We are mere days away and there are several stories in this year's Super Bowl, with two mainly dominant ones that I am sure 2 weeks (or in the case of Ray Lewis, one month) of hype has probably sickened everybody. Without further aduba, this is what I am looking out for in this year's Super Bowl...
1. Brother vs. Brother - I have already gone in to this topic slightly, but the fact remains one brother will win, one will lose. From what we hear, the path to football success was always in Jim Harbaugh's favor. John had to work extra hard to earn his spot in the NFL's upper tier. Players seemingly love both coaches. I have seen John for longer do it well, and I think I find myself cheering for him more than his younger brother. Jim did have a good bit yesterday at media day when somebody asked him what was around his neck. He replied that it was a whistle and sarcastically and derogatorily answered the reporter's question about its value to a coach. There is a prop bet on how long the post game hug/handshake will last, with the line at 7 seconds. If John (Ravens) wins, I say it is under. If Jim wins, it will be way over as older brother tells him how proud he is. I see Jim pouting off at the 6 second mark, especially if a trick play or a cheap play is the deciding factor in the game. They seem to have genuine love for each other, though, and it will be an interesting dynamic as they square off on opposite sides of the field, not meeting again until the gold/red or black/purple confetti falls.
2. Ray Lewis Retirement Party - I like Ray Lewis as a player. He seems to have done everything he can to play the game right. Even as the rules changed and defenses around the league had problems adjusted, he has made a 17 year career end on a high note - win or lose. He is an inspiration to his team and the consummate leader/professional on the field. However I, like several others, will never NOT acknowledge his past in his involvement with the murder of two people. I don't know if the two victims were exactly innocent of anything and had a great value in society, but I am sure they were younger and could have upgraded their life. Ray Lewis did, as he has found a spiritual guide in God and Jesus and believes no weapon can stand in his way. I believe in redemption and somebody changing his life around. I am sure that Ray thinks everyday about what happened in 2000 and how maybe his more selfish desire to preserve his career did not bring somebody justice. He plea bargained from murder to obstruction of justice, snitched on his compatriots, and nobody was incarcerated. In my mind, if you obstructed justice in a murder trial, isn't that just as bad as murder? You OBSTRUCTED (i.e., prevented) justice from being served to the family of the fallen. The sports media has portrayed him as "Saint Ray" and most football fans would probably not deny the opportunity to have him on their team. The last Super Bowl Ray was in, in 2001, a redemption year after serving his time for the obstruction of justice charges, he was the MVP. Perhaps that can happen again. I am rooting for the Ravens, but his sanctimonious, religious, maniacally preaching sermons have to come to an end.
3. David Akers - I think this has to be his last chance at Super Bowl glory. He went there in 2005 with the Eagles, and was the last original Andy Reid player to leave Philadelphia in 2011. He went to San Francisco after not being resigned. He was actually one of the few players ever called out by Andy Reid after the Eagles lost to Green Bay. Akers missed 2 field goals that game. I think the Eagles lost by 4 points. When he signed with San Francisco, he bought a billboard space outside of the Lincoln Financial field to post a message thanking the fans of Philadelphia. He was the team's leading scorer while doing everything he could community wise and supporting a sick daughter with a life threatening disease. He is a class act, in my opinion. He struggled this past season though to the point where the stain of kickers Billy Cundiff was brought in two times to challenge him - once in the regular season and after the NFC title game. Akers missed a 30 yarder in that game, but his coach has put his chips down on him as he says the kicker has recovered from injury and apparently has his leg strength back. The game is in a dome, so elements are minimal, other than crowd noise. I am not as much of a fan of the 49ers as I am the Ravens, but if it has to come down to a game winning moment, I hope it is from the foot of David Akers.
4. Joe Flacco - A kid from Audobon, not far from where I grew up. It is where I finished my boy scout career. I had friends from Audobon, but alas I am old as shit and never had a chance of crossing paths with him. People in this area will say they want him to win because he is a local guy. It has no bearing on you as a person if he wins or not, though. I hope the money Joe has earned has allowed him to upgrade his family from Audobon to perhaps the more upscale Haddon Heights. Anywho, if you play fantasy football, you know Joe Flacco is a frustrating player to follow. He was almost dubbed as a game manager this year rather than the elite quarterback he claimed to be in the offseason last year. However, in the playoffs, he now holds a record for most road wins. I also think he has more wins that Peyton Manning. Last post-season, he grew a mustache for charity that was pretty sweet.
He turns it on in the playoffs, and each year of his career he has been there, winning at least 1 game each year. He has been to three AFC title games and finally now in his first Super Bowl. A player who has found a way to improve and contribute to his team year after year, that's a guy you want to root for.
