SportsBoner.com

Blessed are the physical things in this spiritual life. Blessed are the friends and family, the bountiful food, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parades, football, the copious wine and beer; blessed are the many little things taken for granted in this big wide world. Most of all, blessed are the Detroit Lions. Indeed it’s an NFL World, and I’m just living in it. The reach and influence of the league has reached epic proportions, what once was just tradition is now an opportunity to peddle its ware as the NFL and its own creation the NFL Network added another game on Turkey Day. This year it is a semi-marquee matchup between the New York Giants and the Denver Broncos. In the eyes of some, this game draws more interest than the annual cranberry-fest tortured fans are forced to watch the Detroit Lions. Of course, the love-hate relationship with the Dallas Cowboys usually doesn’t tarnish the fact that the boys are almost always in contention by this time of year so any casual fan can look forward to them winning or losing on national TV.

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Fourth and two. What hasn’t already been said about the now infamous “gaffe” of one Coach Bill Belichick needs to be said. You have opinions ranging from defending his aggressiveness, to deriding the apparent apocalyptic decision to try to seal the game, the same game his defense twice let Peyton Manning march down the field convincingly to even make the game close. What hasn’t already been said, I will come out and say. Because you know, I have to at least address the hottest subject of the week without looking like a conformist. Bill Belichick is a stupid genius.

If that didn’t make sense, it sure didn’t make sense in my head before I started typing it. First of all, after years of watching ineptitude, I honestly think the genius label for Belichick is a tad bit on the over exaggeration side. This is football, not quantum physics. Football is preparation, organization, sophisticated choreography, game planning, scheming, in-game management, motivating your players, and basically executing. For my money, Bill Belichick does most of these very well, if not the best business at doing each of these very well. That really doesn’t make him a genius, just a coach doing what he’s paid to do. The bottom line is to win, and his job is to coach the players that he has, devise a game plan, stick to that plan, execute it, and manage the game. His success over the last decade stems from astute coaching and common sense. So while one supposed mistake in one game shouldn’t tarnish a career of success, it’s understandable that he is held to a higher standard. Were this a Dick Jauron move (that almost came off as vulgar), it would be buried at the bottom of the sports page.

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As the cream of the divisional crop start to rise, aka the New England Patriots, Cincinnati Bengals, Pittsburgh Steelers, Dallas Cowboys, Minnesota Vikings and the Arizona Cardinals, other teams are starting to sputter and desperately need to assert themselves with a win to get back into the thick of the playoff race. Ironically, two undefeated teams like the Indianapolis Colts and the New Orleans Saints have particularly struggled with perceived “lesser” opponents the last couple of weeks but nevertheless have squeaked out wins to remain unblemished. The Colts this weekend will have a premier matchup on NFL Sunday Night Football versus their bitter rivals in the Patriots who are riding high with 3 straight wins. I would venture to say the winner of this game will have the early inside track for home field advantage throughout the playoffs. On paper it looks like New England would come out as winners considering the way they have been playing on both sides of the ball and the injuries ravaging the secondary of the Colt’s defense. Thanksgiving seemed to have come early for Tom Brady who looks to carve up the pass defense with his electric turkey slicer. Yeah, that made no sense but what can I say, I have turkey on my mind! My brain’s basted and cooked the way Miguel Cotto’s was during one of Manny Pacquiao’s flurry of shots.

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A common sentiment among NFL coaches, even NFL fans is that they would rather have a “game-manager” taking snaps rather than a “gun-slinger” under center. Of course there are also a select group who would rather have the latter. Which would you prefer? Ideally I would rather have both traits in the quarterback that leads my team. Perfection is fleeting, and to have both would mean having a first ballot hall-of-famer. Alas Joe Montana is not walking through that door, and as close to perfect a passer Dan Marino was, he never won a Super Bowl due to many reasons outside of his control. So our argument remains with one trait or the other. Many decry the amount of attention the pivot garners, but the fact remains that in American football, no other position has access, touches and controls that oblong-shaped leathery ball more than the quarterback. As Uncle Ben would say, “for SOFTER rice, use more water and simmer for a LONGER time. Do not lift lid while cooking (steam cooks rice).” Well… the more applicable cheesy quote would be from the other Uncle Ben, “With great power, comes great responsibility!” Spider-Man likes his rice soft, and takes his great power with greater responsibility.
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What do you call a vote of confidence, a mid-season booster shot, something made up that has no bearing whatsoever on the actual team’s success? The “Sportsboner Bump,” that’s what you call it. Desperate for a catchphrase, a hook, anything to distinguish this modest blog amidst the grand and spectacular world of the blogosphere, I pretty much just rambled on nonsensically without discussing anything relevant to football. That doesn’t diminish the fact that last week, I strongly felt that the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Baltimore Ravens, the Green Bay Packers, and the Dallas Cowboys are teams to watch for to start stringing together some wins to separate themselves from the pack as I felt they were strong contenders going into the meat of the schedule.

While the Steelers, Packers, and Cowboys pulled off some impressive wins, and the Ravens were on bye; one win certainly doesn’t define the season, and they could go 0-6 in the next stretch (knock on wood). However one game can give you the confidence to turn that corner and make a statement. Pittsburgh’s win over the 6-0 Minnesota Vikings, and Dallas’ balanced win over a solid Atlanta Falcons team could help propel them on a winning streak. Also of note, although Green Bay’s dominance over the hapless Cleveland Browns may not impress, they could use that as a launch pad heading into the much ballyhooed throw down with their “fallen son” and the Minnesota Vikings this Sunday.

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