WILL THERE BE FOOTBALL NEXT SEASON?
The state of the 2011 Football season has gone from 'likely' to 'bleak' about 90 times in four months. This is because the 24-hour NFL coverage has nothing else to do but analyze statements, lawsuits and numbers. Not a specialty.
One thing that must be made clear is that both sides (owners and players) use the media to gain sway in the negotiating room. There are no candid interviews, there are barely any full truths being told. The P.R business is a tough one, and both sides have objectives; to not appear weak, and to have public sentiment on their side.
This means that we are not getting the full story. Neither side is really able to admit that they really want something, or give away any tactics or strategies to the media. They'd get shredded in negotiations. The majority of the articles about the lockout do not take this into account, they assume full disclosure and use the very limited information we have to draw large, confidant pictures.
Will the players be able to whether a lockout? This seems to be a source of concern for the less-marquee players who are starting to split from the superstars. This could mean hardships for the players against the owners who, while they may not all agree privately, appear to me a 32-headed monster right now.
IS IT REALLY SO TOUGH TO REPEAT?
The number one football conversation going around is how 'tough' it is to repeat the Super Bowl. That the Green Bay Packers will have a real 'up-hill battle' but seem to be the first team in a long time to be equipped for a serious run at a repeat (not true, every team after winning the super bowl appears this way).
So is it so hard to repeat? I, for one, am flabbergasted by these articles. It IS hard to repeat but certainly it's not the toughest feat ever attempted. The Packers won the Super Bowl for a reason, it wasn't just their name picked out of a 32-team hat.
The Packers have QB Aaron Rodgers, they get back many injured players and return their main coaches. They have just as good of chance as anybody. Yes it will be tough, but would it be such an anamoly? Such a major mountain achieved? For them, yes. For NFL history, no.
The 66/67 Packers. The 72/73 Dolphins. The 74/75 Steelers. The 78/79 Steelers. The 88/89 49ers. 92/93 Cowboys. 97/98 Broncos. 03/04 Patriots. Do you realize that is 16 Super Bowls part of a repeat performance? 16 out of 45 is not a rarity.
ARE MOCK DRAFTS TRULY NECCESSARY?
Many times I wonder; what is the purpose of the mock draft? Is this neccessary information? I suppose you could make a case for getting to know the players likely to be drafted. But to go into all rounds and predict what actual professional GMs are going to do is assinine at best, it's football writers' boredom.
There are no sportswriters (including Mel Kiper at ESPN) who are qualified to make these calls. First of all, you need much more intimate contact with 32 head coaches and their schemes and strategies than just watching last year's game film. Second, general managers are sometimes given to whims and hunches, is ESPN so good they can tell another man's hunch?
Yes, debating about the first 32 picks can be fun and interesting but we need to leave it at that. Debate. First round. When we start trying to predict the exact order of players picked in the 4th round based on genius factoids like "the bengals had trouble stopping the run last year" we are in pure, undiluted, boredom-induced bullshit.
