Archive for the ‘Links’ Category

When there are thoughts in your head, they arrived there because you created them. They reflect your beliefs, your opinion, and your worldview. Often, those thoughts are mundane (this weather sucks) and meaningless (this coffee sucks too). But you’re still thinking them, and you’re still feeling them.

That’s what makes Chris Culliver’s apology for his derogatory and homophobic remarks regarding gay players in an NFL locker room such utter nonsense. It’s as if he put his hand in steaming dong, and chucked it at us. Repeatedly, and in large clumps (hey, how’s that breakfast bagel? Yum).

Here’s his apology, which was remarkably issued in statement form, meaning it was filtered through the 49ers public relations staff. Or more likely, what’s below isn’t Culliver’s words or thoughts at all.

“The derogatory comments I made yesterday were a reflection of thoughts in my head, but they are not how I feel. It has taken me seeing them in print to realize that they are hurtful and ugly. Those discriminating feelings are truly not in my heart. Further, I apologize to those who I have hurt and offended, and I pledge to learn and grow from this experience.”

Props for apologizing, Chris, even though there was surely a hand at your ear dragging you to a dark office somewhere. But if these are Culliver’s words, that’s bad. And if this statement was written for him, that’s worse.

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Rejoice, for we’ve made progress. The step was small, and so very many remain, but yesterday amid the clowns and wrestlers and weird balloon poodle dogs and the abundance of women in cocktail dresses during Super Bowl Media Day, a small hurdle was toppled. When it hit the ground, puppies smiled, and baby angels learned how to fly.

Or maybe it didn’t fall, and maybe most NFL players are still willing to disregard their health and long-term well being to play a game they care so deeply about (please don’t hurt me, Jason Taylor). But yesterday, Alex Smith gave us the gift of hope.

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Joe Flacco is not a controversial guy. He’s not a fun guy either, or a particularly notable guy when he isn’t on a football field. He’s not an exciting guy, or an entertaining guy.

He’s a boring guy. Just ask his dad.

“Joe is dull,” Steve Flacco said in a telephone interview. “As dull as he is portrayed in the media, he’s that dull. He is dull.”

We can debate the merits of his talents on the field, and what he can and can’t do. He’s been great thus far during the playoffs, and he was inconsistent at times earlier during the regular season. He’s thrown 10 touchdowns and zero interceptions over his last five games, and that’s sort of pretty good. As we entered Super Bowl week there was near universal agreement on two facts: Flacco has played a key, crucial role in getting the Ravens to within a win of a championship, and he’ll provide the most boring, useless quotes during the pre-game buildup.

The former remains correct, but the latter is now so very wrong, and the way in which Flacco stepped into some controversy dong is a little jarring.

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SUPER BOWL SUPER BOWL SUPER BOWL SUPER BOWL SUPER BOWL SUPER BOWL

Alright, I’m better now. I just had to get that out of my system, and now I’m sure everything throughout the rest of this week will be entirely normal, and we won’t have any dudes in orange capes (see above) who scare the bejesus out of me. No, your childhood wasn’t normal.

It’s officially Super Bowl week ya’ll, and around here we’re so excited that we’ve deemed it acceptable to say “ya’ll”. As fans of the football this is the pinnacle of the sport, and while one game is the focus, what makes the NFL unique is that this week functions as a sort of football convention. Everyone who’s anyone in the media is currently huddled into their broadcasting cubicles down in New Orleans, creating a constant buzzing discourse about Sunday, and about anything that can possibly be discussed related to the NFL.

For fans and media, being bombarded with flapping football gums can be a little overwhelming by the time we reach even mid week, but it’s mostly glorious. You like football, which is why you’re reading a football blog. Therefore, you’ll thoroughly enjoy a week of talking about football and reading about football, and then likely yelling about football. It’ll be great fun.

But this question comes up every year, because few people on this Earth are lucky enough to even play in the NFL, let alone participate in a Super Bowl. Are all of the extra media responsibilities and the blur that is this week truly a distraction for the players? Or are they able to block it out, and still focus?

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