The Truth About Raiders Coach Tom Cable and ESPN

I had to address this issue.  I thought about saying nothing, because it is a complicated issue, one in which many people have their interests at stake, and so I wonder if I can truly do anything about it, or whether change is even possible.

First off, I’m a fan of the Oakland Raiders.

Recently, head coach Tom Cable of the NFL team, the Oakland Raiders, was accused of assault by Randy Hanson.  The Napa County DA in California declined to prosecute.

Since then, ESPN has reported accusations of abuse by Cable against a former girlfriend and his ex-wife.  I do believe that ESPN has made a calculated effort to target the Raiders organization with malicious gossip.

This is a very conflicting issue though, because on one hand, abuse is a serious issue and people generally don’t make such claims unless they believe those claims.

You might know from my concerns about my previous employer that I believe I was targeted after I reported sexual assault by an assistant.  I believe I have taken a fall because of my willingness to take the initiative on the issue, because I feared the possibilities of saying nothing.  Thus, I don’t take these accusations lightly.

Nevertheless, when the mainstream media element is involved with incendiary accusations, I do believe that it is reasonable to question the intentions of the accusers and thoroughly examine the facts.  Otherwise, the media would become nothing more than a bully pull-pit for unscrupulous people to take advantage of.  Some writers, like Gregg Doyel of Sportsline.com, has said that he and others in the media like to be used.  There is however, a line that must be drawn.

In one abstract example to accentuate this point, if you have ever listened to the radio show Loveline, there are people who call in and convincingly make incendiary claims that the hosts usually catch as false (eventually).  It is part of the idea, “Trust but verify,” when incendiary claims are made.  If a person claims to have AIDS—initially you should take their word, but examine the facts.

In the three accusations against Cable, police or the DA investigated and declined to pursue the issue, for a lack of evidence.  Some in the media have even suggested either corruption or intimidation as why.  Thus, those people have shown that it is their agenda for people to believe that Cable is a serial abuser.

Moreover, it seems strange that if these claims of abuse by Cable were substantial that Al Davis and Amy Trask of the Raiders would have heard about it, and would have considered it. 

Trask is the first and only woman to be hired as CEO of an NFL team, thus, the accusations against Cable insinuate that the first and currently only female CEO of an NFL team would knowingly hire a serial abuser.  I think that Trask of all people would know whether Cable fits the bill of an abusive man, or if he’s just being used as a scape-goat.

I do believe that if Trask had known or believed these accusations against Cable that the Raiders would not have hired Cable as coach.

Unfortunately, when a person is accused of something that involves gray area—that accusation can lead to other accusations, because that person is seen as lacking credibility, even if the person was not legally at fault for the original accusation.

Meaning that—a person gets accused once of something, because they made a mistake.  The law says that person is not at criminal fault.  Yet, it creates false perceptions, which lead to more accusations.  The more accusations, the more likely people become to think there’s something to it.

Cable had a lapse in judgment 20 years ago with his then wife.  Police investigated, and declined to prosecute.  Yet, because Cable made that mistake, and has stated that he has been remorseful ever since, people now assume that he fits the profile of a serial abuser, simply because two others made claims to the media that Cable had attacked them.  In the case of Hanson, Hanson went to Yahoo Sports before he reported his claim to authorities, while police believed that the ex-girlfriend was stalking Cable.

Thus, the beliefs about Cable would imply that no person can change or learn.  I say that, because the direct facts don’t support the claims made by Hanson and the former girlfriend, Marie Lutz.

In other abstract examples to accentuate my point:
Former NFL star Pacman Jones was once convicted for his role in a barfight during college.  Jones had a reputation of being a troubled loudmouth with substance problems.

Thus, the serial accusations against Pacman of unruly behavior in nightclubs, led the media and many fans to believe it and run with it.

In effect, he was treated as a “cancer” on the NFL, when he not been convicted of anything.  I say this with caution, but many in the media and public in effect “lynched” Pacman’s career by undermining the justice system, because he had not been convicted of anything.

If my use of the word “lynch:” in reference to what the “mob” did to Pacman’s career is offensive, it should be.  It should anger you that Jones was treated grossly unfair, simply because he has a disagreeable personality.  At that point, you’ll understand why I pursue that issue amongst others.

Ultimately, the media obsession over the Pacman tabloids led NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell  to suspend Pacman for a year, based on a power given to give by the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the Players Union and NFL.

I add this, because I believe it explains the root of Pacman’s questionable behavior.  His dad was murdered when he was four, while his grandmother, Christine Jones, whom raised him (along with his mother) died of cancer while Pacman was in college.  I have wondered whether that cancer was treatable, because would have surely thought that he could afford to finance that treatment once he cashed-in from the NFL, but she died too soon.  Pacman missed the only game of his career to attend her funeral and wore a t-shirt in her commemoration.

Some issues should anger people.  The question is, how do you resolve those issues?  I don’t believe in violence, I believe that the best arguments are made when the person first questions themselves before he or she questions others.

