes the superstars so respected and popular. Many came on board because they kept hearing about Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and numerous fantasy football references throughout pop culture. Yet, save for those hackneyed company lines about their greatness – they’re winners, what would their teams be like without them, etc. – there is a lack of understanding what it took for those players to become future first-ballot Hall of Famers. Why? Because explaining the craft is too long for advertising copy.

That guy looks MAD familiar!

Last year while live tweeting a Monday Night Football broadcast, I suggested that the league’s broadcasting partners should actually try teaching the game a bit. I received a few replies, stating that it wouldn’t be a good idea because it’s not the responsibility of said partners – ESPN, FOX, CBS and NBC – to explain anything, at least during the game.

Yet, this isn’t about the guys in the booth explaining each intricate detail as if this is “Football for Dummies”. While it’s not impossible, it would ignore the primary purpose to their jobs; to speak on the game as it happens to a rabid audience.

However, when you look through ESPNews’ programming slate and see nothing but “Highlight Express” or wonder if the over-the-air networks are really serving us with those ginormous pregame shows, it’s not unfathomable to see that there’s room to take a step back and educate people on the game with more than telestrators and corporate-sponsored studio ‘fields’.

The first day that we are 'Back to Football', we can use something new, can't we?

Maybe this program is a once-a-week in-season affair a la Showtime’s (formerly HBO's) Inside the NFL or those weekly fantasy sports shows on your local sports network. Throughout the season, the hosts – experienced television former NFL players and coaches – can use game and/or practice footage combined with live demonstrations from a local semi-pro or high school team to illustrate their points. How cool would it be to see the contrast between how an offensive line works for a pocket passer and a mobile quarterback? The hair-splitting differences between the brilliance of running backs Chris Johnson and Adrian Peterson? The real reasons why some teams play a 3-4 defense and a 4-3?

It may sound like one of those instructional tapes that you might buy for middle school-aged kids playing Pop Warner football. Yet, every season, people ask this Scribe how can they best learn the game in order to keep up with television analysis that continually goes over their heads. If this kind of program is crafted properly, it can be more than ‘suggested reading’ from the syllabus. It can be a great hors d'oeuvre before the football feast us pigskin gluttons scarf down every weekend.

Say What?!?!: In writing this post, an old one came to mind. Though younger generations have only come to know John Madden as the guy whose name graces the popular video game, he was once upon a time a great coach and the forefather to the sport’s color commentary. Whether some like it or not, with his retirement from the booth after the 2008 season, his approach to explaining the game to fans (though seemingly ineffective as the years went on) is sorely lacking these days.

Newness to Start 2011

Happy 2011 to all of you.

Before you check the newness elsewhere, let me talk about what’s going on here.

Some of you have recently come upon A Sports Scribe because of this and this (click J.E. Skeets' link). Let me welcome you all to the blog and hope you stick around. Take the time to read my bio and the About Scribe page. In case you were wondering, I dislike briefcases, hence why I use my backpack. As for Walt Frazier’s jacket, respect due to him and MSG for delivering the goods.

For those who have followed the Scribe journey since its inception in May 2007, thanks for sticking with it. It’s a constant work-in-progress – or as my fellow Babson College alums would say, “WIP” – but something that strives for better with each post.

For those who have come along in the last two years through Twitter, you’ve been fantastic. The words on here may not have the acerbic tone as far more popular sites, but when I post something here, it’s to make people think or ask questions or just once in a while, appreciate something a bit more. Let’s keep the conversations going in a civil, but still fun manner.

For those who are wondering where to find my ‘legit’ work with the New York Beacon, if you see it in city newsstands, support the hustle and pick up a copy every Thursday.

*deep breath*

Now that we got those words out of the way, let me break down where Scribe is going in 2011.

For the past year, many of you were well aware that the site took a step back because of the MBA studies. Something I learned at Babson while working with its internet radio station was that sometimes, you need to fall back to move forward; take a deeper and more honest look at operations to find the bottlenecks, holes and glitches. You have to fix issues as you are also creating new offerings.

The MBA program – frustration of 45 missed weekends and all – provided an opportunity to flesh out some previous plans fully while developing new ones. The Facebook page is an example of a new wrinkle that may have not been considered for a lot longer time if not for being in an academic and professional incubator that is Metropolitan’s Media Management program. There are countless people who have been wonderful enough to devote time to speak with me about improving Scribe. In lieu of money and Knicks tickets, my gratitude can be best repaid through making this site better based on your thoughts and suggestions.

[I could use some money and Knicks tickets, though, so if any of you have one or both, feel free to let me ‘safeguard’ them.]

What to expect from Scribe this year?

• More original posts: interviews with respected people in the business, roundtables like the popular NBA discussion from last season and personal/professional observations
• Better videos: there will be a couple of unpublished videos uploaded in the coming weeks, but I’m already planning for a couple of stadium visits during the spring and early summer
• Podcasts: yes, you already have enough of these to listen to, but depending on the feedback, the frequency will increase from a monthly podcast to possible weekly editions
• The long-delayed redesign: it exists, people!
• Greater social media: Twitter is tremendous, but for those who love to read via Facebook, you’ll get more. Tumblr may see a shift, but not immediately

So, 2011. It’s going to be fun.

Speaking of fun, 2011 begins with three new contributions.

• In Thursday’s Beacon, you’ll see the obituary for the 2010 New York Giants. If the PDF is made available online, you’ll see it posted on all things Scribe.
• Just as throughout the NFL season, there will be recaps of each round of the NFL playoffs on The Perpetual Post. This Friday, the NFL roundtable will reconvene to give predictions and other thoughts. If you have yet to do so, check the latest; Week 17 in the NFL and a discussion on Donald Fehr as NHL Players Association boss.
• Sticking with hockey, Norman Einstein’s Magazine is back with edition #20. I discuss the raised stakes of the recent NHL Winter Classic between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals. The best, as usual, comes from the rest of my teammates, so please read it all and enjoy. Many thanks to Ozman51, Lizz Robbins and Ken Fang for their contributions.

Go forth and be merry, friends of Scribe.

While You Wait: Norman Einstein's, Perpetual Post & Radio

So, if you've been following Scribe on Twitter, you know this writer is back in the football beat, though keeping a close eye on other happenings. Though this blog has not been as frequently updated as planned in this time off from school, it's all in hopes of making sure that from this point on, Scribe is better than ever before.

