Athletic, or a Leader?

Today in the world of the NFL there in lies two basic ways to categorize a quarterback, and the system in doing so is very simple. White QBs are considered to be "great leaders", while black QBs are "athletic". A subtle sense of racially motivated grouping occurs here I believe. While the black quarterback have dramatically increased in the NFL in the past 10 years or so, they have yet to earn the right of being great leaders, and vise versa with white quarterbacks being athletic. You see examples all the time on ESPN of the categorization. Whenever Peyton Manning is mentioned, soon follows the term "leader", and whenever Robert Griffin III is, you will almost surely hear them praise his "athleticism" while both QBs clearly displayed both of these features. I believe the theory behind this stems from a subtle cultural racism that exits in our country where it is believed, maybe subconsciously for some, that white people are generally better leaders than black people while black people are only know for their athletic ability. It's an unfair notion which excludes black quarterbacks from being understood as a leadership role on their teams, and just simply the athletic player that took orders from the white coach to lead their team to victory. White QBs too get some kind of unfair predisposition when it comes to athleticism. If Tom Brady made an amazing run to gain a first down, the announcer would probably say, "Brady with a remarkably smart play decision", instead of "Brady with an incredible athletic display on that run". The same thing occurs with other positions like wide receivers. Being a position dominated heavily by black players, whenever a white receiver breaks out and succeeds in the league, they are mentioned as being "scrappy" and not "athletic". Race seems to be a factor in sports still even years after the integration of all sports leagues. Although it is very subtle, it is very clear and alive.

The Curse of Jersey

Lets talk about something I know all New Jerseyites, Jersians, or whatever we're called have undoubtedly thought about at least once or twice in our lifetimes regarding sports. Why don't we have any real sports teams? When I say "real" I mean it in a sense where hockey doesn't count, sorry NJ Devils, but I'm talking about football, baseball, basketball, and what the hell, even soccer. The closest thing we've had to a real team moved over the river into Brooklyn this past year and for some reason have decided to be a descent team once they left NJ. Do we have some sort of curse or something? Its almost as if New York gets the better end of the deal no matter what.

Lets not even mention the fact that New York has 2 baseball teams (Jersey has 0), 3 football teams (Jersey 0), 2 basketball teams (Jersey 0), 3 hockey teams (Jersey 1) then again who cares, and even a MLS soccer team. That's 11, yes 11 Professional teams to NJ's 1. Not to mention that The Jets, Giants, AND Redbulls all play in Jersey. Whats going on here?! Are we to settle for zero sporting representation while New York takes all the glory? It's as if all sports fans from New Jersey are stuck in some sort of limbo whereas the northern half is forced to root for New York teams, while the southern half roots for team from Philadelphia. This is an unfair epidemic dividing our wonderful state into two separate warring sporting factions. We deserve sports unity. I suggest the Jets, Redbulls, Nets, and Mets simply adopt the NJ brand and move over the border, if they aren't already on our territory. I mean the Jets suck, so do the Mets, who likes soccer anyway, and the Nets were ours first. It seems like a logical deal. New York still gets to keep the Yankees and Giants...c'mon.

Thanks Mom, Happy Thanksgiving to You Too

Thanksgiving has been a quite unpredictable holiday in my family for the last 7 years or so. The dinner always takes place in a different place, usually different state even, and one never knows what family members will end up making it. For the first time in about 7 years however, me, my brother, my sister, and my mom were finally going to have Thanksgiving together and my mom was going to cook. Everyone loves a home cooked meal from their mother, and this was one thing I was looking forward to the most.

Its Thanksgiving day, and me and my brother are watching the football games waiting for my mom to bring the food over and cook. We eventually call her and she explains that she's cooking it at her house first then bringing it over. However where things begin to get a little salty is when me and my brother spot her laying at the pool of my brothers apartment while she should've been watching the turkey. We proceed to question this method and she proceeds to explain that she already finished cooking it. Okay, whatever. Dinner finally starts and we all enjoy a rare home-cooked Thanksgiving meal from my mom for the first time in years. Oh how delicious it was. Unfortunately, none of the cooking was hers. We had somehow found out that not only was the turkey bought pre-cooked from Publix, but so was EVERYTHING else. Wow, so much for a home-cooked meal ma. Anyway me and my brother were heart broken and wouldn't talk to my mom for about 20 minutes.