Yet, there are forces in the sports media, namely ESPN, that have agendas that they pursue regardless of facts.

One such employee of ESPN, Jay Mariotti (who is known as a serially disruptive employee), even said that Commissioner Goodell has “cleansed” the NFL of “thuggery.”  A career is a form of property.  The last I checked, a person in the US should not be deprived of life or property without due process, just because they fit your definition of “thug;” a word that often has connotations of bigotry.

On one hand, the Players Union gave the unilateral power of suspensions to Goodell (note: they did so before they truly understood the ramifications of such).

Meanwhile, the sports media, namely ESPN, maliciously sees that power as an opportunity to assassinate the careers of those who don’t fit their agenda, such as employees of the Raiders.

Thus, ESPN uses selective reporting in order to influence the opinions of the public and Goodell.  Once those “seed” stories bubble-up into hysteria, a person in NFL becomes subject to punishment.

I know that ESPN uses selective reporting because Vincent Doria of ESPN refused to report charges of rape against Ben Roethlisberger, because it could damage his career.  Yet, the same network is willing to report accusations of abuse by Cable?

In the the case of Roethlisberger, there are formal civil charges.  In the case of Cable, there were no charges.  Thus, the accusations against Roethlisberger have been legally more substantial than the accusations against Cable.

Some at ESPN, including Tony Kornheiser, even went so far as to suggest that witnesses were intimidated in the case of Hanson, while another ESPN employee, Bill Paschke, openly called for the suspension of Cable after the DA refused to prosecute.  While Cable’s ex-wife now claims that she was punched rather than slapped, when Cable (at least thought) she had been adulterous.

Yet, a punch would leave a different wound than a slap, which is something that police would have investigated.  Thus, various people have in effect insinuated that the authorities involved in each case failed to their jobs properly and without bias.  Where exactly are the facts to support such claims?

I don’t aim to absolve Cable of his poor decision 20 years ago, but I do believe that every person deserves the right to live down a bad decision.  In my view, ESPN merely saw that incident as an opportunity to make hay, because ESPN engages in malicious reports about the Raiders.

In the same article by Mariotti, he refers to the Raiders as a, “God-awful franchise,” and that he reports gossip about the Raiders, thus he does not investigate, because he is willing to set aside his own integrity to attack a man, Davis, that he sees as a abuser of the media.  Mariotti would even state his delusion that, “Somewhere Al Davis is cackling,” and that Raider fans, “terrorize the enemy.” 

Mariotti made that statement after I, a Raider fan, had complained to the FCC about the derogatory and selective reporting by ESPN about the Raiders and the issue of suspensions, because I believe that ESPN has acted irresponsibly, and grossly enable negative stereotypes about various people all in the name of “entertainment.”

I do believe that Mariotti is not alone in his sentiments at ESPN, as many of their employees have made similar derogatory remarks about the Raiders, and as I pointed-out, ESPN proved their double-standards by refusing to report charges of rape by Roethlisberger, while choosing to report the un-charged accusations against Cable.

Those reports against Cable have garnered the attention of the National Organization for Women, whom have called for the suspension of Cable.  Yet, I do believe that that statement has been influenced by an outlet that has clearly engaged in selective and malicious reporting against the only NFL team that truly has had a social conscious in regards to hiring (one reason why I’m a fan of the Raiders).

Thus, I’ve had enough.  I want change. 

I’d like to see either a publicly funded Sports Network that reports fairly, because after all, sports are social institutions, as even MLB Commissioner Bud Selig said at the 2009 All-Star game.  Sports have a responsibility to society, which is why the NFL, MLB, NBA, and NHL have either full or partial anti-trust exemptions. 

As the Supreme Court ruled in the early 1920s, the MLB is “not a business” but rather an organization that coordinates community exhibitions.  The NFL, NBA and NHL want the same full exemption; thus, each Commissioner should be forced to officially state that their respective organization is “not a business,” but a social institution.

Furthermore, I do believe that Congress and the FCC should investigate  ESPN as to whether, ESPN should have its license to broadcast revoked.

I realize the importance of such as issue as abuse to women’s causes, and believe that it is a just concern.  But at the end of the day, I do believe that when accusations aren’t prosecuted — that it is the duty of the American people to move on, and allow that person to learn from what they know and live it down.  Instead, outlets like ESPN are quasi-tyrannical, as the facts show that ESPN has clearly engaged in “serial abuse” of coaches and players that don’t fit their agenda by maliciously reporting gossip.

And ESPN is abusive because the American public is supposed to be able to trust an outlet of the press, when clearly, ESPN manipulates and abuses that trust.

At the same time however, the reality of abuse is that abusers have been or are being abused. 

ESPN is just a puppet for NFL owners (thanks to the anti-trust exemption given by Congress to the NFL in the earyl 1960s) that abuses them, thus ESPN trues around and abuses coaches, players, fans, and whoever they think they can to feel good about themselves again.

