The huddled masses

Too many times in sports, the viewing public is enamored by the violence of the game. Whether it's a segment on 'Jacked Up', countless replays of a knockout in MMA or a shoulder lowering hit in the boards, we sit awestruck by the sheer aggression displayed. The harder the hit, the louder we cheer. Unless, of course, the player doesn't get up or the fighter lays on the mat not moving. Then, it's not so funny anymore.

An article was recently released by the New York Times, and subsequently re-posted and rehashed by all the different news outlets regarding the idea that Lou Gehrig may not have died of the disease nicknamed after him, ALS, but rather a form of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). Further reading shows there is a strong likelihood there is a distinct link between concussive syndromes like CTE (currently being studied in the NFL and other hard hitting sports), and ALS.

CTE in the barest of terms is brain damage caused by multiple concussions. Repeated brain injuries cause a protein to become defective and accumulate, replacing healthy brain tissue with tissue that instead shows up like black spongy dots on scans. It manifests itself by leaving a person with memory loss, aggression, confusion and depression, some of which happens almost immediately after the trauma, or may not appear until years later. A person with CTE will likely deal with thoughts of suicide, as well as alcohol or drug abuse. CTE has also been linked to PTSD in soldiers after IED attacks.

For those unfamiliar, ALS is a wicked and nasty disease. It attacks the central nervous system in a way that causes muscle function to decrease in stages until it become non-existent. A person with the disease will eventually lose the ability to move in any way, including the ability to breathe, while remaining mentally cognizant. People have compared it to being buried alive. (The most famous living person with ALS is Professor Stephen Hawking.) ALS starts off insipidly, leaving a person weaker, with some minor twitching and cramping of the muscles as well as general stiffness. In most cases, they have difficulty speaking, and eventually lose the ability completely as their airway and tongue become atrophied. ALS is 100% fatal, with half of it's sufferers dying in the first 3 years after diagnosis, and over 90% within 6 years. In very rare cases, people with the disease live longer than that, locked inside their body unable to function as they used to.

Scary thought, isn't it? Well it's rare, right? Most of us will never come in contact with someone with ALS, and most people are even unaware of what the disease is. The recent studies of traumatic head injuries in sports is bringing this disease into the spotlight though and making it hit home a little harder than it had in the past. We've been hearing about recent deaths in the sporting world being attributed to brain damage caused by playing football, hockey and even wrestling. Chris Henry was found to be suffering from CTE at the time of his death. Reggie Fleming who played in the NHL had it. Chris Benoit of WWE fame was found to be suffering from CTE, after he murdered his wife and son, and committed suicide. So we're finding out about all these brain injuries now after decades of players throwing their bodies out there for the fun of the game. For the sport. . . Did these players ever think they'd be laying down their lives? Maybe. Some of the older players did play for their paychecks, some of which were less than what you and I make. There were no multi-million dollar contracts with shoe deals. The NFL still pays the legends who built the league from the ground up pensions in triple digits. You read that right. Not thousands, not hundreds of thousands, but hundreds. Some old timers are on welfare, their broken bodies unable to support them. Some are unable to remember the glory days of playing football, or baseball, or hockey because their brains are literally mush.

So what's my point? How many people put their children into Little League programs in this country without a second thought? How many high school programs are running two-a-days in full pads right now? How many kids go home after practice with a headache? I have no doubt programs of all sorts all across the country are becoming more vigilant in asking the questions of their players as to how they're feeling and monitoring player health more closely. But is that enough? How many inner-city programs are playing with second and third hand equipment, which wouldn't get past the city line into the suburbs? And how many of those kids would play through anything to get their shot at getting a college scholarship, because it's their way out? This isn't just a major league issue. This isn't just a professional sports problem. It's not even just something that needs to be addressed starting at the college or high school levels. Kids are bigger, faster and stronger now than they ever were. I am in NO way advocating we shouldn't have Little League programs. I am in NO way saying kids should be pulled out of playing sports because we are concerned with something that COULD happen. What I am saying is there needs to be a greater vigilance to be aware of the symptoms of concussive syndromes IN ALL LEVELS OF ALL SPORTS. I know Little League coaches are normally unpaid volunteers, but unpaid does not have to equate to ignorance. I know some cities live and breathe their high school sports, but it shouldn't be at the expense of the children playing them and their futures. Education for this type of injury shouldn't just be something you hear about on the news when another childhood hero dies as a result of playing the game he or she loved.