You have also been following the track of Hurricane Earl (or laughing at the gloomy reports from the east). It's thrown a wrench in some travel plans for this Labor Day weekend, so feel free to take advantage of the extra time to catch up to the latest Scribbles Elsewhere.

In this month's Norman Einstein's, my piece explores the not-so-discussed history of integration in the NFL. However, you should check out the remaining excellence from my teammates Alex Birdsall from There Are No Fours (Tragedy & Transcendence: Armando Galarraga's Imperfect Game), Patrick Truby from There's No 'I' in Blog (Hardball Heroes: A Conversation with Amber Roessner), Brian Blickenstaff of Touch & Tactics (48 Seconds: Curtis Johnson Jr. Fights for a Dream), Andrew Reilly of the widely-referenced 35th Street Review (Uneasy Lies the Bear That Wears a Crown) and of course, the Head Coach known as Cian O'Day (Thorn from the Lions' Paw).

In addition, Chris Pummer and I discuss the potential 18-game NFL regular season on The Perpetual Post. There will also be words on the state of television, which will have a slight sports perspective from my end.

Also, for some unexpected visuals, check out the latest from the Scribe Tumblr account.

Finally, if you haven't been able to catch if in the last two weeks, I have been a guest host for WHCR's Sports at the Half. Chi Chi & myself have been mostly talking up football, but there's more to come with the US Open and other events. I will be back in the studio this Labor Day at 5PM since I have no life.

Quit Hating and Start Watching

There’s a tendency for us to rain on each other’s parades when a major sporting event captures the attention of many casual fans. This is no more evident when we are discussing significant events in professional hockey, soccer/football and basketball.

Much has been made about the outstanding viewership numbers for yesterday’s Olympic Men’s Hockey Gold Medal Final between Canada and the United States. And why not? If someone said that this thrilling game would have garnered ratings akin to a regular season game in the NFL, most would have laughed, sneered, snickered and belittled the sport, its fans and its elite league, the NHL.

The very fact that the game captured almost 28 million viewers* should bode well for the sport overall. That people in the know are pondering what can the NHL and its broadcasting partners do to carry this momentum into league action speaks to how compelling of a product the sport presents.

Yet, there are equally as many people who have started their “who cares?” rants, “when’s the next big event to pretend to care about” comments and my favorite quips of nonchalance; “when does football/baseball season start?”

Photo Credit to the Vancouver Sun

I just wonder why we take this route for some sports and not others. Why must we dissect its potential or lack thereof? Why must we ask those sports to fix themselves in order to appeal to non-fans and passersby? Why must we demand more of those leagues than we do the staples that take their fans for granted more often than not?

It’s funny because Super Bowl XLIV – a fantastic game, without a doubt – wiped off the bad taste the 2009 NFL season left in many mouths. This past season in the league was one of the least entertaining campaigns in years and the postseason initially carried some of that poor play in the first two rounds. If not for the Jets’ very game performance in Indianapolis (they did blow the lead, though) and the fumbling follies of the Vikings in New Orleans, this past season could have easily gone down as the worst since the late 90s.

This is a league with a fair share of problems on its own; a potential labor strike looms large, a steady stream of player arrests, the back-and-forth on overtime, Brett Favre fatigue, the overlooked story of PED/steroid use, an ongoing battle with Time Warner Cable over the NFL Network, etc.

Yet, few dare to ask what’s wrong with the almighty, omnipotent National Football League.

Beyond the Yankees winning the World Series last October, this past baseball season wasn’t exactly one for the ages. Once again, the controversies loomed larger than the games themselves. PEDs for Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz. Josh Hamilton’s relapse. Milton Bradley’s arrival and dismissal from the Cubs. Allegations of Jim Bowden skimming bonus money from Latin American prospects. Mixed (some scathing) reviews for the new Yankee Stadium. The Mets (via Fred Wilpon) and Bernie Madoff. Mark McGwire, over a decade later.

There had been tremendous action in spurts; great pitching from the game’s young guns like Zack Grienke, Felix Hernandez, Tim Lincecum, the underrated Matt Cain and Jair Jurrjens. The usual great play from players you expect like Joe Mauer, Kevin Youkilis, Derek Jeter, Ryan Howard and Albert Pujols. The strong supporting casts that pushed the Yankees and Phillies into the Fall Classic. The birth of MLB Network (and ratings punch to the gut onto ESPN). All of this is forgotten among casual baseball fans.

Yet, few dare to ask how Major League Baseball can regain its footing on the national stage.

Apparently, the North Carolina Tar Heels’ men’s basketball program is going to need help to get into the NCAA Tournament this year. They’ve lost four starters of last year’s title squad to the NBA – Ty Lawson has been outstanding, by the way – and find themselves clawing to keep pace in the ACC. I say apparently because from friends, family & colleagues, last year’s edition of March Madness was one of the least exciting, most anti-climatic and phenomenally unmemorable in recent memory.

The scandals in the NCAA have been mind-numbing within the last decade. Before, it was about point-shaving and a player having ‘extra’ cash in his pocket. This past decade alone gave us testing scandals, coaches exacting physical punishment on players during practice, more testing scandals, even more money passed under the table, an absurd coaching carousel spun by the coaches themselves. And of course, there’s the worst of them all; Patrick Dennehy.

Yet, few dare to ask what can the NCAA do to capture fan interest before March Madness takes over.

Look, I didn’t write this to hate on those sports. In fact, if you read the Blogger profile, you’d see that baseball and football have been near and dear to my heart much of my life. As a once passionate, now bitter observer of college basketball, I pray for the day that the NCAA rights the ship and does right by ALL student-athletes, regardless of gender or sport. Yet, to see the errors in those sports is to almost be a leper of sorts; people want to move on, overlook these issues and pretend that these issues aren't as big, if not bigger than those in the NBA, NHL or soccer/football in the United States.

I wrote this because when we throw shade on each other’s preferences, we tend to forget how imperfect our own favorites are. We tend to think that being a ratings behemoth exonerates these sports from their issues or that being underwhelming according to Nielsen is an indictment.

