We've all seen them. ESPN's Top 10 Plays. It is possibly the greatest thing that ESPN has ever done in the history of television. But do you know how Top Plays are often accomplished?
Usually off of big blunders or huge mistakes. That's not to say that it doesn't take skill to create a "Top Play," because it does. The ability to exploit a situation in your favor and come out on top is a great one indeed and is desired in every player.
And who doesn't love watching a Free Safety take the head off of a Wide Receiver? Or a Linebacker make his way to the Quarterback and give him a heaping helping of astroturf? But we only ever know the names of the people who exploited the situation or the ones on the receiving end of it. Rarely do we hear of the ones who are the cause of the situation.
Maybe it's because it's unprofessional to call people out or people think it's damaging to one's self esteem, but we rarely hear about it. The rare exception was Pittsburgh Steelers Safety Anthony Smith who decided smack talking about the Patriots was the smartest thing he could do. He got burned and everybody knew it, but only after the media put the issue on a pedestal.
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So here's what I'm going to do. Every week, starting this week, I'm going to write an article the worst player(s) of the week. And this week, my main targets are Brett Favre and Kellen Winslow.
Brett Favre gathered national media this past offseason when he decided he wanted to come back to the league. Everyone knows this fiasco led to him playing and starting for the New York Jets. After a weak week eight performance though, NFL fans have been wondering about Brett Favre.
And they have good reasons for doing so. If he's going to bring so much attention to himself and the issue that was at hand this past offseason, you better either be winning an award for Most Valuable Player, Superbowl Most Valuable Player, or Super Bowl Champions. Pro Bowl doesn't suffice here big guy. It's all or nothing big guy, and you're blowing it this week.
And Kellen, you're a great receiving tight end. And you're a hell of a guy. You took the time to talk to one of my friends at a Chipotle when in all honesty, he was probably being a typical, starstruck, fan. You certainly showed up Brady Quinn who was a jerk to my friend and talked nonchalantly to my friend.
But you know what? Don't look for that new contract coming along anytime soon. The Browns have been doing pretty well without their Pro Bowl Tight End. Now, this could easily be because the teams weren't gameplanning for Heiden, Dinkins, and Rucker. But it could also be because the Browns have Tight Ends who are . . . well . . .better.
Heiden will play the run game and passing game, as I'm sure Dinkins and Rucker will too. And boy would they love to earn the salary of a starting tight end. And if Cleveland can get a more versatile player at Tight End and pay him less, you better believe it. And what's best for you and Cleveland is that you pretend to play nice for the rest of the year.
That way they can get something for you, and you get a better contract when they finally trade you. And believe me, they are going to trade you.
Well, that's it for this week's edition for the Weak of Week Eight. Check back next week for the weak of week nine.
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2 months ago
I totally agree with your take on Winslow but disagree with the one on Favre. Come on, Brett, don't you think Favre has earned the right to go when, and how, he wants? Sure, he may tarnish a career a little, but who doesn't have the right to tarnish their own career? As a fan, I think that he should have hung up the Green Bay uniform and slipped into the Hall of Fame with dignity. As a person, I feel he's played hard enough, long enough and well enough to deserve this self-indulgence.
from 2 months ago
Favre has earned everything and more in the league. But committing football suicide by coming back into the league as a Jet is a little out there. As a fan, he should have stopped in Green Bay and stayed that way. And as a person, he torments me with the NFL giving him the storyline. He is barely a quarterback now, just a puppet of the NFL to give a storyline to a few of the games he plays. The first game he played as a Jet, the second game he played as a Jet, facing the Raiders for the first time since that Monday Night game. In my opinion, he has let his "self-indulgence" of coming back to play kill the perception of him and he's allowed himself to become the subject of some of the cruelest media and fans in the States.
I don't think it's asking too much of him to take the Jets to the playoffs or him being an MVP. The insane amount of media attention he gets now and since his "self-indulgence" that everyone had to put up with has to be justified with him having a great season.
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