5. Randy Moss, Greatest Receiver Ever? - He made that claim yesterday, not me. He is certainly one of the best in my generation. In 2007, he set the touchdown reception record at 23 as well as the rookie reception touchdown record and is second all time in receiving touchdowns. He was in Minnesota where he became one of the late 90's early 2000's best offensive weapons. He fake mooned the crowd once in an away game. I thought it was hilarious, but purists did not. He was traded to the horrible Oakland Raiders, and played Oakland Raiders football (i.e., not well). He was traded to New England and went on to set his reception touchdown record. The Patriots were 18-0 heading into the Super Bowl, and lost to the upstart New York Giants in a great game. Moss even caught a pass with under three minutes left for a go ahead touchdown, but the defense folded under the most remarkable first down catch of the year, and subsequent Plaixco Burress game-winning touchdown. He came back to the Pats for a couple more years and continued to play well. As the years went by, he came to say he did not feel wanted by the Patriots. Moss had several off-field issues mixed with a bad reputation. He was eventually traded to the Brett Favre loaded Minnesota Vikings. He complained about the catering there. They lost to the Patriots, Moss went to the owner saying Childress should be fired, and was cut the next day. He was picked up by the Tennessee Titans thereafter and had an even more forgettable run. He retired last season. He then worked on a comeback, and made the 49ers roster. He is now their number 2/3 receiver and gets a shot at redemption in the biggest game of all. His impact may not be felt statistically, but he certainly has been a contributor in the 49ers runs. It is always great to see one of the best players I saw growing up win the big one.
6. Ed Reed - Brian Dawkins is my favorite player of all time, but Ed Reed is right up there. Same position. Same ball-hawk mentality. He has the beard of a homeless man and when I first started really watching him I thought he was old. Like upper 30's old (which in a few more years I will write as "young, really young...Like Upper 30's young"). He is a great defender and has had a great 10 year career full of records. I think he has the longest interception return record, which is a record a defensive player would surely love to have on his resume. He comes across as a generally good guy and is part of a leadership corps with Ray Lewis, minus the blood-tainted past. If you like podcasts, look for the Rich Eisen Podcast where they play a mashup of Ed Reed and Reggie Wayne telling the story of Wayne's snake, Law, dying under the care of Reed. "Law Dead!"
7. Michael Oher - The subject of one of my favorite movies ever, "The Blind Side." The story is pretty amazing and an inspiration of what hard work, dedication, and a strong set of values instilled in a kid can do for them in the long term. I have heard he struggled a little in the middle of this season, but he has turned it around. The fact that his guardians, the Tuohy family, can see the kid they took in playing in a Super Bowl, must be an amazing thrill. I cannot imagine seeing Rocco one day being on the grandest stage of whatever he gets to do later in life and the triumphant feeling that will bring me. The family just wanted him to survive, and live a full life free from his past and devastatingly difficult formative years growing up. Now, he is protecting the guy who I am cheering for in the Super Bowl, Joe Flacco. Michael Oher is a better inspiration and role model for youth today than Ray Lewis is, in my opinion, and is one of the genuine good guys I am rooting for on Sunday.
8. Colin K-somethingorother - Okay, his name is Kaepernick. It is very difficult for me to remember. The guy was drafted last year in the second round and sat on the bench the whole season. This past season, I would see highlights of Kaepernick coming into games on designed plays that almost always resulted in a touchdown. That eventually led to him coming in on midfield plays to help advance the ball. His first game as full time quarterback came when Alex Smith (who was playing the best football of his career, and was in the NFL's upper tier) was concussed. Kaepernick and the 49ers ended that game with a tie to the St. Louis Rams, 24-24. Colin started a Monday Night Football game against the vaunted Chicago Bears defense, and shredded them. Alex Smith was cleared again to play the following Saturday, one day before they played New Orleans, in New Orleans. Jim Harbaugh stuck with Kaepernick and again led his team to a victory. Jim then declared Kaepernick the starting quarterback. The 49ers have now advanced to Super Bowl 47 under his dynamic play. He even set a record for a quarterback in rushing yards in a game, against playoff team the Green Bay Packers. The funny thing is, his adoptive parents recently revealed a letter that Colin wrote when he was 9 years old to himself saying one day he will be a quarterback for either the Packers or 49ers - his two favorite teams. He did not have the struggle that Michael Oher had, but to go through life not knowing your biological parents is pretty insane, whether you have had a charmed life or not. He is a great overall athlete and some call him the future of the quarteback position. He has his team at the Super Bowl for the first time in 19 years, in only his 10th start can become a legit superstar.
9. Frank Gore - The guy's entire body had been blown out in several ways throughout his career. He has put together basically two healthy and powerful seasons as his team went to the NFC title game last season and this season to the Super Bowl. He even mocked the "dirty bird" dance of the Atlanta Falcons after the go ahead touchdown 2.5 weeks ago. I traded him away in fantasy football because I thought he was "boring", but he is a warrior with a large forehead that is another one of the nice guys you will root for as well.
10. Mario Manningham - He is playing in his second Super Bowl in a row, representing the NFC again, and playing for the team his Super Bowl winning team last season defeated to advance to it. He also made one of the most spectacular Super Bowl catches that continued a late, game winning drive for the Giants. When you watch the play as it happened he got outright killed. The ref was in the right position to make the call a catch rather than incompletion/out of bounds. Had he made the incorrect call from the beginning, the Patriots may have hurried up the next play to prevent a challenge. Either way, all Manningham wanted to do, was catch the ball and extend his toes as far as they would go down to the ground. He was completely prone and made the catch of his life. This play will be showed repeatedly during the Super Bowl, and he certainly earned his moment and perhaps can contribute vitally once again for his team. He hasn't had the greatest season, and even if he is quiet in the Super Bowl this year, he will get spotlighted again for his play last year, at the least.
There you have it. What more do you want from me? I am getting more and more jacked up for Sunday, and my game prediction will come to you by this Friday, close of business.
No comments:
Post a Comment