You don’t have to become a hockey fan after the great play at the Winter Olympics (though you’d be happy if you did). You don’t have to subscribe to NBA League Pass for the remainder of the season to get your stripes (there are only 6 weeks left anyway). You don’t have to call your cable provider to look into FOX Soccer Plus, which just launched today (just try to master FOX Soccer Channel first). What we do need to do, however, is to be fair in how we observe these games. If we’re going to be as scrutinizing of the sports we dislike, give the same treatment to the ones we love.

Otherwise, quit hating and start watching.

Say What?!?!: By the way, with all due respect to Sidney Crosby and his fantastic goal, can someone else in the world give Jarome Igilna (the guy above Crosby in the photo) love for his assist? It was a fantastic set-up by a player who should get far more attention than he gets in the sports world. Maybe it’s gutsy to say it, but if he played for the New York Rangers instead of the Calgary Flames, he’s not only get more attention, but he could be akin to Mark Messier in terms of being a steady, proven veteran leader that could walk the streets of Manhattan with head nod respect from even the most uninterested of puck fans.

*A note about Nielsen ratings; they don’t include out-of-home viewing, which includes sports bars and other public establishments. Since measurement in this space has been modified over the years, these viewers may or may not be counted into the equation, but hockey is as much of a sports bar kind of game as any in North America. This, my friends, is good.

Slow Down on Marketing Mark Sanchez

Courtesy of Jessica Bader at The Perpetual Post, this article from The Atlantic hit the inbox yesterday.

Though it’s a quick article, here’s the synopsis:

Tony Lee likens New York Jets rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez to President Barack Obama. Yes, you read that correctly. Actually, he brings up the revelation in the recently-released “Game Change” how despite publicly showing support for now-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, fellow Democrats in Senators Harry Reid and Chuck Schumer were secretly rooting for Obama during the 2008 Presidential primaries. He ponders if NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell may be secretly cheering for Sanchez and the Jets over the establishment that is the Peyton Manning-led Indianapolis Colts.

When Sanchez was drafted last April, quite a few business experts lined up at the door to espouse on how he can become a major boon to the NFL’s efforts in marketing the game to Latino communities across the country. Lee is just the latest person to add to this overall perspective.

Further, Lee said:

His marketing potential and reach dwarfs Manning's. And while commentators such as Rush Limbaugh have gotten in trouble for saying what I am about to suggest, that the NFL wants--needs--Sanchez to succeed even more because he's a Mexican-American who embraces his heritage. The NFL has had trouble attracting fans from America's fastest growing minority group, so NFL executives were probably joyous beyond belief at the future when the Jets drafted Sanchez. Surely, the Jets have often won in spite of Sanchez's rookie mistakes.

Now, as you expect to see from articles on the Internet, commenters ripped Lee’s assessment apart, so read them at your peril. Yet, in a less haughty rage, here’s are three issues with the article;

Potential versus reach: At this time, I give you that Sanchez's marketing potential dwarfs Peyton's, but disagree with the idea that the reach does. Potential is something unrealized and yet to be proven. If Sanchez has all this potential, then where's the reach when he just arrived on the scene and done little so far to suggest that he has earned the reach of Peyton other than being of part of a desired ethnic market?

Not only is Peyton the most omnipresent American sports figure as pitchman during the season, but his greatest impact has come in the offseason (that Sony has him alongside Justin Timberlake is a little strange. Might as well pair a player with Janet Jackson, right?) There isn’t another NFL player that appears in the number of national advertisements that he does nor has the league or Madison Avenue exactly picked out another one just yet.

Putting the cart before the horse, again: Too many stars have burnt out before they truly shined. Why we collectively continue to repeat this doomed history is simple; we spend more time immediately reacting to snapshots of people’s careers and lives than analyzing the body of work as time progresses.

In the duration of his career, not just a few games, Sanchez has to not only win, but play his butt off while doing so. He can't be marketable (at least outside of the NYC/NJ metro area) if he doesn't throw for 250, 300+ yards a game on a consistent basis.

Sanchez, if you haven’t heard, had a pretty rocky rookie campaign, something that other than those seasons for Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger, Atlanta’s Matt Ryan and Baltimore’s Joe Flacco, is expected. Now, if he builds upon this by reversing that touchdown-to-interception ratio and making strides year after year, then Sanchez can capture some of this potential both on and off the field.

Yes, the Jets have to win. Nothing sells like a winner, right? Yet, these Jets are looked upon as one of those run-heavy, QB-don’t-screw-up, tough defensive teams that have won Super Bowls in the past. The 1985 Chicago Bears, 2000 Baltimore Ravens, 2003 Tampa Bay Buccaneers and to an extent, the 2006 Pittsburgh Steelers and 2007 New York Giants fit those moulds (the latter teams had better aerial attacks, but they were better rushing offenses).

To appeal to a broader market, there has to be something exceptional for a marginal quarterback to become a sponsor’s dream. For starters, Sanchez can't be Rex Grossman (that's mandatory). Secondly, Pittsburgh’s Roethlisberger and the Giants’ Eli Manning are certainly two of the top ten QBs in the league, yet they have the advantages of being on two of the more popular teams in the league and for Eli, being Peyton’s brother helps.

If all Sanchez has to offer is his heritage, then, as Jessica Bader reminded her fellow Perpetual Post colleagues, why did the world forget that he wasn’t the only quarterback of Mexican decent playing last week? Leading to point #3;

Wait, the NFL doesn’t appeal to everybody?: Actually, the answer is a resounding no, but that’s stating the obvious. Yet, while Sanchez plays in a larger metropolitan area, it’s Tony Romo who plays for the league’s most beloved and reviled team. Yes, there’s a Mexican-American who plays the so-called most prestigious position in the National Football League; quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys.

Apparently, the league has used Romo in promotional efforts towards Hispanic markets. However, though, we walked though this path before, the only other reason why Romo is known nationwide is because of the tabloid coverage of his relationships with Jessica Simpson and Carrie Underwood.

That doesn’t sound like marketability at all.

Considering that only the federal government seems to have more of a presence in American media than the NFL, the fact that they need such a promotional push to the Hispanic community is admittedly surprising.

So I ask anyone who comes across Scribe to provide some insight because making assumptions about this topic would be foolish. In terms of that community, would it be logical to think that the league’s greatest pull is at least in the West Coast? Maybe broadcasting on unique Spanish-language channels would have helped the cause as opposed to hitting the SAP button? What’s your take?

