I am a sports blog reader, in addition to an occasional blog writer, and the contents on the multitude of blogs never cease to amaze me. For those sociology buffs, some blogs can be down right comical. Not just the stories themselves, but also the comments posted about them. We Americans are very opinionated people, and once our minds are made up on a topic there is usually no changing it. And with sports blogs, we have the ability to read a story, form an opinion, and post that opinion for others to read. The interesting (or funny) part is when that opinion is challenged. See, another issue with Americans is that while we are opinionated, most of us have a hard time accepting that there are other opinionated people out there, some of whom even have the audacity to have a differencing opinion than us!
There are some obvious trends to posters' opinions, though. Often times, how well we like or dislike the ???character(s)' of the story determines if we respond positively or negatively. If the person is liked, he/she can do no wrong. If that person is not well-liked, nothing he/she does is good enough. Keep in mind while reading this that I am not Sociology graduate. But some things are too obvious to ignore. For example:
1. How else can you explain the love affair over Bill Cowher coming back to coaching, even though it took him 14 seasons to win his only Super Bowl with his first team, the Steelers?
Don't get me wrong, I am a Bill Cowher fan, but it is what it is. He was fortunate to start his coaching career in the early ???90s, when the internet was in its infancy and blogs (as we know it) did not exist. Imagine (NOT knowing what we know now) if his career started 10 years later than it did (2002). You think he would have been given half that amount of time, especially from the fans, to win a championship? Most would argue that the Rooney's (Steelers owners) do not change coaches very often, and that is true. Then again, those same people also thought (Mike) Shanahan was untouchable, too. Speak of whom, the previously mentioned is still unemployed, as is Brian Billick. They both have a ring. Matter of fact, Shanahan has two. Where is the outcry for them, I wonder?
2. When the Bengals went 11-5 in 2006, it was largely credited to Carson Palmer. But when (the following year) the Bengals limped to an 8-8 record, a bulk of the blame fell on Chad Johnson?
I could care less about Palmer or Ocho whatever, but let's weed out the garbage. The defense sucked both years (and counting), so no excuses on that, please. And Chad Johnson has always been ???entertaining' long before 2006, so those are constants. Even Chad Johnson's production was constant those two seasons, with 2007 actually being (statistically speaking) the better of the two (2006: 87 REC 1,369YDS 7TD VS 2007: 93REC 1,440YDS 8TD). So what WAS the variable in this equation? Yep, some of you guessed it: Carson Palmer. The same Carson Palmer who is the face of the Bengals, but somehow escaped most, if not all, of the blame. Even Peyton Manning doesn't get that kind of pass and he is 10x better than Palmer IMHO (and more than perception, but that's a topic for another blog). In the 2006 season, Palmer TD to INT numbers was 28:13. In 2007 it was more like 26:20. Who knows, maybe it is cheap to pick on a QB who was returning from a nasty knee injury suffered in the playoffs the previous season. I would buy that, but then again neither Daunte Culpepper nor Donavan McNabb received a pass the season after coming back from similar knee injuries and both also had recent success prior to the injury, so what makes Palmer any different? And we shall see what kind of love Tom Brady receives, outside of New England, if he struggles in September.
3. The Vikings' signing of Sage Rosenfel as an improvement?
O.K., I'll admit that this is a stretch, since there are as many out there that think this signing is a sick joke as there are people that actually believe this was a good thing. There goes that perception again. What really makes Rosenfel an upgrade over Tarvaris Jackson, anyways? That debate in of itself is laughable. What's next, a throw down about who's better between Shaun Hill and J.T. O'Sullivan? I've seen both (T-Jack and S-Rose) play from the comfort of my living room, and while they are different style of QB, neither is a standout. Marv Levy (or was it Don Shula?) once said "if you have two quarterbacks, you have none". Makes me glad to be from Indianapolis. Anyway, here is my analysis off of what I've seen: T-Jack has a strong arm but is spotty throwing short to medium and even worse throwing deep. S-Rose is more consistent, but makes a lot of bone-headed plays, most of which unnecessarily (Not restricted to, but definitely see: Texans vs. Colts, week 5). There are posters, most of whom NEVER played QB at any level, say T-Jack cannot read defense. Really??? He does hesitate in the pocket, but so does 95% of QBs with barely a full season under their belt. That could easily be nerves, or self-doubt, with IS dangerous qualities to have as an NFL QB, anyways. S-Rose has a much better completion percentage (66.7% VS 59.1), but that can be misleading. One reason is two words: Andre Johnson. The guy does not drop many passes. The Vikings' receivers do. And last I checked the NFL does not award points for completions, unless it is at or past the goal line. Otherwise, the Texans would have been in the 2008 playoffs since both of their QBs completed over 65% of their passes all year. It is about throwing TOUCHDOWNS and NOT throwing interceptions, and that is the categories that count the most for a QB in terms of winning. And sorry all of the Rosenfel lovers (or T-Jack haters), but Jackson has S-Rose beat in that category, hands down (9TD:2INT vs. 6TD:10INT) and he did it without a stud receiver.
