Memories

A drive crippling, back breaking, game ending, heart wrenching, soul tearing, duck season interception. Let me say it again because it makes me feel all warm inside. Brett Favre’s career ended on a drive crippling, back breaking, game ending, heart wrenching, soul tearing, duck season interception. I for one could not be more happy. That overtime pick against the Giants in the NFC Title game will endure as my most vivid memory of good ol number 4. It completely epitomizes who he is in my mind. I will also remember the 287 other interceptions he threw, most in NFL history. I will remember the five 20 interception seasons he had. I will remember his pedestrian 1.53 career touchdown to interception ratio. I will remember him never throwing less than 13 picks in a season. I will remember his 147 career fumbles (unfortunately he only lost 64 of them). I will remember the 439 sacks he took.

These are the things that I will remember about Brett Favre. Everyone else is too busy gushing about how amazing he was, so I figure someone has to recount how bad The Ginslinger was at times. You can call me a hater, I’m fine with that. It just really bothers me that people act like its taboo to not like Brett Favre. I respect the man. He was an unbelievable quarterback. That doesn’t mean I have to like him. He beat my 49ers multiple times in the playoffs, and his cocky attitude on the field really turned me off. Not only is he the career leader in interceptions thrown, in my mind he if the unofficial king of leader in heave ho, gawd awful interceptions. And like a light shining down from above, there is at least one other person who feels the same way I do. This compilation of horrific Favre interceptions will be one of my bookmarks for the rest of my days.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=aKikPebj0sE

I would pay 100 bucks to get an NFL films DVD of every one of Brett Favre’s career interceptions, sacks and fumbles. It would be spectacular. It would also be like 6 hours long. But Steve Sabol, along with most other media members, is too busy worshiping Favre for this to ever happen. Oh well.

In other memories, the Ryan Pettinella saga is quickly becoming one as there is now no way he will go plus on his season long quest for more points than fouls. Its officially over. Before it would take a small miracle, but now its impossible. The Cavs had a grueling 5 day stretch from Saturday to Wednesday in which they sandwiched a win over Georgia tech in between losses to Miami and Duke. Pett went minus 6 during this stretch (of course towards fouls) and is now at 72 fouls and 60 points with only 2 or 3 games left. Sorry buddy, your ship has sailed. This mother is closed.

Here are some more quick hits that are floating around in my brain:

Watch out for the Cleveland Browns offense next year. They resigned Derek Anderson and just brought in Donte Stallworth to a multiyear deal. This attack could be scary good. In case you hadn’t noticed, Braylon Edwards is one of the top 5 receivers in the league. Last year he had 80 catches for 1,289 yards and 16 freakin touchdowns. He has really come into his own and backed up the Browns for taking him 3^rd overall in the ’05 draft. He was on SportsCenter’s Top 10 almost weekly throughout the season for his ridiculous circus catches. Besides Edwards, a top flight number 1 wideout, the Browns have a great possession guy in Joe Jurevicius in the slot, a superb deep threat now in Stallworth, a stud tight end in Kellen Winslow (82 grabs, 1,106 yards and 5 TD’s last year) and a resurrected Jamal Lewis in the running game (1,304 yards and 9 TD’s). Cleveland was 8^th in the NFL in scoring last year, and I predict them getting into the top 5 in 2008. If Andersen doesn’t regress, I don’t see how you are going to stop these guys.

For all you Wahoo fans out there: there is an awesome 4-page article on Chris Long in this week’s Sports Illustrated (the one with Hansbrough on the cover). Very cool stuff. I highly recommend picking it up. If you can’t, here’s one of the highlights. They mention how Littlejohn’s on the corner has a sandwich names after Ralph Samson. They then quote the owner as saying he’s planning on coming out with a footlong hot dog named after Chris Long. How awesome is that? I suggest The Long Dog. In serious talk about the draft now, I would honestly take Long over Glen Dorsey of LSU, even if a little of that is biased. There are too many questions surrounding Dorsey’s injuries for me to take him with a top 5 pick. I would much rather have Long, a guy who has never been hurt and you know will produce at the next level. As my Dad was saying, you know Chris Long will be a successful pro. You don’t know if he will be a 10 time All Pro or just have a solid 10 year career, but he will be a successful NFL player. I would be worried that Dorsey would have an injury plagued career and never really take off. But that’s just me.

In more Draft talk, people are saying Matt Ryan might go number 1 to the Dolphins. If Miami pulls the trigger on Ryan, I say they are insane. How has Ryan shot up so quickly? He has been too mediocre in lots of the times I’ve seen him to even be a Top 10 pick. I wouldn’t take him until the late first round at the earliest. Brady Quinn is better than Matt Ryan and he went in the 20’s. Jamarcus Russell got $60 million from the Raiders last year. If Ryan goes number 1 he will get that kind of money. Does he deserve that? Hell no. Give me Brian Brohm or Joe Flacco in the late first, early second rounds. In fact, I’m gonna say it right now: Matt Ryan will be an NFL bust. But hey, that’s just me.

Well, that’s it for this week folks. Springtime weather is slowly settling in, and I love it. This weekend we spring back absurdly early, so remember to change you clocks and watches on Saturday night. Until next time, stay safe, keep it real and don’t knock your socks off.