I do believe at the end of the day that the reason why ESPN has maliciously attacked Davis and the Raiders is that Amy Trask shattered the glass celing in the quintessential Old Boy Network known as the NFL.

As some of you may know from the recent headlines about Rush Limbaugh’s bid to buy the St. Louis Rams, there are NFL owners who think that Limbaugh is “too liberal,” and are in fact, to the right of Limbaugh.

Limbaugh of course is the man who coined the term “feminazi’s,” to refer to NOW and feminists in general.  Limbaugh is the one who praised Hootie Johnson for exlcuding women from Augusta National.

Limbaugh is also the one who wants the country to fail, simply so that black president does too.  Thus, it is only reasonable to believe that NFL owners feel the same way about Amy Trask.

I hate to say this, but I know how people like that think.  I used to be like them.  Every effort against the Raiders and Davis has been from fear that the Raiders would succeed with Trask as CEO because it would set a precedent that a woman can succeed as CEO of an NFL team.

Thus, this is a vicious catch-22.  Women are being used by NFL owners through ESPN to make a decision that would make “The Joker” proud. 

By siding with Marie Lutz and her claims of abuse, it would thus detonate the Raiders franchise and Trask, because Cable was the last man who wanted the job as coach of the Raiders.  Thereby ending any chance that a woman has to succeed as CEO in the NFL.

Yes, they are out to get Davis and the Raiders.  But the only reason why is to get to Trask.  And they pit you against your interests, so that you’re too blind to see the forest from the trees.

As a singer once sang, “You’re only a pawn in their game.”

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Why It’s Time for Raider Nation to Sue ESPN for Defamation

Here’s the deal. 

Roger Goodell has unfairly suspended black players in the NFL in recent years.  The thing is that, the Players Union could not do anything about it, because they agreed to give the NFL Commissioner that power in the Collective Bargaining agreement.

With various people calling for the suspension of Raiders coach Tom Cable such as the National Organization for Women, it has made me wonder something.  Cable is a coach, not a player.  NFL coaches are not bound by collective bargaining agreements.

When did NFL coaches agree to give that power to the NFL Commissioner?

What I don’t understand is this, why didn’t NOW call for the suspension of Shawne Merriman after he was accused of assaulting a woman?  Why didn’t NOW call for the suspension of Ben Roethlisberger for charges of rape?

NOW says that boys and girls look to athletes as role models.  NOW must think that Roethlisberger and Merriman are role-models, because NOW has said nothing about them.

Back to the earlier question.  Most people have agreed that Goodell has been excessive in using suspensions against mostly black players, but say, it’s too bad because players gave him that power.

That though would not apply to a coach, whom are employees of the franchise located in the respective state.

We have seen from the case of Pat Williams and Kevin Williams that state laws can factor-in to whether the NFL suspends a player.  Thus, if even players can wiggle free from the NFL rules, it is only reasonable to believe that a coach and NFL franchise could do the same if not more.

Raiders owner Al Davis, whom has a record of anti-trust suits against the NFL, could theoretically have a new one in play if Roger Goodell tries to suspend Cable, based on the fact that Cable has not been convicted of anything, while the Napa County DA refused to prosecute charges against Cable.

What gives Goodell the power to interfere with the internal workplace issues of non-players?  Cable was hired by Al Davis, not Goodell.  Thus, Davis could once again argue that an NFL franchise is an independent entity within an umbrella organization.

The NFL argues that an NFL team cannot compete against itself.  But, what if that NFL team decided to schedule games outside the NFL, against say, the CFL, UFL, college teams or independent exhibitions to promote its fanbase in other countries by competing against local clubs?

That is what football was like before the formation of the NFL in the 1920s.

Thus, Goodell would in effect be undermining the Judicial System.

I would also say that if Goodell tries to suspend Cable, that the Raiders should pursue a defamation law-suit against ESPN. 

And that we, Raider Nation, should seek a class-action suit for defamation by ESPN, unless they can prove the veracity of these claims that the Justice system of this country refused to prosecute.

And we have Jay Mariotti to thank for admitting that he and likely ESPN does not investigate stories about the Raiders, they maliciously report gossip, no matter how detrimental it is.

Yet, idiots believe that an “air” of bad behavior must mean there’s something to it.  Just ask Rubin Carter, wrongly convicted of triple-murder because he had a record of questionable behavior.

Thus, this is a call to Raider Nation.  If you know any lawyers that would be interested in filing a class-action suit (particularly season-ticket holders) against ESPN for defamation, in any event that Cable is suspended, then please contact that lawyer, or find one.

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His Words: Rush Limbaugh Has Right To Speak, But No Right To Be Heard

I’ll make this simple. 

In the recent months, there has been a backlash at the NFL for dropping Rush Limbaugh from the group bidding to buy the St. Louis Rams.

Limbaugh’s defenders have argued that it violated free speech or ran amuck of free-speech.  The irony is that, it was the result of Limbaugh’s own words, in more than one way.