Maybe what I'm saying isn't getting through. Chris Henry was 26 years old when he died. That's almost 6 years younger than I am. He wasn't known as a big hitter, and he wasn't known to suffer from concussions. He was young and in the prime of his life and living his dream, and was found to have this after he passed away. This isn't something they can diagnose conclusively until AFTER DEATH. Maybe having CTE caused some of his behavioral issues. Maybe it didn't. But how many athletes are suffering from this right now, without knowing, because there was no education on proper ways to deal with concussions? How many people don't have any idea what a concussion even is or what it might feel like? How many times have we heard someone say they got their 'bell rung' and not thought anything of it? Do we wait until someone big is diagnosed with ALS caused by CTE before we have these discussions? I know I sound alarmist. I don't mean to. I've only had a concussion once in my life, from fall while skiing. Truth be told, I never want to get one again. I wasn't wearing a helmet and my face bounced off the snow and ice pack twice. I can't imagine that happening even with a helmet on and it NOT hurting. And I'd be willing to bet that's exactly what a 'Jacked Up' style hit in football, or a punch to the face in MMA or boxing, or a baseball to the batting helmet feels like. I've gone to Little League games where kids are applauded for making a big hit and a great tackle. I've watched high school and college sports where players get a slap on the ass for a good job after they popped up from a bone crushing hit. And I wonder how many of them go home with a headache. And how many times that's happened. And I watch the headlines for the next big name we'll read. And we will. This problem is going to get worse before it gets better.

Well. . . it's just the preseason right?

It's taken me two days to sit back and objectively look at Friday night's Bills preseason debut. If I had written this Friday night after the game, or even yesterday, my expletive filled tirade may have scared off anyone actually reading this.

So I'm going to start off with the good things that happened Friday night. Stick with me, because I'm sure the bad will far outweigh the good, and you might get some of those expletives anyway.

Steve Tasker was in mid-season form already. While Tasker doesn't have the flash some of the other color guys do, he makes up for it with concise descriptions of what's going on in the game. (For those who watched the Redskins broadcast on NFL Network and didn't see him, you really missed a great analytical and fair representation of what happened.) Tasker didn't pull any punches when it came to what the Bills did wrong, despite being an ex-Bill. Too many times, ex-players exhort the virtues of their team as they're commentating, and instead of being unbiased.

Brian Moorman. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. He's the best player on the Bills. It's a shame more people don't place a value on special teams. Moorman consistently punts well under pressure. He averaged 52.4 yard per kick Friday night, with a long of 64, and 3 inside the 20. The man is a machine.

Chad Simpson and Joique Bell looked good. Of course, that's with Marshawn out with an ankle injury, Freddie out with a hand injury, and CJ barely playing, as well as being against 2nd and 3rd string players. 7 rushes, 67 yards for Simpson and 5 for 52 for Bell isn't bad. I'd like to see them tag team in the same way they use Freddie and Marshawn to see if they're the real deal, or just lucky against the scrubs.

Ok, I will do my best not to be too vulgar. No guarantees.

Trent Edwards needs to stop looking like Justin Beiber and learn to play football. Is all the hair in that helmet causing him to make the same stupid errors he did last season? This is our number one guy, and he's throwing 50% with nothing down field? Plus that horrific pick. . . really he's lucky that didn't go for 6. This is supposed to be a new system but honestly, if it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and keeps throwing ducks, pull him. I'd rather have Brohm in there.

3/5 of the starting offensive line was out Friday night. You could blame that on Trent playing like. . . well Trent, but honestly none of the QB's got sacked or even really pressured ALL that much. I understand the need to keep the injured players out until you're sure they are capable of handling the rigors of game play, but I still believe they should have played at least a series.

Receivers. Why are veteran guys dropping the ball? WHY?! WHY?! Ugh.

QB's as a whole. NOT ONE PASS OVER 15 YARDS. Two QB's with ratings UNDER 30. (Trent - 29.2, Levi - 14.9. Fitzpatrick had a 97.6 against second teamers.) Two QB's 50% or less completion percentage. If that happens on Thursday, I swear to you, what I was screaming at the TV on Friday will look like a sermon.

I hold a special place in my heart for the Special Teams. I proudly wear the punter's jersey and a special teams hat to the games, and Tasker was my favorite player as a kid. That being said, what the hell was that MESS on Friday night? Run north and south, stop dancing. BLOCK, please. If I have to beg I will. There was only one great special teams punt return by hometown boy Naiman Roosevelt on Friday night with a couple of great blocks. Kick team coverage was better, but nothing like some of the breakouts last year.

Defense, you looked great in the first series. And then it looked like you forgot to go after the guy with the ball. Maybin looked like he was getting into a groove towards the later part of the game, and McCargo surprised me with how quick he was. But there was little help in the secondary, and no pressure on any of the receivers who were running all over the field. Still need to get gelled there, I think.


