Football

I've been thinking about the NFL football games I watched this week. Here is an observation, perhaps you have made it also. What happened to the winning spirit of it all. The Indianapolis Colts had a perfect season going, yet they let it go, opting to rest their best players then losing to a team that isn't in their league. The Vikings wanted to bench their star quarterback in a 7-6 game, disrupting the whole chemistry of the team. What's with the Saints? The Giants? It seems like football has become a game of posturing instead of the game I admired since I first understood what a first down was. Football was a game of pride, guts and respect. I give Brett Favre credit for staying in the game and fighting for his place in it, even in a losing cause. (What the hell happened to the front line and did the receivers get cold fingers or something, Catch the damn ball!) Perhaps a good chewing out was in order for the whole team, not benching your best chance at winning. I am sure the best coaches of the past 50 years would have torn these guys a new one for the way they performed.
The bright spots are the teams who continue to dig through adversity and give it their all even in near impossible circumstances. The Steelers continue to fight, the Chargers haven't let up, the Packer are becoming a real threat, the Cowboys (who I thought were dead ducks have show a lot of pride), the Patriots have improved and even the Cardinals, the Bengals and the out of the playoffs Panthers deserve respect.
I go to NFL games. Tickets cost a lot. I drive 5 to 6 hours and spend a small fortune on hotels to attend a game. If a team mailed in a game, like the Vikings did last week, and I had taken vacation, travelled, shelled out for food and lodging, I would likely never go to another game...ever. Hockey is bred into me and it wouldn't take much more to convince me that that is where my extra bucks should go.
Many of my childhood heroes were football players. They had heart and pride. They carried themselves with dignity even though they weren't perfect. Lets get back to the days of Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, Walter Payton, Emitt Smith, Roger Craig, Mike Singletary, Brett Favre, Tony Dorsett, Franko Harris, Fran Tarkington, I am sure you guys could name a lot more. So get the rag out of your asses and play ball the way it is supposed to be played!
Thanks for reading my rant.