Limbaugh speaks his mind, or at least what he thinks his audience wants to hear.  That doesn’t play well with everyone.  Not everyone is a fan of Limbaugh, some are even angered by him.

Some in the media even quoted things that Limbaugh never said about slavery and the assassin of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Here though is a real quote for the media that runs with fictitious quotes because they don’t actually listen to his show, past or present.

In Limbaugh’s own words about campaign-finance reform: You have the right to speak, but no right to be heard.  The people with more money should have a greater voice.  His words, not mine.

And guess what, the NFL has far more money than Limbaugh, and believed that his presence would be detrimental to the bottom line.  In the end, money spoke louder than Limbaugh’s words. 

That though, is what Limbaugh has always said.

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What I Really Mean: Why Does ESPN Undermine the Oakland Raiders?

We in Raider Nation have long asserted that ESPN “had it out” for Al Davis and the Oakland Raiders.  In the past year, that idea has gone from mere complaints of perception to blatantly clear to objective observers of ESPN coverage of the Raiders.

Though I cannot prove who has done what and why, I do wonder aloud, “Why does ESPN undermine the Raiders and Al Davis?”

Davis has long represented what I had long thought were the sympathies of the, “East Coast Media.”  As we have learned in recent weeks, many NFL owners are to the right of Rush Limbaugh even though they were too afraid to include Limbaugh. 

Michael Wilbon of Pardon the Interruption even said that some owners are believed to think that Limbaugh is, “too liberal.”

Thus it seems odd that the, “East Coast Media,” would treat Davis and the Raiders like something they dug out of their ear.

If anything, Davis has represented their supposed sympathies by being the first NFL owner to promote women and minorities to high positions within the Raiders organization.

Strangely, Bill Plaschke of Around The Horn  and the “West Coast Bias,” once called the Raiders, “a great place to work,” because of Davis’ policies on hiring.  Now, Plaschke has had an inexplicable grudge against the Raiders, calling for players to seek their own medical attention, and for the suspension of Coach Tom Cable for accusations that the Napa County DA declined to investigate.

Just admit it, ESPN.  For whatever reason, Davis gets under your skin.  I don’t know why, but more importantly, do you know why?

Maybe then, rethink the stories about the Raiders and Davis the next time around.  But I suspect that they have marching orders from superiors that are to the right of Limbaugh whom are probably terrified of an NFL team succeeding with a woman as CEO.

Yeah, I generally dislike the major news networks, primarily because viewers will take whatever they hear at face value rather than do their own research.

I have called for the US Congress to revoke ESPN’s license to broadcast, but the main intent of that was to send a message that I see right through these smear campaigns by ESPN.

I even called employees of ESPN as useless and said they contribute nothing to society.  I did so, because ESPN has done the same thing to hard-working viewers in general.  ESPN has treated fans as scum especially those outside the East Coast Bias, so I in effect called them hypocrites.

I also did so because I’d like to see employees of ESPN change the direction of ESPN from the inside.  ESPN has lost its way, and there could be a number of reasons.

I suspect that the greatest reason is an influx of bad journalists that don’t truly appreciate sports, they instead fixate on stats and the fact that they “get to” be mediocre and that some fans would also like to be mediocre.

There are good journalists at ESPN, but I suspect that the bad journalists have taken over in recent years.  I’d like to see the good journalists change that.

I’ll give you a hint about one of those bad journalists: the name is similar to reality.  This person serves as the reality of what ESPN has become.

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Why the US Congress Should Revoke ESPN’s License to Broadcast

I have just about had it with ESPN. 

On one hand, I can imagine that ESPN employs respectable people, yet the big picture of ESPN is that ESPN is nothing more than propaganda that only serves to divide people in many ways, including racial lines.

ESPN is nothing more than yellow journalism and not in a harmless or entertaining way.

On one hand, you’ll get hacks that laugh at distraught fans (see, College GameDay); on the other hand you’ll get more hacks that washed out from some school yet somehow insinuate themselves into places that they don’t belong (see, cast of Around The Horn ).

Ooh, but we should feel badly about ourselves because we aren’t puppets that, “get to” be on the flickering idiot box, believing that the job is inherently a higher plane of intelligence.

It seems fitting that the former host of SportsCenter would be Keith Olbermann, whom is one of the most divisive names in the mainstream media.  Olbermann even called ESPN a “Godforsaken place,” and later backed down from his criticism and shouldered the blame in an article called, “Mea Culpa.”

I wonder how many pellets they had to feed to Olbermann for him to cave.  But don’t get me wrong, Bill O’Reilly has been just as bad, but Olbermann relates to ESPN.

ESPN has stooped to a new low.  One of the few shows on ESPN that may have had a scintilla of integrity, Outside the Lines, has now engaged in a hit piece against Raiders coach Tom Cable, in which his ex-wife and former girlfriend accuse Cable of repeated abuse.

This hit piece by ESPN is transparent.  The sports media has already allowed for Randy Hanson to defame Coach Cable with bunk accusations of assault. 