Say What?!?!: NFL fans, enjoy today to the fullest extent. These are the games that are for us before the non-fans show up to ruin the Super Bowl.

Photo credits to the Newark Star-Ledger, Obsessed with Sports and ESPN.

Twittering (9/13)

Since today's the first Sunday of the new NFL season, a lot of passions have been stirred and reinvigorated. So, beacuse you may be thirsty for a conversation, feel free to chat with your friendly neighborhood Scribe on Twitter throughout the games you follow.

Also, some baseball and US open thoughts are certainly welcome.

Will be sans laptop while covering today's Washington Redskins/New York Giants game, but feel free to Tweet.

twitter.com/asportsscribe

"... Football"

It's not exactly Hank Williams, Jr, but it's not whatever the Kickoff Concert is, either.

"It's the sport of kings/Better than diamond rings...



"...Football."

Welcome back, NFL.

Bookmark Scribe tonight for a bit of live blogging and Twittering (or Tweeting or whatever it is). Send questions, comments and random funnies throughout the Titans/Steelers game to this post and Scribe's Twitter account.

Kickoff

Assuming that the webmaster at the New York Beacon took all of last week off, the 9/3 edition of the paper was not posted online. Thankfully, this week's version is up and considering that the NFL season begins tonight, it was timely to give fans here in the Boroughs something to whet the appetite until Sunday afternoon when the locals play.

While I previewed the Washington Redskins/New York Giants tilt on page 38, the sports editor, Marc Rasbury (who had been covering the US Open as well) gave a bit of dap to both the G-Men and the Jets.

And so it begins again. A year ago, the New York Giants started what was a promising defense of their Super Bowl championship with a statement win against a division rival. The just-retired Michael Strahan greeted his fans and former teammates at midfield, the soon-to-be jailed Plaxico Burress had just signed a new contract hours before the start of the game and many of the stars of the epic Super Bowl XLII shined in front of the home crowd. About fifty-two weeks later, much has changed except for the place and the opponent. The Giants open their season against the Washington Redskins this Sunday with hopes of once again getting a leg up on the NFC East in hopes of their fifth straight postseason.

A side note, there will be Twitter activity during some live games throughout the season. Let me just warn that I not exactly sure if I will do so during the games I cover at Giants Stadium. However, I may do so for all other NFL action and certainly for seven of the Giants road contests (will be unavailable for the October 3rd game in Kansas City). Please feel free to comment and ask questions about any and every team in the league. Heck, feel free to Tweet about CFL as well!

Spot

Since this is getaway day (or night) for many of you, here's a quick question: what is your favorite sports-related spot/ad/commercial so far this year?

I ask this because I was reading about the NFL's new campaign to take over our minds, bodies and souls. Here in the New York Times, representatives of both the league and Grey New York (the agency of record for the league) explain the thinking behind these new commercials.

As mentioned earlier this year in a post called Fluid, I was fascinated by a Jumpman ad that starred Richard Hamilton, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul and Joe Johnson. There are others of course, but none that have stuck out of the crowd as 'Field Generals'.



Well, except for this... well, I'll be fair and say that both Johan Santana and CC Sabathia did their best.



Say What?!?!: Still feeling my way through Twitter, I haven't picked up on Follow Friday just yet. However, I recommend that you all check out the Norman Einsteins, an online monthly magazine from Cian O'Day. It takes a unique look into sports with various writers and photographers. I am looking forward to doing some work for the site in the future, but here is this month's edition. Enjoy yourselves.

Leavenworth

It’s time for the obligatory Michael Vick piece!


Well, maybe that’s a bit strange. See Scribe usually doesn’t follow the blogosphere script in terms of writing about the salacious controversies as they happen unless there is something that must be said.

Wednesday's prison release of Michael Vick has inspired all sorts of opinions, but it’s the extreme sides of these thoughts that always get attention.

There are presumably millions of people out there who think that the former Virginia Tech standout hasn’t been punished enough for his crime. Nineteen months in the all-male, medium-security USP Leavenworth was some sort of slap on the wrist for someone who was a responsible party for the mutilation of animals for nearly six years.

There are presumably millions of people out there who think that the former Atlanta Falcons star (the team has his rights, but he’ll never suit up for it again) has not only served his penance, but should be afforded the same chances to gain his former standing in society as anyone else exiting prison. Jails were ideally built to not only keep the public’s gravest offenders away, but to possibly deter some of their inhabitants from ever returning.

There are presumable millions of people out there who think that the player whom Hall of Famer quarterback Steve Young once said has a chance to be better than he ever was – which is saying something – shouldn’t have spent one minute in jail. As MJD points out on Shutdown Corner, there are active players in the league who were not incarcerated for what can be considered far more serious crimes such as vehicular manslaughter, DUI/DWUI (as discussed here recently) or sexual assault.

There are voices from supporters and antagonists of PETA, citizens disillusioned by the conduct of athletes or the legal system and the denizens of a football-mad nation following the speculation of his next stop. Yet, regardless of what we may believe, there are only a few voices and opinions that matter when it comes to reclaiming Vick’s future.

For starters, as we have seen since he took over as Commissioner in 2006, Roger Goodell will be the greatest barrier to re-entry into the NFL. Chris Henry was arrested several times before he was hit with an eight-game suspension. Terry “Tank” Johnson was dealt with a half-season ban of his own after his legal troubles. Adam “Pacman” Jones has been given two lengthy suspensions under Goodell’s conduct policy, including a current indefinite suspension after another (idiotic) folly. However, only Johnson spent actual time in the can before Goodell meted out his league punishment; four months after violating probation during the Chicago Bears’ Super Bowl march in 2006.

We’re assuming that Vick is going to suit up for an NFL team right away, but if Johnson sat out for eight games on top of a four-month sentence, what could Vick get for being incarcerated for a year and a half?

Vick, himself, must appear more than remorseful for ending up in prison and losing millions, but at least publicly remorseful of his acts. He’s going to have the biggest media circus in the United States following him since Bernie Madoff the moment he finishes his house arrest in July. Add the protesters and the random people who want to make their feelings known, and he’s going to have to do much more than say the right things.