But like I said in my introduction, if someone likes or dislikes someone, they will stay with that stance. And not even facts can deter them from their convictions. And that is why we love sports blogs. It gives us ALL the chance to agree to disagree!
Danica Patrick
Shanon Lersh
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Comments (7) Add A Comment
".......how well we like or dislike the character(s) of the story determines if we respond positively or negatively. If the person is liked, he/she can do no wrong. If that person is not well-liked, nothing he/she does is good enough..."
Then, you have some who make comments for only one reason , and that's to irritate others. I won't mention any screen names, but most know who they are by their comments.
"....Shanahan was untouchable, too. Speak of whom, the previously mentioned is still unemployed, as is Brian Billick. They both have a ring...."
The trend here is not only getting younger with players, but coaches as well. These two will be working again, but likely after this coming season. A year or so off, gives them time to see if they can be on the NFL Network, or ESPN............lol......Billick already is occasionally.
"....see what kind of love Tom Brady receives, outside of New England, if he struggles in September....."
It's evident that NE won't do like they did with Drew Bledsoe when he got hurt. He never got his starting job back from Brady when he recovered from his injury. If NE had kept Matt Cassel, then, I would think they would have done as they did before, but that's not the case this time around. Or so it appears.
"....not even facts can deter them from their convictions. And that is why we love sports blogs. It gives us ALL the chance to agree to disagree....!"
It also gives idiots a chance to get other teams fans riled up and PO'd, too. There's a few idiots who love doing this, but as I said, earlier, I won't mention any names.
Good points, although not many comments. Hang in there tho.....the comments will eventually come. Just mention the Cowboys and you'll get a few, for sure............lol
Bull_Shirt
Orange, TX
Total Comments (4004)
Great article and I do not just give praise just to hive praise. It makes you think and deserves a whole series of articles becasue it it a topic with much truth but has not been explored. bret favre had more interceptions then anyone every and even outside greenbay is a hero. Even when he was addicted to pain killers he was loved more and given even more support compared to other athletes who have had similar problems.Everyone was a T.o fan when he made that emotional catch against green bay when he was with the niners even then he dropped several passes that game. Now he is just an overated bum that drops to many passes. You dont even hear mention about him being a hall of famer but you always hear how marvin harrison is a sure hall of famer. Boldin breaks his face plays two weeks later and is the toughest guy in the world. T.o played in the superbowl with a broken foot and although they did not win gets little mention. could you imagine if marvin harrison boldin or even jerry rice back in the day made that kind of effort in a losing effort. We would still be talking about it now. really makes you thinks huh?
jovon
San Antonio , TX
Total Comments (16)
I was considering doing more articles on this subject, depending on the feedback I received from this one. You even brought up two other topics (Farve and T.O.) that I was going to include in this one, but did not want over-kill! Thanks for the support from you and Bull_Shirt!!!
Naptown_Colts
Total Comments (249)
In my humblest experience, and I've only been at this a little over a year, any articles that make any sense, tend to draw a few comments..maybe 30 or less, with about 500 viewing, but leaving w/o making a comment. But, you put the idiots on one, trying to stir up some stinkage, then you have 50,000 commenting and a half a million viewing.
Then, there are the ones who also change subjects as much as Emelda Marcos changed shoes, and those are the ones with the high numbers of commenting.
I have 14 that I've "published" if you could call it that. Three people left 1 comment on 3 articles I've done, with 480, 204, and 645 viewing. I've had ZERO comments on 4 articles three times, with 469, 206, 457 viewing. This latest one, where I said something about 'Should Jerry Jones cut Romo too?' has me with 27 comments and 1193 commenting, so I must be moving on up.....laffin...........
When we run out of football subjects, we can always go to stuff like what I just did here.........lol.
BTW, no sense in waiting for responses.........just go for it. I do and if it hair lips everyone in 9 counties, so what? We have the freedom of speech. "-)
Bull_Shirt
Orange, TX
Total Comments (4004)
"....with 27 comments and 1193 commenting"....meaning viewing, not commenting
Bull_Shirt
Orange, TX
Total Comments (4004)
Great article and right on cue....amazing how some QB's get a pass and others don't.
Maleicon
Houston, TX
Total Comments (3)
What makes this an excellent article is the research you put behind it. It's just difficult to argue once you strip the emotion out of it (which is the whole point), look at the numbers and players for what they've been contracted for, and for what they've delivered. Either they've done "the job" or they haven't. It amazes me that many coaches, and owners get caught up in the emotions more so than the production in comparison with other players around the league in the same position. But you know - sports, art, music: these still serve to entertain very EMOTIONAL fans, and we'll never be able to quantify the value of entertainment except through ticket sales, and that is what makes this whole thing go-'round. Either way: excellent article.
Macstaq
Total Comments (5)
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