Now, with egg on their face, because you know, they aren’t journalists, columnists, or even sufficient critics, they have decided that it would be prudent to report this junk about Cable after ESPN refused to report the civil charges of rape against Ben Roethlisberger.

For years, ESPN refused to investigate the problem of steroids in baseball, only to allow their job to be dumped on the US Congress.

ESPN refused to investigate Spygate.  ESPN refused to investigate the veracity of accusations against Pacman Jones and thus allowed Commissioner Goodell to in effect end the career of the troubled player for unsubstantiated accusations against him.

And yet, ESPN will report this nonsense that was never reported to law enforcement or any other agency.

Why?  Because the one incident against Cable was 20 years ago.  Cable admittedly slapped his wife on the face in anger, because he learned that she had been adulterous.  Cable openly regrets what happened and has stated that he has regretted ever since.

Yet, ESPN in their malice has decided that they need to cover their rears after giving a forum to Randy Hanson and picking on that story like vultures.

ESPN has shown over the course of the years to engage in malicious attacks against the Raiders organization, including Bill Plaschke of Around the Horn and Jay Mariotti of the same show.

In August, the Pittsburgh native, Mariotti would even refer to the legendary organization as a “God-awful franchise,” and that Cable should be suspended and that Al Davis should “vanish.”

While Plaschke openly used his time on ATH to call for the suspension of Cable even after the Napa County DA announced that there would be no charges against Cable for assault, and that Hanson had broken his jaw after falling backwards in his chair, because he had his feet on the table.

Even Tony Kornheiser of Pardon the Interruption asserted that the witnesses “may have” been intimidated, which is a ridiculous assertion and effectively questions the integrity of the Napa County DA. 

Had the Napa County DA believed that intimidation was occurring, the DA surely would have investigated.

Kornheiser has also admitted to his “East Coast bias” when talking about how much he loves the match-up between the New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies.

It is clear to me that ESPN is trying to get Cable suspended with their horrid accusations that have no credibility, because ESPN did not confront Cable about the story before it aired.  And that ESPN is doing so, because of malicious intent against the Raiders.

Why do I think that?  Because they exposed their own hypocrisy.

Perhaps then, this is not about the Raiders per se, but about an “East coast bias” that tries to undermine the efforts of teams not on the East coast or the Eastern time zone.

In a memo to ESPN employees, ESPN’s senior vice president and director of news, Vince Doria, confirmed that he issued a memo that ordered ESPN employees to not report the charges of rape made by the Nevada woman on that grounds that it would damage the reputation of Ben Roethlisberger.

Said Doria, “Those are the things that I think are damaging to reputations, and I think you need to know more about them before you report them.  As it stands right now, today, we don’t think it meets our standard of reporting.’’

Yet, ESPN will report unsubstantiated claims of abuse by Tom Cable?  How does that meet their “standards of reporting?”

Clearly, ESPN is not a news organization.  It is yellow journalism that merely seeks to divide people, even if along racial lines. 

ESPN more than any other network, I believe, is responsible for the fact that this country is still divided racially.  People still can’t emphasize with people of another race. 

Why?  Because networks like ESPN propagate the idea that everyone should want to do what they do, or to be in sports.  And when they fail to reach their dream, they blame someone else … usually someone of a different race.

Thus, I would like to see the US Congress and FCC investigate whether they should remove ESPN’s license to broadcast. 

ESPN clearly does not belong on the air.

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Homecoming Queen: With Brady Rule, Should NFL Allow Women to Play Quarterback?

I have wondered something about The Brady Rule.  Since it almost all but negates the ability of a defense to pressure an NFL quarterback, and thus makes the position easier and less physically demanding: How long before the NFL allows a woman to actually play quarterback?

Thanks to the Brady Rule, not only do quarterbacks not have to worry about getting dirty, they also don’t have to worry about their hair or manicures either.

Thus, even an effeminate woman could play the position.  Giselle Bundchen is about 5’11”, which would not make her the shortest quarterback to ever play (shout out to Doug Flutie).  Why not give the ball to her to throw?  How ’bout Jennie Finch?  Another ten pounds and she’d be the same size as Jeff Garcia.

And in fact, rules have in the past allowed for women to fill a position, by making the position less physically demanding (ex, the military).

I never watched the whole movie, but once I flipped through the TV stations to see the end of a movie called Quarterback Princess in which a high school girl fights to play quarterback for her high school team.  Not only does she lead the team to a title, but is also named homecoming queen.

That seems appropriate with Tom Brady’s homecoming from London after the New England Patriots rout of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

You might thing this article has under-handed sexist insinuations.  I know that I’m being tongue in cheek, but the intent is true.

What the NFL has done through the Brady Rule is admit that the physical demands of the NFL no longer matter and are unimportant to the position of quarterback.  In the past, the argument against women playing in the NFL or football is that the game is too physically demanding and violent.

