I am sure that this headline will be the title of many sports papers in Florida and Indiana, maybe even on the daily SportsCenter sidebar in the mornings ahead. However, I am here to tell everyone to SLOW DOWN. Peyton Manning has been working out in Miami in the offseason for many years, far before he needed to worry about becoming a free agent. So don't go placing that turquoise jersey and comparing him to Dan Marino just yet. Sure, it would be fitting since Miami does need a quarterback, and ESPN could show a Manning-Brady showdown twice a year. But I keep coming back to these questions about why stars love that city so much. And why doesn't the rest of America hate it yet?
Lets assume, for a second, that Peyton does sign to play alongside Brandon Marshall and Reggie Bush. Should they become a lovable team because they had been bad to average last year, and could potentially be a playoff contender this upcoming one? NO. This team and city needs to be despised. They are in the process of taking over the three most popular sports in America all within five years. First, the Big Three sign with heat, throwing the NBA in a frantic frenzy and claiming them the greatest talent since the dawn of time. Then, the Marlins change their name and logo, get a new stadium, and go all "Yankees" on everyone's ass this offseason by outspending nearly every team in baseball. Now, the idea of a first ballot hall of fame quarterback could be gracing that city with his presence, garnering yet another team to make a run deep in the playoffs for their respective sport. If I were a fan in that town, I'd be going bonkers. Hell, every fan that dedicates themselves to the teams in their hometown constantly pray for the kind of work that the city of Miami has pulled lately.
Now, because this is all speculation, and Peyton has been linked to close to half of the teams in the NFL, I will not concede and accept the fact that he is to become a Dolphin just yet. I am only here to say that every fan of conventional sports outside of Florida should be hoping Mr. Manning goes anywhere else. Even if it is not your precious city has QB's with the likes of Jackson, Kolb, or Grossman. For the sake of keeping the sports world at an even keel, just hope that he takes his talents somewhere other than South Beach.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
'Tis The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year
From the time football season ends, to the time baseball season begins, there tends to be a lull in the major sports world. ESPN starts chasing stories like LINsanity and the Saints bounty scandal, and there are still NBA and NHL games being played. However, in the midst of it all, the greatest time to be a die-hard or fair-weather fan of sports comes to fruition for three weeks, making for some of the most glorious few weekends of the entire year. This is March Madness.
The beauty of March Madness is the fact that you do not need to have been following the NCAA basketball season at all to find this entertaining. People of all sports and non-sports backgrounds fill out their brackets, some with immense precision, and some blindly out of a hat. Nonetheless, once that opening tip of the first game begins, every bracket has a chance to succeed. And even if you have no plans to fill out a bracket, there are still upsets and underdogs, buzzer beaters and cinderella stories, for people of all kinds to enjoy. Men and women, old and young come together to see which team can inch out a victory on a neutral court in the most fun-filled, unpredictable tournament known to man.
But really, one of the best parts about this whole event is that ESPN can't get it right. Oh, they'll try. And they'll cover. And they'll bring experts and clipboards and coaches to break down each and every aspect to a teams' offensive and defensive strategy to prove who can pull out as the victor. But every year, none of that matters. That's what is so hard to get through their skulls. Four #1 seeds have been in the Final Four once in the history of this great tournament, and yet every year, Dicky V and Digger Phelps have all the #1's back there for the glory. Get some balls. Take a risk. Last year, VCU (#11 seed) and Butler (#9 seed) were in the Final Four fighting for a chance to go to the national championship, and you know what, it was fucking awesome to watch. And only two people out of two million predicted those schools to be in that position together. Does that make them experts? No. But they are just as likely to get these teams right as those who live and die by guessing which team has the most high flying talent every night.
This year, when those brackets come out, I will fill mine out with the same routine as always, in hopes of getting every game right. And even when my bracket has gone to shit, I will still be sitting on my couch, smiling and cheering for some team I have never watched or cared about before that game, because that is just the amazement that is March Madness.
The beauty of March Madness is the fact that you do not need to have been following the NCAA basketball season at all to find this entertaining. People of all sports and non-sports backgrounds fill out their brackets, some with immense precision, and some blindly out of a hat. Nonetheless, once that opening tip of the first game begins, every bracket has a chance to succeed. And even if you have no plans to fill out a bracket, there are still upsets and underdogs, buzzer beaters and cinderella stories, for people of all kinds to enjoy. Men and women, old and young come together to see which team can inch out a victory on a neutral court in the most fun-filled, unpredictable tournament known to man.
But really, one of the best parts about this whole event is that ESPN can't get it right. Oh, they'll try. And they'll cover. And they'll bring experts and clipboards and coaches to break down each and every aspect to a teams' offensive and defensive strategy to prove who can pull out as the victor. But every year, none of that matters. That's what is so hard to get through their skulls. Four #1 seeds have been in the Final Four once in the history of this great tournament, and yet every year, Dicky V and Digger Phelps have all the #1's back there for the glory. Get some balls. Take a risk. Last year, VCU (#11 seed) and Butler (#9 seed) were in the Final Four fighting for a chance to go to the national championship, and you know what, it was fucking awesome to watch. And only two people out of two million predicted those schools to be in that position together. Does that make them experts? No. But they are just as likely to get these teams right as those who live and die by guessing which team has the most high flying talent every night.
This year, when those brackets come out, I will fill mine out with the same routine as always, in hopes of getting every game right. And even when my bracket has gone to shit, I will still be sitting on my couch, smiling and cheering for some team I have never watched or cared about before that game, because that is just the amazement that is March Madness.
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