Kevin Sullivan, a public relations guru with extensive experience in both the political and sports worlds, laid out a suggested PR campaign on Shutdown Corner that could possibly placate all the interested parties as Vick’s talent and age (he’s just 29 years old, remember) will certainly land him another job. Whether one holds PR/publicity as a noble field is a moot point here, but what Sullivan’s four points reflect is a chance at not only salvaging what can still be a productive career, but a chance at a second act that could serve a grander purpose than merely getting a roster spot again in the NFL.

A third voice that matters here is one that few, if anyone, have mentioned. The fraternity of NFL players is going to deal with the most unique distraction since the September 11th attacks in 2001. Before anyone interprets this as comparing terrorist attacks to the resurrection of an athlete’s career, let it be understood that this is speaking about the immediate media frenzy they will face on top of what they deal with on a normal basis. They will be hit with a constant stream of questions, demands for statements and some will give those always convenient “unnamed player” quotes.

To save you the trouble, here’s what will be asked by some of my fellow pigskin scribes: “what do you think of Michael Vick’s return?”, “do you think he deserves a second chance?” and “would you want him on your team?”. Truthfully, they’re not terrible questions to ask, but the responses might be influenced by the timing of Goodell’s decision, team personnel needs and how much hell PETA will raise between now and then. Some of the former teammates who openly supported Vick will find the spotlight shone on them. Washington’s Clinton Portis was derided for his opinion on the matter when Vick was indefinitely suspended before his trial, but you’d be foolish to believe he is the lone player in the league that feels that “they’re just a bunch of dogs”. Even those players who condemned Vick will see an extra mic or camera to see if they can forgive and forget.

If his release presented a caldron of reactions, we can only imagine what will take place in eight weeks. On July 20th, Michael Vick will have finished serving his entire sentence after two months of home confinement. By that summer Monday, several teams will have already started their training camps for the 2009 season while others will be setting up shop in towns across the country. From that day forward, position battles will be decided by performances, salary concerns and devastating injuries. Each personnel decision made by coaches and managers will be influenced by those very battles, but you can expect that Vick’s name will be connected to nearly every one of them.

Threat?

If you haven't heard, the commissioners of the four major North American sports leagues sat down with Sam Walker of the Wall Street Journal to discuss a wealth of topics ranging from the effects of the recession to who has season tickets for teams in other leagues.

An interesting part of the discussion centered around the global reaches of these leagues - more specifically, the NBA - compared to soccer/football. Outside of fans of the sport and interested business partners in media and advertising, few in the United States are aware of how it has grown in exposure over the past few years. The very fact that ESPN (which has secured rights to nearly everything imaginable that isn't the NHL in the past two years) lost the rights to broadcast the UEFA Champions League to FOX Soccer Channel and Setanta Sports a few weeks ago shows that the game is starting to gain a foothold in a country whose apathy is well-documented.

Yet, there's a prevailing thought, according to questions posed to the commissioners by Walker, that soccer is taking North American turf without even saying thank you while 'our' leagues may need to invest more resources internationally.



While I encourage you to watch the entire series, I would love to know your thoughts on this issue; has soccer/football stolen the thunder of the North American leagues? Should baseball, the NFL and the NHL continue to follow the NBA's lead in trying to build a successful global presence? More importantly, does soccer's growth north of Mexico actually stunt the other leagues or is there plenty of room at the table?

Also, as you may have noticed, there's a new poll, which in part was inspired by this gathering.

Don't be shy. All thoughts are welcome as usual.

Social (III)

Note: Been having some issues with uploading photos over the last day or so (hopefully, it's more of a Blogger issue than a PC issue). So this post jumps the line of drafts. However, as there is more correspondence in what I personally believe is an intriguing and exciting topic in the sports world, there will be further updates to this particular post as well as the Social series.

After discussing and posting the press release about the New England Patriots' latest online venture, I was able to get in contact with Jim Munz, Product Manager of the OView platform at Optaros, about the Calendar Application that was released just a couple of weeks ago.  Questions are and will continue to be abound for sure, but this response speaks to the importance of protecting the Patriots brand while dealing with the social media realm. Please feel free to leave some as comments or email them to asportsscribe@gmail.com.

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Scribe: According to the quote from Fred Kirsch (director of interactive media at Patriots.com), protecting the Patriots brand is of the utmost order, not only for the franchise, but for a league that safeguards its image to the most minute detail. For the readers who may come upon this post that are not as familiar/aware of the business side of the NFL, could you elaborate some on this? What was the process in choosing the right tech partners and what was the reluctance in the past (if any) to come up with this application?

Pror to this news, I had discussed how sports leagues are starting to bring social media into their marketing fold with varying degrees of success and effort. I have always been surprised that the NFL, which is the country's most popular league, has been rather... should I say slow?... in adopting Facebook, MySpace and others as a part of their outreach with fans.

Munz: As you point out these sports franchises have been slow to adopt social tools such as Facebook, MySpace, (etc.) Part of the reason I believe that this is taking place is that in order to work within these spaces you need to provide something of value, in the case of the Patriots that is information, media, (etc.) around the Patriots to their fans. This works well for the fan when they do this because it provides another means to interact with the brand. A challenge is how do allow this out their and establish interactions around it with the fan base, without having people out on all of the sites where it lives 24/7.

The starting point here is with the Patriots Calendar App since it allows delivery across fan site, Facebook, and Patriots.com while at the same time providing the Patriots with a way to centrally manage this experience so they can maintain control of updating this information when it changes.

The Patriots are more progressive than most in this regards, they know they need to be out there doing these type of interactions on the social sites with their fans. But managing that without a tool to support them is difficult given the quick pace of the media schedule around the team.

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Many thanks again to the people at Optaros for the news and correspondence and I'm looking forward to contuing the conversation of social media and sports for all interested.

Unplugged

I cannot recall the last time I've felt this... unplugged, disconnected, off the grid, whatever you may call it.

Without going into lengthy and boring details, it's been a rough week to say the least. Now, with a moment to breathe and catch up, two quick thoughts.