 

Blowouts Will Lead to More Blackouts / Parity Made the NFL Profitable

The NFL now is not about a physical game: it is about meaningless points on the board that put me to sleep.  The NFL has been a snooze-fest in 2009.

There is no excitement to any of these games, as we are seeing more and more blowouts in the NFL.  They are just one-sided exhibitions.  The NFL frankly, sucks.

Those who know my work know that I’m a Raider fan.  So obviously, I have seen my share of blowouts.  The reality is that, that is a phenomenon across the board in the NFL, thanks to the emphasis on protecting the prissy passers.

At least in the past, I could enjoy football in the abstract by watching other teams play great football.  Now, all that matters is what team you choose to be a fan of.  You can’t enjoy football for the sake of football.

Eventually, people will stop watching all together because there is nothing to watch, which could have untold detrimental effects on the profitability of the NFL; a league that relies on profit sharing.  Fans on the losing end will stop caring, and when that happens, the fans on the winning end will have no satisfaction of gloating because the other side stopped caring.

As the NFL has argued in court and is currently doing so against American Needle, NFL franchises are not independent entities within the NFL, because an NFL team cannot compete against itself (as the NFL argues). 

Under the Brady Rule, NFL teams essentially do compete against themselves, while their opponent’s are just punching bags, and all it comes down to is whether the quarterback does or does not have a not so fresh feeling.

 

So how ’bout some new life in there by shaking-up things?

Nevertheless, I think that I’m just extrapolating the logical consistencies of The Brady Rule.  The NFL continues to make the demands of quarterback less demanding and put the emphasis on making NFL games allegories of retaliation of back-room grudges (just ask Sally Reese).

Thus logically, that should open the job to a more diverse candidate pool in a field that used to model itself on being a brutal game that wasn’t meant for some people physically.

If the passing-game is supposed to be about, “the complex defenses” and learning the playbook, rather than the combination of physical rigors of the game: Why not let a woman play?  It is only fair based on the NFL rules.

Even Matt Hasselbeck with his bad back can throw four touchdowns.  Does that prove anything about the Seattle Seahawks?  No.

Who is to say that a woman can’t lead a football team if given the opportunity?  I mean, c’mon: What woman wouldn’t love to win a fancy ring?  Don’t tell me then that she would have no motivation.

More and more today, we see more female body-builders that could compete under the NFL’s new rules that take-out the tension that once made the NFL exciting; that being, the tension as to whether the quarterback can stay cool under pressure, and whether the defense can “Checkmate” the quarterback.

As it stands, the NFL may as well just use rules of golf for quarterback statistics and spot the passers a handicap of 100 yards passing and a touchdown to start each game.

Now however, the quarterback is not the “King” of the field because the NFL has basically set up Police Tape around the quarterback that says Do Not Cross with rules like The Brady Rule.  The quarterback is the “Princess” of the field.  He’s a delicate investment that needs to be protected.

Just ask Jay Cutler.

If all it takes to succeed in the NFL is to intentionally draw roughing the passer calls, like Tom Brady has done, then it seems like the logical next step on a continuum to allow a woman to play quarterback, because clearly, the NFL won’t allow the quarterback to get hit.

 

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Jets-Raiders: Do The Oakland Raiders Have Pride?

That is about the extent of the quesion: Do the Oakland Raiders have pride?

Do they care about anything more than just getting paid and the excesses of playing in the NFL? 

Do players care that loyal, proud fans stick with their team and support them financially? 

Born fans that stick with their team rather than be scared away by losses or get beaten down by critics and opposing fans? 

Do the players care?  Do they have pride in themselves?  It doesn’t seem like it.

Take QB JaMarcus Russell.

Here is the conundrum. 

Why should I defend a black quarterback who clearly has no pride?

I have been a defender of JaMarcus Russell because I believed that many of his critics were just uncomfortable with the idea of a black quarterback. Many declared him a bust before he took a snap. Was I right to defend him?

When we see him perform, we see he’s not progressing.  Does he care? 

Does Russell care that he has an opportunity to change the image of black quarterbacks in the NFL?

So far, I think he has merely reinforced the negative stereotypes of black QBs. He may even be hurting the future chances for black quarterbacks in the NFL, no matter how unfair that is.

The only one who can change JaMarcus Russell’s image is JaMarcus Russell.  And I don’t think he cares.

One blogger even commented that he would rather lose with Bruce Gradkowski than with Russell. 

Gee, I wonder why.

He’d rather lose with a white leader than try to win with a black leader.  Sounds like Rush Limbaugh.

I applauded Richard Seymour for stepping-up as leader by trying to set the bar high for this team. But they not only fell short against the Jets. They were road-kill.

All I can surmise is that the Raiders are too concerned with trivial things than they are with playing football and giving loyal fans something to cheer for.

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Why Darren McFadden Can Be the NFL’s Next Great Runningback

Here is a question that has bothered me: Does Raider runningback, Darren McFadden, have what it takes to be the next great runningback?

When the Raiders selected McFadden with the fourth overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, scouts had compared McFadden to Marshall Faulk.

