Lebron showed us why he'll never be like Mike

First off, the Celtics victory over the Cavs was no fluke. They are a better team than the Cavs top to bottom and dominated the series in pretty much every phase. The media and fans are coming down on Lebron pretty hard and for good reason.  It's not so much that the Cavs lost the series, because like I said the Celtics are a better team when they are playing at their best. Rather, it's HOW they lost the series, or more specifically, what Lebron showed in defeat.

Lebron James is a truly remarkable player that eventually will win a championship or two. However, in my opinion he will never be Michael Jordan or Larry Bird or any of the truly great ones.  The reason for this is simple; he lacks a killer instinct. Every great player in every sport has had an insane drive to win everything. Larry Bird walked into the locker room before the 1986 Three Point shootout and asked who would be finishing second. Jordan would turn everything into competitions from board games to black jack. These guys hated to lose more than they loved to win. Lebron seems content with just making a lot of money.

Also, Lebron typifies the modern day coddled athlete. Larry Bird played injured half his career. He could barely bend down after games yet still played his heart out and sacrificed his body diving for loose balls. We all know MJ had the flu so bad he was practically throwing up on the sidelines during Game 5 of the 1997 Finals. Yet he still willed his team to victory. Lebron would've been at home getting a foot rub probably. All in all, players these days just aren't as tough, and Lebron is the poster child for it.

Why I like the McNabb deal

It's been about a week since the surprise announcement that Donovan McNabb was coming to the Redskins in exchange for a second round pick this year and either a 3rd or 4th pick next year. The reaction around the DC area has been mixed, but many seem to hate the deal. This goes to show you the general attitude Redskins fans have of their team and for good reason.

The Skins have always been the champs of the off-season. Unfortunately they have not been able to follow that up with a quality product during the season itself.  The truth is, they haven't made a big splash like this since I can remember. This is not trading for a running back, defensive tackle or linebacker. This is a trade involving their division rival for the most important position in not just football, but all of sports. It's a risk worth taking in my opinion.

McNabb is not going to carry this team on his shoulders. He's not the player he once was. However, he certainly is a winner. Five Conference Championship games with a mediocre at best receiving core(besides the TO year) is very impressive during the free agency era. Not winning a Super Bowl doesn't make you a bad quarterback.  Marino and Jim Kelly never won a Super Bowl, and neither one of them played in the NFL today that is full of parody.

In addition, he's had to deal with the hostile Philadelphia sports scene. Skins fans are passionate, but at least they like their own team.  He's also battled injuries and the biggest jerk in sports in Terrel Owens and still been able to be successful. Through all this he has for the most part carried himself as a true professional.

I think the biggest problem people have with this deal is that they see it as a typical Redskins move. That is signing a high priced, well known player on the downside of their career. They expect the worst. But I think McNabb can succeed if they put the right players around him. First things first, get an offensive line. Peyton Manning would have struggled last year behind that patchwork line. Granted Campbell takes about 3 days to get his throws off, but still that line was atrocious. Second, get rid of Portis and Haynesworth. Portis is a shell of his former self and is a "me first" type of player who the Redskins don't need as they try to turn another chapter. Haynesworth is an impact player, but is injury prone and plays half the snaps.  Cut your losses and move on.

There has been a culture of losing in Redskins nation for the last 15 years or so. Dan Snyder doesn't know football and only cares about money so it's really not that unexpected.  The good news is Shanahan and Bruce Allen both have proven track records and know football. I really think Shanahan's success with Elway at the tail end of his career is a good sign in terms of what we can expect from McNabb. Donovan is no Elway, but still has some good years left in him.  Also, don't underestimate the power of revenge. McNabb can talk all he wants about having love for Philly and just being excited to start fresh. But he's a human being, and anyone would be upset after how he was treated there.

Lastly, let's not forget Jason Campbell. Campbell was set up to fail in Washington and it's best for him to try to find a team, any team, that he can start fresh with. I think we all can agree that Campbell handled himself like a true professional in his time in Washington and we wish him the best.

I think Redskins nation should embrace their new quarterback and hope for the best. This is a guy that has been there before and is a proven winner. Plus, don't underestimate the fact that he knows the defense of a team they play two times a year. I think the Redskins are better overall than they were before the deal and look forward to more moves this offseason.

Respect your Enemies

I was all set to go off on a crazy tangent about my digust that the Yankees, Lakers, and Duke all have won titles this past calendar year. Then I stopped and thought, what is the use? The fact is, my teams have had a great run the past 10 years and I should appreciate that. If my major complaint in life are that the teams I hate the most are winning championships life is pretty damn good.

Next to the Lakers there is no team I despise more than Duke. However, I will give credit where credit is due. Coach K is an outstanding coach and deserves the recognition he gets. Past Duke teams have been soft, but this years team was tough mentally and physically. They had superior size and 3 guys that could score 20 points on any given night. I wish UNC had a point guard like Nolan Smith and shooters like Singler and Schyer(sigh).

