As much as we hate to admit it, the offseason is upon us at last. The good news, though, is that there’s still plenty of NFL-related news and controversy to report. After all, even if the players aren’t performing on the field, they’re still likely to make some noise off of it, right? Anyway, without further ado, let’s look at the first week’s worth of offseason happenings!
Draft Drama
- (Photo from Sports Illustrated)
Johnny Manziel just keeps finding ways to get himself in the news. He stated that he wouldn’t be participating in the Scouting Combine’s throwing drills, his film apparently shows significant flaws in his game (NO KIDDING), and he practically dared the Texans to not pick him first overall. Basically? He’s acting like one of the most entitled, self-righteous, and obnoxious college quarterback this side of Ryan Leaf. (And I don’t think I need to tell you how he turned out.) It’s no secret that I don’t like Manziel; he tucks and runs even when he has receivers wide open, and even when he does throw his decision-making is occasionally suspect. He’s one of the most electrifying players in the game, no doubt about that. But he lacks something that is important–dare I say essential–for any NFL-worthy QB worth his salt: consistency.
The fact is, even if he can run quickly, you have to be able to throw first and foremost. After all, that’s the quarterback’s job. Granted, there are a lot of mobile quarterbacks in the league now who can run if and when necessary. But they are able to do that because they know how to throw the ball and don’t rely solely on their legs to get the yards they need. I hesitate to make this comparison, but Manziel reminds me a lot of another former college quarterback who focused almost solely on running the football, scuttling his NFL career in the process: Tim Tebow. (Yeah, I went there.) I honestly don’t see Manziel doing well in the NFL, unless a miracle occurs and he does a LOT of growing up in the coming weeks before the draft. Even then, he shouldn’t be picked before the third round in my opinion.
Fin-vestigation Continues
- (Photo from Denver Post)
The ongoing saga of Jonathan Martin’s harrassment charges against the Miami Dolphins took a decisive turn yesterday with the results of Ted Wells’ report becoming known to the public. Wells, an independent researcher for the NFL in the matter, found that there were multiple accounts of harassment by linemen Richie Incognito, John Jerry, and Mike Pouncey. This harassment extended to Martin, another unnamed lineman referred to only as “Player A” (who was this morning revealed to be former Dolphin Andrew McDonald, now of the Carolina Panthers), and the team’s assistant trainer, perhaps among others.
It’s something that provokes a lot of thought. You expect NFL players to be these role models, trustworthy figures that you can look up to and expect to conduct themselves in a professional manner. But then the reality just kind of hits you out of nowhere. The fact is that there’s no such thing as a perfect player, and I understand that. But these guys took things way too far, and if there isn’t some sort of disciplinary action taken I’ll be shocked and appalled. There are some things that just shouldn’t be done, and what these guys did is one of them.
Michael Sam Comes Out
- (Photo from Sports Illustrated)
About a week ago, Missouri linebacker Michael Sam revealed to ESPN that he was gay, potentially setting him up to be the first openly homosexual player in any of the major four American sports. Consequently, there has been a lot of debate recently as to whether this is a good idea. Some have said that this would be a great opportunity for one NFL team to make history–and get a very good linebacker prospect to boot. Others have said that the time isn’t right, citing the above Dolphins incident as proof that locker room attitudes are still too hostile to support such a thing. It’s still up in the air as to whether the league is really “ready” for Sam to become the first gay player. My reply: Why wouldn’t they be?
Think about it: with gay marriage now legal in seventeen states (potentially eighteen, with Virgina’s ban on same-sex marriage having recently been declared unconstitutional) and the District of Columbia, the country’s collective attitude toward homosexuality is slowly but surely warming up. There’s no better time for something like this to happen, and quite frankly I don’t see why this would deter teams from taking Sam. As of this writing he was projected as a late third- to early fourth-rounder, but there’s a chance that the added media attention will have teams concerned about his potential for distraction. Hopefully, though, this won’t affect teams from considering him based on the one thing that matters in the NFL: his play. (Side note for you Westboro Baptist fans out there: apparently the WBC used the heightened media attention to protest a Mizzou basketball game today. It…did not work the way they planned.)
Retirements:
Tony Gonzalez, TE, ATL*
*unconfirmed
That’s the highlights of the news for now. Keep checking in every Saturday for more information about the 2014 NFL offseason!