In this era of the NFL (1983-present), that is about the highest honor a running back can get with few exceptions.

McFadden showed Raider fans a glimpse of his potential against the Kansas City Chiefs in Arrowhead last year, but unfortunately, McFadden has been riddled with injuries ever since, with lacklustre play when he has had the chance.

In fact, Justin Fargas and Michael Bush have been more reliable than McFadden. The problem is that McFadden has the expectation to be a Hall of Fame level running back, not just a backup.

I hope I did not detract from what Bush and Fargas have done for the Raiders, but I think it is undeniable that the Raiders selected McFadden, when they had Bush and Fargas, because the Raiders believed that McFadden had the unique ability to be the next LaDainian Tomlinson or Adrian Peterson.

Now that Peterson has declared that he wants all the records, I would like to see a duel between McFadden and Peterson chase the records and title of America’s next top runningback.

That is hard to do when you are sidelined by injuries, and what can one do about injuries? Are injuries fully outside of a football player’s control? Since I do believe that injuries often result from carelessness, lack of focus, or ignorance, I do believe that many injuries in sports result from a player’s decision, stubbornness, or lack of preparation.

In an extreme case, baseball player Aaron Rowand once broke his nose when he crashed into the fence to prevent a home run.

In some cases, the decision is admirable. You stop a big play, you take a bullet, and you lay down your life.

The majority of time however, I think injuries in sports result from poor technique and an unwillingness to modify your technique because it worked in college. McFadden has all the physical tools to succeed in the pros, but I think he has been riddled with injuries because he has been reticent to adapt his techniques, and thus gets hurt.

Bad footing, running at the wrong angle on a cut, running into a defender at one angle as opposed to a different angle, poor weight shifting, or poor leverage against the opponent on a block are all examples of what can lead to an injury for a running-back.

Way back when in 2002, when I started losing weight, I decided that a fun exercise would be to chase my dog and see if I could keep pace with him. A dog can be a fast son of a gun, so it requires good technique to keep pace with a dog without getting hurt.

Also, I spent nearly two years at The Home Depot. When I started in Watsonville, CA I worked like a fiend, closing two departments in a high-volume store, with little help from the person before my shift.

Often times, I would come home incredibly sore. I loved it. Yet, never once did I hurt my back or incur an injury, because of technique. I always lifted with my legs or focused the weight on the lower body, moved the upper legs, staggered my stances, or moved my anterior torso.

Yet, many people at The Home Depot were forced to watch endless safety videos to prevent injury, and many people often had back-injuries that resulted from lifting.

I am convinced that McFadden’s issues are mostly technique and a lack of work ethic with the Raiders. I however, expect that McFadden will rise to the level of the next great running back and that he cannot do that by sheer will. He has to want it enough to prepare like a fiend.

As Steve Young said of Jerry Rice, Rice was the rare combination of talent and ethic. Some players work hard without talent. Talented players blow off work. Yet, the great players have talent and work ethic.

That is what I expect from McFadden.

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Why the Guarantee By Raiders’ Richard Seymour Is Audacity of Hope

Star defensive-tackle Richard “The King” Seymour of the Oakland Raiders has had the audacity of hope to declare that the Oakland Raiders will earn a postseason berth.

Many in Raider Nation think that Seymour’s statements are setting up the Raiders for heartbreak.

Frankly, I love it.

I call Seymour the King, as in King Richard, and that the team needs to listen to The King.  He has three Super Bowl rings, and played for a team that went 16-0 in the regular season.

The King has also played for a New England team in 2001 that started that season at 3-4 and was riddled by the loss of star quarterback Drew Bledsoe, whom was replaced by of course, Tom Brady.  That team of course, would eventually win the Super Bowl in an upset over the St. Louis Rams.

I’m not about to declare JaMarcus Russell as the next Tom Brady, but I am saying that Seymour has triumped through adversity to achieve greatness.  The past is in the past, and the future has yet to be written.

After the Raiders upset the Eagles in a game that included a remarkable sight.  That being a pigeon that flew in sync with the Raiders special teams unit for kickoff coverage.

Pigeons of course have in the past been trained to carry messages (“Carrier Pigeons”) and I’d like to believe that that pigeon is an allegory for a message of future success.

I have long defended the Raiders because I thought they lacked effort more than they lacked talent.  It seemed that the Raiders had talent; a talent which led to cockiness, which diffused into a poor work ethic, which resulted in foolish mistakes on the field.

Many times in the seasons of 2003-2005, the Raiders had touchdowns negated by holding penalties.

In 2006-2008, the Raiders often led at half-time only to blow the lead in the fourth quarter.

Thus, I had concluded that the Raiders had talent but a lack of focus and effort to close games.

With Seymour, he has sent a resounding message to the Raiders to man-up rather than just cash paychecks.

Yes, you can!

Man-up, Raiders. Man-up.

And of course, I may have called Richard Seymour “The King,” but there is only one true King (ahem). 

