bartshan-83

It looks like you are talking about something very different from the content of my post. I don't feel sorry for professional athletes either, but I don't pretend that they live in this fantasy, lottery winner world that many make it out to be. The point of my post was that I will never fault a player for doing whatever is in his power to get the most payout during his career. I will never fault a player for being "disloyal" or being a "mercenary." But to address your post, I agree with some of it. Many NFL players make more money in less than 5 years than the average person will see in a lifetime. I disagree with your thought (unless I am misinterpreting) that they were somehow "given" this cushy job that pays them millions. You think NFL players are simply a group of guys lucky enough to be born with certain athletic abilities? That's ridiculous. You think doctors are just a bunch of people who were "given the gift of being mentally able" to practice medicine? These guys aren't playing football like we do with our friends. They aren't working out like you do with your Gold's membership. It is serious, taxing work that 99.9% of human beings probably aren't capable of doing day-in and day-out for several years. The salaries they make are not of their creation. They are the result of people like you and me caring enough about a "game" to the point that it's "players" can be paid like rockstars. If people stopped tuning in each week to watch these games take place, you'd hear about the average NFL player complaining that some teacher makes twice his salary and only works 3/4 of the year. And your point about a college education is a little off I think. There are thousands of college graduates who every year struggle to get entry level jobs in their fields. There are millions more who get laid off somewhere down the line and can't find work. I struggle to see this world you paint where a football player can play a "game" for 4-5 years and then automatically have a job waiting for him in the area of his college major. What if you quit your job today to open your own business. You think you could just slide back into your field easily a few years later if your venture didn't work out? I mean, I don't think anyone feels sorry for professional athletes that make millions of dollars. My only point was that it is ridiculous to expect them to do silly things like give a "hometeam discount" or begrudge them when they want to bolt from your team to make a few more million elsewhere.

Good sht! I loved this one: Where Will Reggie Play? "The Texans will select USC running back Reggie Bush with the No. 1 pick in this April's NFL draft, team and league sources told Chris Mortensen," ESPN.com declared in January 2006. The next day, Mortensen added that "no matter what anyone says," Houston was "certain" to draft Bush.... On Friday night before the noon Saturday start of the draft, the Texans used their first choice on Mario Williams. At 10 a.m. Saturday as ESPN draft coverage began, host Suzy Kolber asked an ESPN panel who was surprised by the Texans taking Williams instead of Bush. All the panelists said they were surprised -- except for Mortensen, who declared that he had never expected Bush to be chosen first. Kolber asked about the reports Bush would go first, and Mortensen answered with a sneer, "Those projections were made by the media." Mort -- you are the media! Mortensen declared he had known since Thursday that the Texans were choosing Williams. Oh, so you knew all along: you just forgot to say so! CLASSIC!

Yeah in theory, but if he we make him the highest paid CB and he underachieves, why is someone else going to want him?

I agree with your social commentary, but I will say that I'd rather read that someone is excited (and therefore potentially interested) at the prospect of being a father regardless of his relationship with the mother. I'd obviously take any publicist's comments with a grain of salt, but hearing that he is excited about the pregnancy leads me to believe that he is interested in having a relationship with the kid that goes beyond a monthly check. But who knows?

Fair enough...my memory is what it is. I remember Nate sucking at various times throughout the past 3-4 years (though not so much this year). I'm not going change my mind on that because you are watching some game film. But I definitely buy the argument that Nate's struggles could have been attributed (at least in part) to a bad defensive scheme. I love Nate and I think he is a top 5 corner when he is playing well. Who knows if he will continue his 2006 form and be a shut-down corner after he cashes an $18 million bonus check? I'd be happy if we re-signed him, but I won't be too bummed if it's not us that makes him the highest paid CB in the league.

I'm with you as I don't have the time (or desire) to watch film. I have never understood a scheme that puts the corners 8+ yards off of the LOS. I just remember Nate taking a lot of bad angles on tackles and generally not being near the WR when he would catch a pass. Maybe it was the scheme that was putting him a spot that prevented him from using his gifts (size, aggressiveness) and forcing him to play a way that highlighted his weaknesses. When I think of Nate in that scheme I think of Andre Johnson burning him brutally for a long TD a few years or so back.

