FanNation - The Republic of Sport

So here we are again. Another January of football, another one and done by Tony Dungy and the Indianapolis Colts. Yes, they were "shocked" by the Super Chargers in the WC round this past Saturday night in Indy, where the fake crowd noise was surely plentiful.

 Which brings me to the point of this protest called a blog. What must a Colt player or coach do to get the rightful critisism and treatment that seems to dodge anyone wearing the blue and white?

Choke time after time in the playoffs? Nope, that is the NFL's fault.

-In 2003 it was the NFL's fault for not allowing the pretty recievers to run around untouched all game long. So the NFL changed the rule the following season, and since then TD pass numbers have sored, and Pass Interference calls have gone through the roof.

 -In 2004, after another loss to the Belichick/Brady led Patriots in the playoffs, it wasn't a choke job this time either. It wasn't Manning or Dungy's fault that the NFL's #1 offense was held to zero TD's. No, it was the NFL's fault for not forcing New England to replace their grassy turf, that had been torn up. God forbid another team uses it's homefeild advantages, as well, an advantage. (fake noise is ok, though Dungy?) And what happened? The next season the NFL forced New England to replace the surface of their field in week 9. And at the start of the playoffs in 2006.

Year after year, they make the playoffs on talent alone, and year after year they are dispatched by more motivated,hungrier,better coached teams, and still Dungy gets praised, and the team's loyal players go scott free of critisism.

Now to the recent situation. The Marvin Harrison debaucle. This really bothers me. Before I get into the story on Marvin's side let me say a few things.

 1) Can you imagine if this was Randy Moss, Rodney Harrison, or any other Patriots player that was suspected in a shooting? The media would be crushing the organization, fining everyone in sight and taking draft picks. But it happens to the Colts, and it gets nothing. Not even a spot on 1st and 10. It is pathetic, and a disgrace to the intelligence of the average sports fan.

2) TO takes a verbal shot at his QB and OC, and gets more coverage than 9/11. Harrison takes a gunshot at another civilian, and gets a tiny article on the sidebar of most sports sites.

3) Adam Jones gets arrested, or suspected of multiple crimes, and is fined and suspended on several occcasions. Harrison though, is not fined a penny, or told to sit for a single game.

This story has so many issues from the Leaugue obviously trying their hardest to keep mum about this whole thing, to the horrid "investigation" by the state and city officials involved. The man had a million fingers pointed at him, yet again, the NFL and now DA let the beloved Colt off w/o a slap on the wrist. 

So to recap: Marvin Harrison owns a gun. A man gets shot. The man says he saw Harrison shoot him. The cap found at the scene was fired by the gun Harrison owns. But not only was Harrison not arrested, we're now NINE months after the shooting took place, and they still haven't named him as a suspect, even though the police wrapped up their investigation a month ago. Nice to see the Philly PD taking their Jon Benet-like time and not rushing to judgment here. And in an amazing coincidence, the DA is just now getting around to telling the world what the investigation uncovered, three days after the Colts season ended. Remarkable how that timing worked out.

I get accused all the time of being a Patriots apologist and paranoid and obsessed with how unfairly the Pats get treated, but after reading this, can you blame me? Did anyone wait until after the Super Bowl last year to file Domestic A&B charges against Randy Moss? Did the Herald wait until their season was over to publish the fake Spygate story? If a guy said he got Rodney Harrison's bullet outside Rodney's bar and fired out of Rodney's gun, do you think for one second the DA would've waited until after the season to even bring up the topic? We'd already be wrapping up the congressional hearings into the case. District Attorney's are THE most political animals in the country, and there's no way this investigation is on the level.

It is just one more sign of who the real darlings of the media are. Those damn Colts...