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With Cable Clear, Hanson Should Be Sued and Jay Mariotti Should “Vanish”

Now that Raiders coach Tom Cable has been cleared of assault charges filed by former Raiders assistant Randy Hanson, I must opine on a few things.

Randy Hanson should be sued, while ESPN reporter Jay Mariotti should take his own advice and, “vanish.”

To prevent any ambiguity, Mariotti wrote a blog in August that Tom Cable should be suspended and Al Davis should vanish.  In that blog, Mariotti stated that he reports gossip about the Raiders.  In this case, that gossip has been a detrimental distraction to the workplace environment of the Oakland Raiders.

Mariotti is known for being detrimental to the workplace environment from his days at the Chicago Sun-Times, in which he often engaged in heated confrontations with co-workers.  After he abruptly quit the Times in August of 2008, his colleague, Pulitzer Prize winning critic Roger Ebert wrote a blog entitled, “Jay The Rat” in response to Mariotti’s public hostility towards his former employer and co-workers. 

Mariotti had went on local television to humiliate his former employer by ranting on why he thought the Sun-Times would go bankrupt.  The fact that the Sun-Times has filed for bankruptcy protection is no excuse for Mariotti to publically deride his former employer.  It was merely an act of a disgruntled employee and not in the interest of the public, only his ego.

It seems to me that Mariotti’s instability diffused into the Raiders workplace through his irresponsible reporting.

Point being that, Mariotti has helped defame Coach Cable with irresponsible columns, because Mariotti has stated that he reports gossip about the Raiders without investigation and under the guise of legitimate news and that he makes an exception to his rules for the Raiders. 

He also indicated much malice towards the Raiders, because he has viewed himself and other reporters as victims of Al Davis and the Raiders, because the sports media has to cover news about Davis and the Raiders.

Mariotti should take his own advice and resign from the public eye of sports.  In other words: Get lost.  He’s not a credible news source, and his presence at ESPN makes ESPN a joke.  Of course, ESPN is arrogant enough to believe that viewers will just forget that they employ an agent of defamation.

I will not forget, and I expect the same from Raider Nation.  Mariotti’s employment at ESPN is intolerable, and he should be terminated from employment or resign immediately.  Though I have no direct power, I hope that Raider Nation will rally in this call to pressure ESPN into taking the appropriate action against Mariotti.

Voicing our disgust and demanding appropriate action with and against Jay Mariotti is the only thing we can do.

Unless of course, Mariotti follow through on what I asked of him by email.  That being to apologize to his former employer and co-workers.  Not Davis or the Raiders.  Rather, to admit publicly that he has been an irresponsible loose-cannon and privately apologize to those he transgressed against.

As Keith Olberman once said of ESPN, ESPN is a, “Godforsaken place.”  So to expect such an act by ESPN or their employees is probably just wishful thinking or even a pipe dream.

As Mariotti would say however, “Prove to me” that I’m wrong.  If Olberman can admit to culpability for his behavior in the working environment (Google “Mea Culpa” by Olberman), then so can Mariotti.

As for Randy Hanson, the Napa County District Attorney determined that the incident in which Randy Hanson broke his jaw was an accident the resulted mostly from his carelessness.  In that, Hanson had his feet up on the desk while leaning back in his chair when he fell backwards.

Sounds to me that Hanson fell over, and then blamed the first person he saw for his childishness.

Any adolescent child has been told by their parents to not do such a thing.  Hanson did, and instead of taking responsibility for his childishness, he attempted to defame Coach Cable by talking to anyone in the media that, like Mariotti, report gossip about the Raiders.

In an interview with Yahoo sports, Hanson claimed that Coach Cable made a threat on his life.  I don’t know about you, but I think such claims should be kept as a private matter for the District Attorney, but clearly, Hanson tried to defame Coach Cable, because the Raiders organization has been viewed negatively in the past, especially since the 2002 Super Bowl loss, and in part because of an incident in which a juicer named Bill Romanowski attacked a teammate.

As any person responsible to the truth would know, a pattern is not a pattern unless directly connected by facts.  Anything else is just fantasy or wild speculation. 

In the case of the Raiders, many sports writers (aka, conspiracy theorists) are more than willing to use Al Davis as a dynamic fact to connect all evils in the sports world, like any conspiracy theorist that thinks “they” are out to get them.  Read Mariotti’s blog (“Cable Should Be Suspended, Davis Should Vanish”), and you will see that he thinks Davis and the Raiders are out to get him.

It is believed by many Raider fans and NFL fans alike that the distraction caused by the charges against Cable, contributed to the Raiders lack of passion on the field, which lead to a three game losing streak that has been the worst in Raider history.

It wasn’t until the Antonio Pierce insult that the Raiders felt a sense of duty to man-up.  And now, Richard Seymour has had the “Audacity of hope” to declare that the Raiders will earn a post-season berth this year.

Frankly, I think Hanson should be sued for defamation, because of this pointless distraction.

At least, that’s my opinion.  I could be wrong, but what do you think?

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