You've been reviewing game tapes of 2004 and watching Nate Clements?

That's my only complaint with Nate...consistency. I'm sure daquixers will tell me that I need to go to the games and watch or buy the old tapes and re-watch them, but I know what I saw the last few years. When he is playing well, there isn't anyone out there not named "Champ" who I would rather have on this team. But his career here is marked with inconsistency. Most recently, he was playing GREAT football. But I don't know if that was a result of wanting the new contract. Maybe his bad play a year or so back was the result of a bad Jerry Gray scheme. I don't know why he looks absolutely dominant at times and rather pedestrian at others. But I do know that if he gets a contract on par with Bailey, he better keep up his recent play if he plans on justifying the payout. I don't know if I trust him to do that.

Besides posting the same drivel ad nauseum on a message board, what is it exactly that you are doing that constitutes having "balz" and "not settling for this mediocre crap?" You keep referring to "us" (the ignorant masses who somehow see Marv Levy as something more than the geriatric trainwreck you make him out to be) and complaining that "we" aren't doing anything about it. What are you doing? And please don't count gracing us with your presence and posting your opinions at Two Bills Drive as anything constructive.

This is why I will never fault a player for trying to get as much cash as he can from whatever team wants to pay him. There is no loyalty to players...hell we turn against half the players who still play for our favorite team. Football players have short, dangerous careers that often have longterm effects on their lives. Nothing is guaranteed but that signing bonus, and a career ending injury is always one hit away. People get all bent out of shape when a "feed my family" comment comes out every so often. And those comments are ridiculous because of the level of hyperbole. But the essence of what they represent is not ridiculous. Professional football is a business and these men have careers. Just because it is a game and a form of entertainment to the fans, it is an entirely different animal to the people involved. No one begrudges an accountant when he asks his boss for a raise. No one whines about "loyalty" when a doctor leaves a hospital to take a higher paying job. You take care of yourself and what's important to you.

Great points! There is a prevalent (and incorrect) line of thinking that says 1. Money is the only factor involved in a player's decision and 2. Every team's money is viewed the same way. I used to ask the ND football players that I knew where they would want to play in the NFL. They all said things like "Atlanta, Dallas, Miami." When I would tell them that I was a Bills fan, they almost unanimously told me that Buffalo was the last place in the league they would want to go. Now 90% of these dudes never even got drafted, but the sentiment is unchanged. Location IS a factor. Reputation IS a factor. Popular players (Vick) ARE factors. And obviously, success is a factor. Right now $1 to play for the Buffalo Bills is worth less than $1 to play for most other teams. Now there is nothing we can do about the weather or the stigma of having a boring city, but there are factors within our control. You did a very good job of outlining that. Posts that make sense never get the attention they deserve.

Ain't nothing wrong with #1. Plus she was charged with "exposure of sexual organs." Girl was trying to give the people what they want.

I think that deal favors Denver. If they think Cutler is for real, then they are basically making a great move to provide him with a workhorse back who has Probowl potential for years to come. And what are they giving up? A backup QB A system RB. No brainer for the Broncos IMO...

I like Adalius Thomas.

Spiders. I hate spiders. Especially the big ones that look as if you hit them with a newspaper that they would grab it out of your hands and whip your @ss with it.

Joe speaks the truth. Is fcking Nate to squeeze out one year of disgruntled play or a draft pick worth all the negative press and word-of-mouth trash talking the Bills organization will get in return? Forget the NFL, if you were a potential employee and you heard this is what a certain company did to one of their best employees, would you show them the slightest bit of interest? I think the whole situation sucks, but there is nothing the Bills can do to correct it now. Marv made his bed. They have to play it out now.