I tried to think positively about this yesterday. First preseason game, so there is going to be rust. There are going to be mistakes made. There are even going to be people who just aren't going to perform in a real game the way they played on the practice field. The husband mentioned he wondered if Chan was pulling a Jimmy Johnson and intentionally tanking the season to pick up Jake Locker. While the thought of having Locker on the team gives me a little gleam in my eye, it'll make for one hell of a long season out there at the Ralph. I can't see that happening. I don't want to believe that's what Chan's doing. I honestly believe it's just knocking out the cobwebs from the old regime. I hope that's all it is. Guess we'll see on Thursday.

So much to say. . . so little time!

Sorry it's been a couple days since my last post. . . you could say life got in the way a bit! I've got so many different opinions on some things which have been going on recently, but wanted to touch on something my faithful reader Brian brought up to me. The gist of Brian's diatribe by private message, is basically the double standard he sees being set by our utter disdain for what Lebron James did. Brian stated in his first couple paragraphs how we all love Shaq, despite him flitting around to 6 different teams, but how we hate Lebron for leaving Cleveland.

Brian's last paragraph is the real heart of the issue:
I guess my main question here is this: are we upset with Lebron because he left the team that drafted him out of high school to go win a championship elsewhere with other stars, or are we mad at Lebron for leaving Cleveland??? Think about it: would we be up-in-arms if Lebron went to Miami after leaving Golden State?!?!?! Vancouver/Memphis?!?!?! Seattle/Oklahoma City?!?!?! I think we've all kinda hoped that Lebron could bring a championship to the city that can't win a championship (or one of the cities anyway...*sigh*) and we just pile on his signing with Miami as another black eye for Cleveland...thus making him the universal enemy of everyone who has somewhat of an interest in the NBA.

To answer the question in a nutshell, and obviously keeping in mind this is my own (and perhaps, uneducated) opinion; we are mad at Lebron for the way he handled the situation. He could have just opted out, and found another team quietly, but instead made it a spectacle. He didn't have to make the DECISION on ESPN, in front of little children, under the guise of donating the money he was making to them. He could have just donated money. To that end, he was the hometown boy, literally the FACE of the franchise in every way. Cleveland's entire marketing plan focused on Lebron. Most of their season ticket base can be attributed to having him on the court. He signed a second contract with Cleveland after his rookie contract was done with, and appeared to be in it with Cleveland for the long haul. BUT, like most athletes lately, the almighty dollar and the desire to be part of something greater than where he was, called him away. My biggest problem with that is he could have easily done it at some point in the future. He's young. He could have played another couple of years with Cleveland, and made more of an effort in the playoffs instead of laughing it up like this year. Instead, he went for the money grab and down in infamy like Benedict Arnold.

Shaq, on the other hand, wasn't from Orlando. He was drafted out of LSU, and while being a major player on the Magic and each subsequent team he was on, was never the only draw for the teams he played on. (*Magic had Penny Hardaway starting his second season, and Shaq was only in Orlando for 4 years) He was never the hometown guy. Not only that, but while in it for himself, he was also known to pick out young talent and form partnerships which brought wins to the teams he played on. Shaq always seemed to be a part of a tandem; Shaq and Kobe, Shaq and D Wade, Shaq and Lebron even. He even went to Cleveland to "Win a Ring for the King" referring to Lebron. He was a presence on the court, and people love him. Lebron doesn't have Shaq's ease around people, that sparkle that sets him apart from other players.

So Brian, the answer to your question isn't as easy as hating Lebron because he left Cleveland or hating him because he left the team that drafted him out of high school. The answer is yes to both. This wasn't LA. This wasn't Chicago. This was blue collar Cleveland, a city who backed a hometown boy not just because they believed in him, but because he was one of their own. Someone who knew their struggle for identity in a league filled with teams and cities bigger than life. Lebron took their love and made them a laughing stock on a national level. He knew he wasn't coming back to Cleveland well before the DECISION. He disrespected the team who drafted him, absolutely. And he disrespected Cleveland, absolutely. He might win a title in Miami, but it won't be their first and it won't have quite the meaning it would have if he had won it in Cleveland. Not to sound trite, but Lebron gave up a shot at immortality when he left.

But, in the grand scheme of things, does he care? Probably not. If he left for the money and the chance to win now, he doesn't care what he left behind him. And that's what people REALLY hate him for.

2010's show of morality or is that mortality?