They were gift wrapped an extremely easy bracket, but then again so was every team after so many teams fell early. It doesn't matter who you play, winning a national title is a tough thing to do. Watching Butler's run to the title game is proof that you actually do have to watch some mid major basketball to do well in your brackets. I had Butler out first round based on word of mouth alone. If I had seen how good this team was I would have had them at least to the Elite 8.

One of the hardest things to do as a sports fan is give credit to the teams you hate.  If this was 5 years ago I'd be depressed and angry throwing around excuses like it was my job.  But I like to think I have matured since then, and now realize there really is no use for stressing over things like this. What can you do? The teams won and that's that. Hope for a better season for your teams next year and move on with your life. Congrats to Duke, but UNC will be back next year and ready to take you down.

Anyone But Duke

I hope to never see this again

The title of this post says it all. Since UNC and Umass aren't in the tournament this year my number one focus is Duke losing. Unfortunately, and it sickens me to say this, but they have played pretty well these last few weeks especially on the defensive side of the ball. Not to mention they were gift wrapped the easiest region of all time even though they were a borderline #1 seed to begin with. I guess the silver lining in all of this is I get to root against them one more time on Saturday. Like I've said before, rooting against a team can almost be as fun as rooting for a team.

Every March Madness is filled with surprises but this one seems to be especially "mad" if you will. Two 5 seeds playing each other and three of the four #1 seeds bowing out early. It goes to show you that basketball is by far the dumbest sport to bet on. It's way too unpredictable. My bracket was toast after Villanova and Kansas lost in the same day. It looks more and more like naming my work pool Anyone but Duke may have had the opposite effect. Let's just say I'll be a huge WVU fan this Saturday.

A few months ago I wrote a column "Down with the Haters" about my dislike of people that hate just to hate. Now, I guess in some ways I'm guilty of this when it comes to my feelings for Duke. However, I think it's okay to hate a team more than it is to hate a player. Unless that individual has specifically harmed you or someone you know there's no reason to hate that particular individual. The exceptions to this? Terrell Owens and Kobe Bryant; Everyone should hate them.

Hating a team is different because you aren't attacking a person but rather just an organization. I don't hate Coach K or John Schyer or any of those guys. I just hate or rather strongly dislike Duke's basketball team. Same goes for the Lakers. While I don't like a lot of the players on the Lakers I don't hate them personally, but I do hate the Lakers as a team. Well, I do strongly dislike Kobe because I don't see any possibility of him being a good person.

The point is, part of loving sports is hating some teams. But always make sure to not take it so seriously. Remember these guys did not do anything to you and are just trying to help their teams win. Also, like I always say we wouldn't hate these teams if they weren't good You can root against them as much as you want, but let's quit with the personal attacks. Except of course if those personal attacks are going against T.O or Kobe, then please attack at will!

Why we love the Underdog

March Madness means the underdog takes front stage once again. In no other sporting event in the world do we see more upsets than during these 3 weeks. Nobody becomes somebody. Heroes are born. Goliaths fall. We embrace the underdog because in a way most of us are all underdogs in some sense. We want to see the little guy win because we have all been in that position before. Sure, when Northern Iowa toppled #1 seed Kansas most of us tore up our brackets. But then we cheered for these unknowns who were suddenly on center stage. Why? Because we've all dreamed of feeling that excitement for ourselves.

It's interesting that Americans get so behind underdogs because America is the anti-underdog. We are the most powerful nation in the world and besides soccer, expected to win pretty much everything. But while America itself is like that, the citizens themselves come from all walks of life. 99% of us will never set foot on the world stage. We go about our regular days fighting against the odds to succeed. The world is a cruel place sometimes and we are all battling to make it through. For us, we are the underdogs in this game of life (sappy but true!)

I realized when the Colts lost to the Saints in the Super Bowl that it is almost as fun to root against a team as it is for a team. That is another reason we love the underdog. We love to root against the favorite. For the casual fan who doesn't have money on their bracket, you are probably pulling for Cornell tomorrow night. Chances are you won't be rooting for Duke to win it all. I'd love to see an all mid major final someday. I can see Duke and Kentucky play anytime I want.

Nobody remembers the favorites who won. We all remember when George Mason made their magical run back in 2006, but some might take a few moments to remember who actually won that tournament. " Who is this year's George Mason" replaced "Who is this year’s Gonzaga". You never hear who is this year's Kansas or UNC or Duke. Every year there is a champion but usually it's the underdogs who stay in our memories forever.

My bracket is done and has been since Villanova lost last Saturday, but truthfully I don't care. I'm going to enjoy rooting for the Cornell's and Saint Mary's of the world. I'm going to hope Northern Iowa can continue their magical run. I'm going to root with everything I have against Duke. I will always cheer for the underdog unless of course it is against any of my teams. It's human instinct to root for them. Plus, it's just a lot more fun if the little guy wins than the favorite, don't you agree?