While I agree with your outcome, you also need an exchange of consideration. Nate would most likely have to prove that the Bills received something of value in exchange for agreeing not to tag him. He could argue that this avoided a hold-out, increased team cohesion, etc. Either that or he could argue that he detrimentally relied on the promise (didn't pursue other offers, etc.) But I wouldn't say it's a slam dunk. As for the thread topic, I'll echo several other sentiments. You don't publicly go back on a deal with a player. Buffalo is already unattractive enough to potential FAs...why throw managerial deceit into the mix of our other selling points?

He just likes to fck with Deluca every now and then.

How about this Ohio Girl? Not the prettiest girl in the world, but she gets the job done ...NSFW

I think that's pretty awesome, and I have no reason to dislike Mickelson. However, GQ did a piece on the 10 most disliked athletes in sports as told by their peers and Lefty came in at 8. Could be jealousy, could be bllshit. I have always thought he seemed a little phony, but likable nonetheless. Anyway, don't mean to ruin a great thing he did, I just always thought this was interesting: 8. Phil Mickelson Last August at the PGA Championship at Baltusrol, in New Jersey, a reporter turned to a golfer on the tour and said of Phil Mickelson, “Man, the fans here love Phil.” The golfer replied, “They don’t know him the way we do.” It blew our minds a little when we heard this, since Mickelson ranks among the most admired golfers in America. But today the same reporter makes his case bluntly: “Phil Mickelson literally has no friends out there. He annoys everybody.” Mickelson has earned many nicknames on the Tour, but our favorite is FIGJAM (F*ck, I’m good—just ask me). “There are a bunch of pros who think he and his whole smiley, happy face are a fraud,” another reporter says. “They think he’s preening and insincere.” Mickelson has aggressively pursued a family-man image that is crucial to his success as an endorser. In 1999, when he nearly won the U.S. Open, Mickelson wore a beeper onto the fairway to alert him when his wife went into labor. If the beeper went off during the final round, he announced, he would simply walk off the course. Some of Mickelson’s peers, smelling a PR stunt, badly wanted to call his bluff. “Everybody’s saying, ‘Oh God, I want that beeper to go off,’ ” recalls one writer. (It didn’t.) In 2003, Mickelson violated multiple taboos when he told a reporter that Tiger Woods was playing with “inferior equipment” and that he envied Mickelson’s longer drives from the tee. Woods was infuriated. “You just don’t say sh*t like that in golf,” says a reporter. (To be fair, another reporter says, “Phil was right.”) Shortly before the 2004 Ryder Cup, though, Mickelson abruptly switched from Titleist to Callaway equipment. He left himself little time to get used to the new balls and clubs. “It wasn’t in the best interest of the team,” says a reporter. “The only thing that it was in the best interest of was his financial gain.” The contract paid a reported $7 million to $10 million annually. “What it did was set up a bull’s-eye on him if he played poorly,” says a different reporter. “Which he did.” Most recently, Mickelson blew off the 2005 Tour Championship, though the PGA was in the midst of negotiating its new TV contract. One reporter says, “The Tour was trying to come up with a plan that would make the networks happy, so it wouldn’t have to give back a lot of money, and here’s the number three player in the world skipping the premier season-ending event. Other players said, ‘How about helping the rest of us who aren’t as rich?’ ” Adds another reporter: “It’s like not showing up for somebody’s wedding.” FYI, the top 10 was: 10. Lleyton Hewitt 9. A. J. Pierzynski 8. Phil Mickelson 7. Bonzi Wells 6. Michael Iaconelli 5. Kobe Bryant 4. Curt Schilling 3. Kurt Busch 2. Barry Bonds 1. Terrell Owens Note: From the article, this was mentioned about Pierzynski: "Pierzynski, crouched behind the plate, took a pitch to the groin. Rushing to his aid, trainer Stan Conte asked him how he felt. "Like this!" Pierzynski grunted, then savagely kneed Conte in the balls."

Nice try. Mine was a typo, yours wasn't.

Let's see so it sounds like you are whining that certain opinions are ignored and unaccepted and then you say this: Such tolerance. Can't imagine why people don't take you seriously.

After seeing a picture of that hybrid "car" in the article, I think blind people are actually the only ones who won't suffer.