• Yesterday, your favorite Scribe took part in what you can call a one-day mentorship program where alumni descended onto campus to coach current juniors (albeit, one that has been quarantined from the rest of the world, as we discovered upon our arrival - and none of us are sick, thankfully). While this was about coaching students in their approach for future interviews and the like, the program triggered a thought on the discussion of who may win this year's Coach of the Year award in the NBA.
  This year, the votes should come down to two men: Erik Spoelstra for the Miami Heat and Jerry Sloan for the Utah Jazz. History has shown that the rookie head coach who gets his squad into a postseason berth or a veteran director leads a very young team towards unexpected success will take home the trophy; favoring Spoelstra. However, Sloan has not only dealt with a season full of sidelining injuries to nearly every player in his rotation, but the death of Larry Miller, the team's patriarch, in mid-season. Considering that he has never won the award in his two decades in Salt Lake City, it would not come as a shock that he is bestowed the honor later this spring.
  
  
• En route to Babson yesterday morning, I was reading an article in the latest Sports Business Journal about NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's hopes of adding regular season games to the schedule while shortening the preseason. The SBJ article may be one of the few media bites that actually highlights the cons of lengthening the season; stating the potential reluctance of networks and advertisers to adding more money to already-stuffed coiffers for the league in a challenging economy as well as the physical toll that players can take with one or two more meaningful games.
  Look, as an invested party into the league as a fan and member of the media, extra games are enticing as they satiate an all-time high demand for the most popular sporting league in the United States. If anything, it can help the league's international intentions as teams who play overseas during the regular season do not have to fear losing revenue of a game that could have been played in their home stadiums. Yet, without considering the salaries that they command, the game is quite brutal already on the physiques, mentalities and emotions of these men who play. The extra game increases the risk of a major injury to any player, whether its the star quarterback or the reserve defensive lineman. My hopes are that in consultation with the players and coaches, this is considered at length before a decision is made.
  Then again, there should be other pressing matters for the league beyond enteraining the fans more, such as how to aid former players and address the league's alcohol problem, but another post for another time.

Sunset

If there is a perfect moniker for the 2008 sports calendar, it is The Year of the Retirement.

It’s not as if all the professional athletes in the world had a convention somewhere to schedule their sunsets ahead of time, but there have been a few more farewell press conferences and phone calls than normal. It’s come to the point where Sports Illustrated’s website features a slideshow of the “twenty biggest retirements” thus far; those that have already happened and those that will start after the end of their seasons.

Some athletes who called it a career are without a doubt more recognizable than others. Some were newsworthy as they left fans scratching their heads. However, there are a few announcements that, for various reasons, have gone relatively unnoticed. Instead of ranking the importance or the overall careers of these athletes, tonight’s Scribe post looks into those various reasons that go outside of “it was just time”.


Dan Morgan and David Pollack: Most of the retirements that have been announced have been related to the National Football League. Yet, the circumstances of these goodbyes differ vastly from those of more famed retirees such as Steve McNair and Brett Favre. Both Morgan (top right; six seasons with Carolina) and Pollack (second right; three in Cincinnati) came to the League with a lot of promise, but debilitating injuries jeopardized their careers early.

Morgan, a hard-hitting linebacker who first made his name like many of the league’s best defensive players of the past three decades; in Football U, also known as the University of Miami. After being drafted with the eleventh pick by the Panthers, he started 11 games in 2001, helped solidify the league’s second best defense en route to the franchise’s lone Super Bowl appearance the following year and made the Pro Bowl in 2003. Yet, he only played 66 of Carolina’s 119 games (including all seven of the playoff games) in seven seasons. A series of concussions, an ankle injury and a partially torn Achilles tendon took their toll on him as he felt that he could not contribute to what is supposed to be a revamped New Orleans Saints defense in the upcoming season.

Pollack was a stud defensive end out of Georgia, collecting several major college football awards on his way to the NFL. In 2005, the Bengals selected him with the 17th pick in the first round and converted him to outside linebacker. He played fourteen games in his rookie season and despite just notching 28 tackles (22 solo), he picked up 4 ½ sacks for a team that found itself in the postseason for the first time in 15 years. Yet, in the first quarter of an early 2006 season game versus Cleveland, Pollack broke his sixth cervical vertebrae on a tackle. Though not paralyzed, he was unable to suit up again that year. His injury was initially considered career-threatening, but even with the improved prognosis in January 2007, he didn’t play that season either. Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said a few weeks ago that Pollack is going to retire, though the exact words have not been uttered by the player himself.

Football is a very high-risk, high-reward sport. It may have the country in a daze for twenty weekends a year, but for many of its players, it can cause a lifetime of pain. Morgan (29) and Pollack (26) would have been at both ends of an NFLer’s prime, but no matter how much their hearts wanted to get on the field, their bodies were unable to match that desire. Their retirements serve as another reminder for those of us who believe that it’s always about the Almighty Dollar in pro sports; no matter how much we are aware of the fortune and fame that come with success, the physical body doesn’t know how much money you make.


Maurice Greene: There seem to be more controversies than track and field competitions, if you are like me and rarely keep up with the sport outside of the Olympics. It’s as if every athlete is connected to some performance-enhancing drug ring and check fraud (notice the and, not or). What makes Greene stick out above names as Trevor Graham, Justin Gatlin, Marion Jones or Tim Montgomery? It’s that until he officially retired in February, he avoided any questions of his professional integrity due to PEDs. Then in a New York Times article published in April, Greene responded to claims made by a former drug adviser that he used PEDs.

Greene had a longer career in track than many of the sport’s elite could manage. He notched two gold medals in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, along with a silver and bronze in 2004 (Athens). He held the world 100-meter record at 9.79 seconds back in 1999, a race he had dominated for two years going back to the 1997 World Championships. With the clouds hanging over the sport, his name may be more aligned with a $10,000 check that he wrote to this former adviser than his former records and medals.

When someone retires with a record of excellence, ideally, (s)he is not supposed to leave much doubt about the contributions made throughout her or his career. Yet, in the case of Greene – who has never failed a drug test, even if that leaves you skeptical – he left more questions than answers. With the Beijing Olympics on the horizon, this story may pick up some steam as the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) is seeking an explanation for his actions.

So why did he retire? His reason could be as legit as they come: in training for Beijing, he could not physically keep up due to injuries over the years. He wants to make room for new stars, he said in his farewell. For some, however, this recent news makes it hard to believe that Greene walked away for purely altruistic reasons.