What am I Thankful For?....Not the Jets

Ahhhh, Thanksgiving; the time for families to get together and indulge in a feast fit for kings. It is quite possibly one of the greatest holidays of all time. I mean think about it, you see all of your family (could be a bad thing), drink heavily, have a huge meal, and watch football. In the eyes of a man, this doesn't sound too bad at all. My personal favorite parts of the holiday are the football games. There's something about thanksgiving football that's just magical. I mean after all, my favorite team is one of the three that is honored every year with the opportunity to play on thanksgiving. Wouldn't one assume this would be an even greater addition to this already spectacular holiday? WRONG!

Here's how my Thanksgiving went this year. It started off great with a few beers, watching the earlier games with my brother while waiting for the meal to be ready. More of my family arrives and we begin to eat. Dinner goes great as we enjoy laughs and each others company. Finally it's time. The perfect climax to a wonderful Thanksgiving day is now upon us. The Jets are playing in the prime-time match-up against arch rival New England, who I hate with a burning passion. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm a realist. I'm well aware of how the Jets have played all season, and especially how the Pats have. I'm not exactly expecting victory, but seriously...c'mon. 21 POINTS IN LESS THAN A MINUTE!? Really New York, really Sanchez, really Rex? You couldn't even just be competitive so I could end the night without crying myself to sleep? If one ever wondered what it would look like to see a college team play an NFL team, one may have been able to see what this would look like Thursday night when the Jets took the field. Anyways, thanks for ruining my "almost" perfect Thanksgiving New York.  

Young Athlete's, an Unfair System

We've seen it a million times before, when young talented athletes come up into the pros from college, get that big payday they've been dreaming about since birth, and then go ahead and spend it all on expensive cars, luxurious houses, and amazing lifestyles. The irony in this matter comes up when the athletes projected talent doesn't quite match their compensation, and so once they spend all their money, they're also out of a job. Some may argue that these athletes are just careless and stupid and that they deserve to be broke for caring more about partying and flashing their newly acquired money than actually winning games, which coincidentally causes them to lose their jobs. Vince Young and Jamarcus Russell are prime examples of this situation. They were both stud athletes coming out of college expected to be among the top picks drafted in their respected years. They were predictably, and their high draft picks came with a high degree of compensation which showed their organizations trust in them before they even stepped on the field. The question isn't whether or not these young players with outgoing and flashy personalities should be paid this much money, but instead whether or not it should be the job of the NFL to find a way to help these players manage it better. Most of these players coming into the NFL come from low-level socioeconomic backgrounds. The second they are given a signing bonus for $100,000, they're going to have fun with that money and experience what they have never been able to before. One cannot really blame them. Sure, it's irresponsible on their part, however to most of these guys, they have never held nearly anywhere near that amount of money in their hands. Its daunting to them. The NFL should keep in mind the financial management welfare of their employees (players), just as most corporations do. For especially young players with little experience in the world of wealth, as well as an uncertainty of retaining a long-term job due to no experience on the pro field, these rookies should be paid nowhere near the amount that they are today until they have proven their worth on the playing field. 1st overall picks today are being paid more than veterans who have led teams to championships. THIS is what needs to end. Rookies should have a smaller base salaries until they play to their potential. This will create incentives for younger players to manage the smaller salaries that they get, as well as increase production on the field in order to truly earn that big payday.

Religion, Politically Motivated Media Coverage

Tim Tebow is a name and face we of the sports world have all grown accustomed to seeing on our TV screens while watching our favorite sports networks and even sporting events throughout the last few years. My question is why? Why is this mediocre second string quarterback arousing such media attention. He must be the worst player of all time to get more media attention than the actual superstars of his respected league. The answer lies not in his play on field, but in fact in his character and how the media has figured out a way to exploit his persona to make some sort of religious monarch of Tebow. He's the Jesus of the sports world, attracting more people to the sport and promoting the love of god incorporated into the most violent sport on earth. The media has created an all out love-affair/obsession with his every move. The reason is politics. People love a "good guy", and what better sports idol to root for than Jesus himself. Although Tebow is currently a second string QB on a team with a mediocre starting QB, people are still obsessed. They are rooting for Jesus to be resurrected from the dead, or the bench, and rise up and lead his team to victory. It all makes for a wondrous story, especially for religiously motivated folk who in turn make up a large portion of our country. I don't want to say that a major part of this media attention is money based, but then again I don't think I need to state the obvious either. All of this media coverage can be thanked for Tebow's numerous endorsements as well as jersey sales. Moral of the story is this, go with god.