Previous to Thanksgiving weekend 2009, Tiger Woods was an icon. A family man with a beautiful wife, and two adorable children. A consummate professional who showed his joy on the course when he played well. A smart businessman, who turned a talent at golf into a multi-billion dollar marketing empire. We all know how the house of cards came tumbling down that night. After that weekend, the carefully composed Tiger was shown to be fallible. The mistresses came out of the woodwork. One by one, the sponsors backed out, leaving only a few to stand with him as he weathered the hurricane his life became. He took a break from golf, purportedly to get his life back together. But then he came back after a relatively short respite from the game. He tied for 4th at his return to the Masters, and didn't get higher than that all season. In fact, he missed the cut in his second tourney back and posted double digit finishes in each of the rest of the outings this season.

This weekend, Tiger posted his worst professional showing ever. Actually, it was like watching an amateur. The talk has gotten progressively louder about whether or not Tiger's lost it. If the worries of the past 9 months or so has finally distracted him to the point of being unable to play golf the way he used to. Media outlets have made millions of dollars dissecting the odds of Tiger remaining married, or how much he'll lose to Elin in the divorce, where Elin is going to live, and whether or not Tiger will share custody. Is it any wonder why he can't golf? Previous to all of this mess, Tiger had some missteps in his career, like changing his swing coach, switching out various clubs/balls and the occasional vulgarity during tournaments. Nothing like this, of course. So, why didn't he just take the year off? Get the tattered remnants of his life together, maybe play golf for the joy of playing, instead of for the ego boost and the money. I guess the reason he didn't take the year off, is the reason he cheated on his wife. Because he could. Tiger is a control freak. Every single thing that happened as a result of his actions, took the control he held in his iron fist, and wrenched it away from him. Playing golf was the only thing he could still control. . . and it appears he's losing that too.

Tiger was asked about playing on the Ryder cup this year, and said he wouldn't play if he weren't sure he wouldn't hurt the team by doing so. I guess that's the first unselfish thing he's done in the past several months. That being said, Tiger needs to stop and reevaluate his life, his career and his future. I'm not saying he should stop playing golf. But he should stop playing this year. His legacy of being the family man and all around good guy is already ruined. If he takes the rest of the year off of golf, perhaps he can salvage what's left of his legacy of being one of the greatest golfers that ever lived. People will forgive, and may even forget he wasn't a saint off the course. By remaining in the public eye and playing poorly, the public is just feasting off of the carrion that remains of his life. People love to watch a hero become mortal. And they love seeing someone who lost it all, come back in a blaze of glory. Tiger needs to fade away, so he can be reborn like the phoenix.

Not gonna do it!

I am not writing about Brett until he makes up his mind!

That being said, I read an amazing article today on Yahoo News. Granted, it was about a BoSox fan, but I can go ahead and forgive that because of what the guy was doing. The article was titled "Little Fenway a big hit for players and charity." Pat O'Connor in Essex, Vermont wanted to have his own Fenway. The guy could have just made his own Field of Dreams. (Which of course is his favorite movie) But he made his Fenway as close to the real one as possible, and then decided to host a charity wiffle ball tourney after the September 11th attacks. What started as a couple teams coming to play and raise some money while they were doing it, turned into a 3 day charity extravaganza which now raises money for Travis Roy's foundation. (For those unfamiliar, Travis Roy broke his neck in his first college hockey game. Buffalo Sabres fans know the story because Chris Drury was a teammate of his at Boston University, and brought the Stanley Cup to him when he won it with Colorado. The NY Times did a profile about Drury during the 2006 Playoffs detailing the friendship. O'Connor decided to use the tournament to raise funds for his foundation after reading his book "Eleven Seconds.") When the single field wasn't enough, he built a second, modeled after Wrigley Field in order to accommodate all the teams wanting to play in the annual tournament.

So let me just recap this. A random guy builds a baseball field in his backyard. He then hosts a charity tournament on a whim to raise money for the NY disaster relief. And if that wasn't enough, he decided to use the wiffle ball tournament to raise funds for a charity for someone he never met. And when there was a waiting list for the tournament, he built a second field. There's still a waiting list too. Over $715,000 has been raised for Travis Roy's charity to date.

Over the last couple days, I've blogged about a 19 year old who went to arbitration because his $880,000 contract wasn't enough for him. I've blogged about a 40 year old QB who is damn near getting a blank check from Zygi Wilf in order to come back and be the "savior" for a team left with little other option to lead them. I've blogged about a draft pick of the Bills who is one of only two in league left to sign, likely due to some minutia in the contract language not giving him this or that. But Pat O'Connor used his own money to make a ball field. And once he built it, the players came, just like in his favorite movie. But more than that, they came and played, not for the money, but to have fun. In their quest to have fun, they raise a whole boatload of money for a great charity. Really puts things into perspective, doesn't it? And gave me a welcome respite from the greed and insanity of the sports world, even for just a moment.