Larry Allen: Another NFL retirement, this time with a player who set a high standard in his position in the way that many of the heralded quarterbacks and running backs did for many of the league’s current stars. Allen – considered by football people as the strongest player in the league’s 88-year history – retired after fourteen years in the league; having spent twelve with the Dallas Cowboys and his final two with San Francisco.

When kids growing up in the 1990s debated if Emmitt Smith or Barry Sanders was the better running back, the difference always lied with the superior offensive line Dallas possessed for nearly the entire decade. Allen’s brute strength and deceptive quickness blasted holes in the defensive line for Smith to run through. He made eleven (yeah, that’s right, eleven) Pro Bowls at three different offensive line positions: left guard, right guard and left tackle. He blocked for Hall-of-Famers and Pro Bowlers: running backs Smith and Frank Gore along with quarterbacks Troy Aikman and Drew Bledsoe. He won his lone Super Bowl ring in his second season with the ‘Boys and remained with the organization for twelve years.

Likely, he will join the other ten Cowboys who are enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Since offensive linemen are typically low-key and still unsung, Allen didn’t get a pomp-and-circumstance press conference or video package on the sports channels. It was certainly the case for the perennial Oiler/Titan Bruce Matthews until he joined the Hall last year. The same will go for other all-time greats such as Jonathan Ogden and Orlando Pace.

Until Canton…

Profound

Anyone who has ever dealt with the loss of a loved one can understand the greater plight of moving forward. It is a long and arduous march to some form of normalcy, even though that missing energy never returns. It is also something that can never just be understood from a distance. Unfortunately, the only way that someone can ‘get it’ is when he or she endures it. Yet, there are some deaths that are unique from others, though loss hurts all the same. In the realm of entertainment, one’s passing starts as a private moment within family and close friend before it is announced to the general public. It is at this point, fairly or not, where that passing seems extraordinary.

As the NFL deals with a second murder in 2007, there are questions abound on how players, coaches and managers will honor the life of Washington Redskins’ star safety Sean Taylor. Because of their occupations, the healing process differs in that before millions of people watch them take on the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, they have to spend the remainder of the week trying to prepare for the game. They can’t take days off during the week as we could. Add the rare instance of two games in a five-day span; the team must exert all of their being into what will be the most difficult – and emotional – period in franchise history.

Sean Taylor’s death has been and will be discussed at length for weeks to come in light of what has already been a challenging year for the NFL. He was the fourth active player to have died since the start of this year. Darrent Williams was killed after leaving a New Year’s Eve party in Denver. Nearly two months later, his Broncos teammate, Damien Nash, collapsed and died during a charity basketball game for his younger brother, a heart transplant recipient. In May, the New England Patriots lost Marquise Hill, due to a JetSki accident on Lake Pontchartrain (bordering his hometown of New Orleans). Besides their employer and their ethnicities, each man had one other commonality; they were all twenty-four years old.

As details about the circumstances of his death slowly come out, a fraternity of former teammates from his Pop Warner days to the University of Miami to Washington will strengthen through grief. The inquisitive and opinionated media will discuss how the Redskins will inevitably have to replace their best player as well as get ready for this challenging period. The fans will show up to mourn as a civic community, to question or appreciate how the team moves forward and to remind each other how today should be cherished as if tomorrow is never promised. This public process has no timetable, but it will raise concerns.

There have always been people who have asked why the death of an athlete should matter more than the death of an everyday Joe, Jaquon or Jane. Some will try to remind others that people die every second of the day and it’s a part of life. The issue with this train of thought is that it assumes that the masses believe the death of a public figure is more important, more significant and more meaningful than that of a private individual. This train of thought also falls in line of questioning why people celebrate these figures as opposed to lawyers, doctors and teachers in the first place. What isn’t said is that much of the reason that we slow down when an athlete dies is that we don’t fully know who the person was. Athletes are expected to be fearless and superhuman in their performances, but invincible and quiet when the lights are off. When those young athletes, along with Joe Kennedy, Josh Hancock and many other active players over the years passed on, it may have been the first time that we encountered anything to do with the human beings they leave outside of competition.

In discussing this with friends today, many sentiments were shared. A violent death of another young black male. His prior transgressions off the field. Potential starting to be realized during practice and game action. All of this rings true, but what should have jumped out from the start was that Taylor’s violent end stopped him from turning the corner away from the game. In a short amount of time, he became one of the few people in the world that could perform - let alone excel - at his job, be rewarded handsomely and yet, still have time to become better. More importantly, from all accounts of his colleagues, friends and family, he was beginning to make right with his previous wrongs. Becoming a father last year was singled out by all who reflected on his personal growth. No one knew how far exactly he was moving away from his run-ins with the law in his early seasons. No one knew the kind of player he was going to become as he was eschewing those poor decisions that led to warnings and fines from the league. Yet, regardless of how closely we pay attention or quickly we dismiss it, we can all understand that Sean Taylor didn’t have enough time to let us know.

Say What?!?!: From the Washington Post.

Basics

If there was one purpose to fufill on this blog outside of entertaining a different train of thought, it would be to better explain the games we watch, discuss and attend to anyone of all interest levels. From the seemingly disinterested to the irrationally obsessive, there is a general lack of fundamental understanding of how players perform and what to look for in their performances. Personally, it drives me up a wall. Professionally, it's a perfect opportunity.

Slowly, this blog (and future projects) will evolve not only as a source of commentary and humor about sports, but hopefully 'sports for not-so-keen-folk' (I think "For Dummies" has been used). Below is an list of links that will direct you to websites that explain the purpose of each sport. Even us scribes can relearn a thing or two such as what exactly a team rebound is or the point of icing. And as for fantasy sports: if you learn the real game, you can learn fantasy, no matter what guides and 'gurus' tell you.

This list will also appear on the right as 'Basics' becomes archived. Yes, you could Google or find the Wiki of each sport, but why would you need to if you can find it in one place?

Basketball:

• Wiki
• The NBA created Hoopedia, a great one-stop source to discover the league's history. For Rules, scroll down to Basketball 101.
• When it's time for that office pool, know why people get blue in the face in exhausting excitement or red in the face in unfiltered anger about the selection process. Welcome to the NCAA.