A Fantasy League of Extraordinary Gentlemen

Fantasy football. It has redefined how football fans all over the world now look at the game we all love to watch every Sunday afternoon. With football being the most watched sport in America, it is clear we have a love affair with the game which dominates the ratings of any other sport. Americans love to watch football because it's exciting, violent, adrenaline-pumping and it is an excuse to get together with friends and family and enjoy some beer and simply relax, or go nuts, whatever your into. Fantasy football however has transformed the game into something more. Football is no longer simply a game that is played between two opposing teams with fans on both sides rooting against one-another for fun and friendly competition. No, now, it is a game of individual players, being relied on by fans to dominate the field and rack up as many stats as they can in order to benefit the fantasy world of some fans fantasy team in some fantasy league. One can argue that this new craze ruins the sanctity of the game, however I believe it makes it better and more enjoyable to watch.

Fantasy football works as so: Individuals must join a league with others and then create teams either by drafts or other means filled with REAL professional football players in their rosters. They then set lineups of the best players on their roster to "start" against ones opponent for the week. Based on how well, or badly, one's player preforms on the actual gridiron on Sunday, determines how one's fantasy team does. It expands the realm of competition among football fans. Now a fan isn't forced to simply root for one team and dwell on said teams success or lack-thereof, but has the option if necessary to have other means of entertainment during football season. If one's favorite team is preforming poorly, there is nothing they can do about it, yet fantasy football opens the door to a secondary form of football influenced entertainment and allows one to be in total and utter control over their teams success or failure. This also forces one to focus more on every player, and not just those on their favorite team. It has aroused the average fans knowledge of more players, teams, and the game itself. More fans will watch more games to follow their players and see how they are doing. This has undoubtedly sparked an increase in ratings as wells as ticket sales as the popularity of the game has increased. Fantasy football has unlocked a new door to how one can follow the game, and revitalized an already divine sport that all Americans love.

adbuster

 

These pictures combined represent my idea to visualize the importance of religion in sports, more specifically in Tim Tebow's case.

Got Jesus?

I'm sure we've all seen the milk ads portraying various celebrities of all sorts holding a tall glass of silk white milk standing there looking all famous with a dark background enhancing their features, always topped off with the iconic white mustache and an ad slogan reading, "Got Milk?". These ads have always drawn the attention of many for their mixture of pop culture, rebelliousness, and of course, everyone's love of milk. While thinking of an idea for a different kind of ad however, the type of ad that sort of makes fun of familiar ads yet also highlights issues of some sort in the world or in media at the same time, I found that this "Got Milk" ad would serve as the perfect frame for my idea to highlight the medias obsession with New York Jets 2nd string QB Tim Tebow. It's the same idea as the original ad with some tweaks however. Instead of portraying Tim Tebow with a glass of milk campaigning the idea that getting your vitamin D is what the celebrities do, so in fact you should do it as well, I am going to show Tebow posing in his famous "Tebow" pose with the same format of the original ad. Instead of the ad slogan reading "Got Milk?", it will say "Got Jesus?". The idea is to highlight the obsessions the media has with Tebow and to pinpoint whether or not it has to do with his religious antics.

The reason I find this to be such an interesting topic is because as a Jets fan, I've noticed that 80% of their media coverage is on Tim Tebow, a player who doesn't even play. During training camp this was even more evident. This seems to always have been the case since Tebow was in college at Florida. What is it about him that draws so much attention? It definitely isn't his game. I am going to explore the medias obsession with Tebow and figure out what exactly it is about his personality, his traits, his facade, and his general attitude that makes people either utterly love him, or hate him. This is a question that has been bothering me ever since he came to my beloved Jets.