Thanks Pat, for giving me hope that sports isn't just about the all-mighty dollar.

Well hell, Brett. . . .

As referenced earlier in this blog, big Brett Favre fan here. I got 4 phone calls, 7 tweets, half a dozen text messages, and 3 or 4 emails at last count, asking how I was doing today after hearing the news that Brett was retiring. Again. For the third time. *Sigh* First time I heard this two years ago, I was devastated. Last year, I was a little more reluctant to get upset about the retirement, which was, of course, warranted because he came back with the Vikes. This year, I admit to being slightly annoyed. And by slightly annoyed, I mean enough already! I understand the difficulty in deciding what you want to do with the rest of your life. Trust me, I've been there, done that, albeit it not to the extent Brett is. But in his case, his decision doesn't just affect his wife and his family, the way my decision affects my family. His decision affects his team. It affects the players, the coaches, the front office, and it affects his fans. It affects TV scheduling, it affects marketing plans. I am not saying that this decision is earth shattering by any stretch. I also don't mean to insinuate this decision is one that we can't go on without knowing. I guess what I am saying is I'm sick of Brett being selfish. If you can't make the decision, then a decision, has in essence been made. The NFL is on a very strict schedule. Draft, OTAs, training camp, pre-season, regular season, and post season. It's the same thing every year. Brett's had how many months to decide, and honestly, I'm a little tired of the uncertainty. A 40 year old quarterback who plays the way Brett is literally an accident waiting to happen. Last year it was the ankle, the year before the shoulder. What will it be this year? Is it worth it to put the legacy on the line for another year?

I just don't know what to say anymore. I'm still a fan. I'm still going to watch him if he plays. And I still will have my autographed helmet and football displayed proudly in my game room. But I'm really just so tired of the drama at this point.

One quick football note. . .

Hey Buffalo, can we please sign CJ Spiller? Everyone has been slotted before and after him. . . I know you say you're trying, but honestly, getting slightly tired of reading all the posts on twitter** touting our inability to get the deal done. And oddly, CJ has been quiet on twitter lately too. New regime, new way of practicing in camp, how about we have a new way of dealing with out players and that's getting the contract DONE!

**I only have a twitter for sports stuff. It's like reading ESPN without ALL the annoying advertising!

You can't always get what you want. Or can you?

I was going to voice my considerable opinion about Rick Pitino and the mess made of his life, and then the Sabres released Tim Kennedy. Since that's a little more home town, I thought I'd offer my two cents on that. Which of course, is considerably less than he wanted in arbitration.

For those unfamiliar, let me fill you in. Tim Kennedy (South Buffalo's own. . . blah blah blah) requested arbitration for his salary in the upcoming year. (He made $880K last year. NOT CHUMP CHANGE IN BUFFALO.) He was awarded $1 million. The Sabres weren't able to release him prior to this, because he didn't make the minimum contract amount needed for there to be no arbitration. (confused yet? There is a rule that you have to hit a salary minimum of $1.6 million in order to release a player with no arbitration ruling if he's restricted.) So they go to arbitration, he gets his cool million, and they decide to release him today. No one has really said why, but there are any number of reasons why it could be. The kid is 19 years old. He's 5'10" and maybe 160lbs soaking wet. (I'm 5'6", and in 3 inch heels, he was just a shade taller than I was, if you don't count the curls on his head.) Scored 10 goals last year. And was making $880,000 in the blue collar town he grew up in. He didn't play enough to deserve arbitration, and I'd be surprised if going to arbitration at this point in his career endeared him to some of his more veteran colleagues. (which is just about everyone on the team.) He wound up getting $120K more than if he had played out his contract, which means by the time his agent took his cut, and the IRS took theirs, he'd see about 60 grand. Was it worth it? Probably not, unless it was his intention to piss off the Sabres so they would release him. EXCEPT, this really doesn't do well for his image with the rest of the league if he were to care about that sort of thing. It's one thing to be Sidney Crosby and go to arbitration if the Pens weren't paying you your due. But Tim Kennedy is literally a no name in the grand scheme of the NHL, who got a mite big for his britches in my mind. Again, my opinion literally means nothing, and Tim Kennedy just got paid out a third of his contract for doing nothing, so he definitely comes out ahead in this deal. And for all we know, he could clear waivers and be sitting there without a team. $880,000 looks mighty good when you don't have a team to play on, doesn't it? Guess we'll see how this one plays out in the days to come.

*See, it's not all football!