Baseball:

• Wiki
• Major League Baseball goes back to the Roman Empire... well, considering its deep-rooted, storied and controversial history, it might as well have been played by Julius Caesar himself.
• Unlike basketball and football - and even hockey in some places - college baseball does not have the national or regional attention that it should, but major talents still come from these ranks.
• Unlike basketball and football, the minor leagues are a big deal in many places across the US of A. Major League Baseball teams own a majority of these teams or have an affiliation with them, but there are some independents.

(American) Football:

• This tends to be the sport that confuses the most people that aren't fans. Digest sloooooooooooooooowly.
• Wiki
• NFL history and rulebook
• NCAA football, another source of hair-pulling and name-calling
• Arena Football: think basketball with shoulder pads and a hockey wall
• Pro Football Reference

Hockey:

• Wiki
• NHL history and rulebook
• NCAA
• American Hockey League: the highest-rated of the minors

Soccer/Football/Futbol:

• Wiki
• BBC Sport's 'Rules and Enforcement': immensely helpful while watching the 2006 World Cup
• BBC also features video on specific skills
• English Premier League: considered the top-flight league in Europe and the world

Tennis:

• Wiki
• Association of Tennis Professionals: Men's tour
• Women's Tennis Association: Women's tour
  

Antagonist

When the Knicks last ran New York City, the world wasn't sure what to think. It was the early nineties when the Yankees were trying to shed those Bronx Zoo days and the Mets were far from contenders. The Giants were pushing for another Super Bowl title one year and clawing away from the cellar the next while their roommates, the Jets, already set up their TVs there for some playoff watching. The Rangers broke the Curse of 54 years, but as the rest of the NHL, were losing their goodwill because of the lockout in 1995, they became a high-priced mess. There were no Arena Football, WNBA or MLS teams to ignore and Derek Jeter hadn't become entombed into the shortstop dirt in the Bronx.

1994 was as New York as New York could get when it came to sports. Sure, the city loves a winner, no matter the sport. Yet, the Knicks style of play was as emblematic of the Five Boroughs as anyone could care to admit. It was defensive. It was gritty. It was knock-you-on-your... It was just plain ugly. And it was beautiful. Streetball at its finest. 'Gimme lane' was the cry of the playground dynamo as everyone would clear to one side. That braggadocious fellow was met by a hard foul in the paint. As the city was during those days, there was little flash and even less love for anyone who showed that flair. The Knicks were the proverbial hard foul to the sporting public.

And the country hated it. They hated (and still hate) the Knicks because they represented the city truer than any other team, movie or TV show ever could. They hated the hole Michael Jordan left as he was the deft high-flyer and offensive force that tried to outsmart and outmanuever bigger and stronger opponents that played with the rules as those Knicks did. It was the same style of play that the Bad Boys played in Detroit and that the Celtics ruled with when needed during their last title reigns. Yet, the Knicks were blamed for the apparent demise of the NBA. In other words, they were the last true on-court antagonists the league ever had.

As the furor grows over the suspensions of Amare Stoudamire and Boris Diaw for leaving the bench after Robert Horry's forecheck of Steve Nash, debates rage over if the NBA has done right by its players and its true fans who desire competitive games over tailor-made outcomes. While it was an indefensible foul by Horry, it speaks to the intensity of the playoffs and the 'anything to win' mentality of these men in these spring months. The fouling that has taken place during the playoffs are a result of something greater within the game than fear of a fight. The playoffs are another world as every strength and weakness of not only teams and individual players is magnified, but a style of play and a league. While another post is needed for the true history of the bench rule, which extends to the aftermath of the Kermit Washington-Rudy Tomjanovich incident back in 1977, the glaring weakness that some fans and media are starting to see because of this incident is the loss of defense in the game. The campaign to increase the offense in the game has finally set in at the cost of competition.

The reasoning behind limiting the defense was to give the fans a show. Thinking that combined scores in the 250-point range every night would bring a cavalcade of fans to the arenas, the league felt that they needed to open up the court for the offense with clear path fouls, insitituting zone defense, allowing the pro-hop (you know that's travelling) and calling defensive three-seconds violations. Earlier this year, the league began to call more technicals as they believed it was to limit the whining of players about certain calls, but it was a clever way to add an extra point or two in a game. In addition to the 'Shaq zone' in the paint and handchecking fouls that were in place in the late-nineties, the NBA was an offensive game in the making. The rules have encouraged players to attack the basket at will or contort themselves to draw fouls as defenders are basically handcuffed. The rules in turn have also increased flopping on both sides. On offense, the current king of the flail, Manu Ginobili, makes Reggie Miller seem hard. For defense, it is the only way that they can force turnovers without the referees questioning the use of their hands on the open floor or their bodies in the post. The rules have taken away the balance between scoring and defending.

Other than baseball, team sports have handcuffed defensive specialists while enhancing what Walt Frazier would call 'swiss cheese' or 'matador D'. The NHL wanted to move away from the sluggish traps of the Jacques Lemaire-led Devils. So when the opportunity came after the season-long lockout in 2004-05, league officials tweaked the rules and the ice lines themselves to open up the game and there are still thoughts to have a bigger net behind a goalie with much more streamlined equipment. Older American fans found another reason to scoff at soccer as the overacting and blatant flops from the '06 World Cup marred the experience in their eyes (countered by the toughness of the overmatched US contingent). The NFL has been criticized for their defense against defense: roughing the quarterback, pass interference and the enforcement of the age-old five yard rule against cornerbacks.

Anyone who has played basketball at least once in their lives know how physical of a game it is. Anyone who has ever played against a talented offensive player knows that you have to make him or her earn points. Anyone who ever followed a team for a stretch of games has screamed "STOP HIM!" at least once during a game when teams answer point for point. Essentially, we love sports because there are two conflicting sides on a field or court or ice. One side reacts to the other as opposed to an elaborate shootaround. Defense reacts to offense. The antagonist reacts to the protagonist. The greatest moments in sports occur when one side succeeds in the back-and-forth conflict. How much greater is the feeling after winning when you know that both sides put their work in? After a while, no matter how fun it is to score at will, you still have to stop somebody. How much better is the passion play when fans can't stand the other team for playing their guys so well? For players and fans alike, defense not only wins championships, it defines sports. It's time to bring it back.