Athletes shouldn't be our role models

In the wake of the recent Tiger Woods apology, I thought I would give my two cents. Originally I was going to comment solely on the speech itself, but that has been done 3,000 different ways already. I think we can all agree that Tiger Woods isn't the person we thought he was, and that he will never truly recover from this scandal. Sure, the sponsors will come back and people will love him again, but this will be a cloud over him for the rest of his life. It's a sad state of affairs, but he has no one to blame but himself.

There seem to be two main camps people are a part of. One group thinks Tiger's personal life is none of our business and he shouldn't feel the need to apologize. After all it's not like he broke any law. The other camp think Tiger is a fraud and thinks his personal life is absolutely our business. I tend to lean toward this group because the personal lives of public figures are open to being scrutinized in this day and age. Plus, I can't defend or say nice things about a person who cheated on his wife. Just don't get married Tiger.

So, what does all this have to do with the title of the post? Well, the biggest reason this is such a big story is because of a huge problem in the world. That problem being that we look at athletes and movie stars as our role models rather than people we actually know. It's kind of sad isn't it? A lot of people in this country come from bad backgrounds where they don't have anyone else to look up but famous people they read about and watch on T.V. We treat these athletes like they are our own family, but in reality we know nothing about them. Tiger Woods shouldn't be anyone's role models besides his own kids. Its fine to look up to him and want to have what he achieved, but don't act like he is the person you want to be because you don't know him.

My dad is my role model and always will be. Even if a red headed NBA player that likes 2pac, Phil Collins, and kayaking comes along, my Dad will always be my role model. You know why? He's always been there for me and I can trust him. I love Larry Bird to death, but he wasn't helping me with my homework when I was a kid or going camping with me. Role models should be people you know and that have been there for you through your good and bad times. Sure, your mom and dad don't have millions of fans paying to watch their profession every night, but that shouldn't matter.

There's a big difference between admiring someone and someone being your role model. I admire Tiger for his incredible talent on the golf course, but I think it's sad that people who have never even met the guy lose sleep over this whole incident. I really hope those people can build actual real relationships with people so they can have something more tangible to consider a role model. Thanks for reading everyone!

Peyton Manning isn't that clutch

Watching the Colts lose is almost as satisfying as watching the Patriots win.  Needless to say I was ecstatic with the Saints 31-17 victory  in the Super Bowl last night.   Going into the game everyone was talking about Manning being the greatest QB ever, and maybe at the end of his career he will be.  However, he definitely isn't the most clutch and his playoff record is pedestrian at best.  Manning has a career playoff record of 9-9 and has repeatedly lost games where the Colts were the favorite.  His only Super Bowl win was against a team led by Rex Grossman. Even that year they had to come back from 18 points down to beat a Patriots team whose best receiver was David Givens. 

The Colts are turning into the Atlanta Braves of the NFL. Year after year they win their division and come into the playoffs as favorites.  But at the end of the day they can't finish.  This is America where we value championships above all else.  Hell, we consider Joe Namath one of the greats and his numbers were average at best. By the way, he could be the most overrated player of all time.  Anyway, when Manning threw that interception to basically seal the game last night, I was the happiest guy in the room.  I thought to to myself how thankful I was not to have to listen to two weeks of Manning coverage. The fact that he refused to shake hands at the end makes it even better.  See, the Patriots aren't the only ones who are bad sports!

Enough talk about Peyton Manning though. Let's talk about one of the best stories in the history of sports; The New Orleans Saints.  Remember this team was as good as gone after Katrina. But Paul Tagliabue insisted the Saints stay in New Orleans.  The Saints had been the Clippers of the NFL for so long and were more or less a joke.  Then Drew Brees gets signed as a free agent and the rest is history.  By the way, that has to be the greatest free agent signing in sports history.  Not only has he put up huge numbers and won a Super Bowl, but also been instrumental in getting the city of New Orleans back on its feet.  I don't know anyone who doesn't like Drew Brees. The guy just seems like a genuinely nice person and he's also an incredibly gifted quarterback.  I hope the Saints continue to do well in the coming years.

Sean Payton has to be given a lot of credit as well.  The onside kick call to begin the second half was the play that changed the whole complexion of the game.  What other coach makes that call in the NFL? Certainly not Jim Caldwell, who I'm still convinced is some kind of robot.  That call reminded me of how Belichick used to be back when he was at the top of his game(sigh).  If the play doesn't work out the Colts probably win the Super Bowl.  But you know what, if they just kicked it off regularly the Colts probably would've won as well. Never underestimate the importance of momentum in sports.

Well, football is over now and it's bittersweet.  The Saints beating the Colts was pretty much the best thing that could happen  with the Patriots being elimintated.  The fact that it happened in that fashion makes me down right giddy.  On the other hand, football is over and my Sunday's wont be the same.  Thankfully I'm a huge NBA fan, but there's something about football season that puts an extra hop in my step.  Congrats to the Saints and to the city of New Orleans!.