by tom weppel
The Jaguars come off a dominant win against the Carolina Panthers and now, at 9-4, are looking very strongly at a wild card playoff slot. Next they go up against a very good Pittsburgh Steelers squad. The game should serve as another solid barometer for the Jags to see where they stand amongst the best in the AFC. Jacksonville is playing good football. Offensively, they’ve gotten great play from QB David Garrard and RB Fred Taylor. The O-line has been effective in taking care of business, both in pass protection and in run-blocking. The receivers have shown signs of play-making. That has been a crutch for the offense all season.
Defensively, the Jags have also been solid. They will need to show that off when they go to Pittsburgh, as the Steelers are a proven outfit. And you must give some credit to Jackie Del Rio and his coaching staff, for putting together a pretty good plan and outfit, as they now are one of the top teams in the NFL. It should be fun to see how these guys operate in the last weeks, then see who they’ll have to play in the postseason on the road. Not too many teams will want to play them.
The hapless Miami Dolphins will host the Baltimore Ravens, a team that has been beaten up the past few weeks by the Pats and the Colts. It’s amazing how the ‘Fins have totally disintegrated. They have virtually one shot at winning a game these days. They are totally inept on offense, they have given up points on defense, and they are a bad, bad team. It will not be easy to bring the team back to respectability. Also, it must be decided whether to bring back first-year head coach Cam Cameron. It’s really tough to be a Miami fan these days.
Meanwhile, the Patriots are back to playing their dominant brand of football. They took care of the Steelers quite easily, and now they will host the Jets, whom they should beat to a pulp on Sunday. It seems the boys are heading to a 16-0 campaign. Ironically, the Pats and Dolphins will play in a few weeks. I’m guessing the Pats could be favored by as many as 30 points if not more.
This weekend the Florida Gator basketball squad comes into town to play Georgia Southern at the Jacksonville Coliseum. I had to bring this up because some Gator fans are still reveling over Tebow’s Heisman win and might’ve totally forgotten they do have a basketball team that is actually damn good. It’s ridiculous to me that Gator fans have such little respect for their roundballers. If Billy Donovan had done what he did at a program noted for their basketball play, he would be such a huge king of the land it wouldn’t be funny. You might think I’m being facetious, but if you think I’m wrong, then let’s see how many Tebow signs and T-shirts we’ll see at the Coliseum on Saturday. It will be almost stupid to see fans cheering for a football player at a basketball game and I don’t think it will change at all. I’m almost shocked that Donovan has stayed at Florida. If not for his fabulous contract and his family ties in that area, he easily could’ve fled. So, we’ll see if Gator basketball draws a crowd, here in a town that without question has a large number of supporters.
Here are two stories about two Quarterbacks who couldn’t be on more opposite ends of the spectrum. Florida Gator QB Tim Tebow won the Heisman Trophy last weekend. He is the first sophomore EVER to do so. We all know he had a fabulous year for the Gators. We all know of his work religiously, here and in other lands, especially with his father. He is a great guy with a great family. In winning that award, though, I believe Tim Tebow will operate like nothing short of a rock star on the Gainesville campus. There will not be one thing he can do without attracting attention in some way, shape, or form. He will have to have help, literally, in taking care of his business, even when it comes down to simply going to class or taking care of simple stuff that you and I are used to doing with no problem. I almost believe it will be a nightmare. We shall see.
Then you have Michael Vick, who was sentenced to 23 months in federal prison for his involvement in the dog fighting ring that operated on his property in Virginia. Vick’s life had so much promise and opportunity. He had a huge contract signed to play for the Falcons. He had immense talents to lead his team on the field. He had multiple deals signed to do endorsements, from video games to whatever. Because he lied to prosecutors and the FBI, then smoked pot and also killed some of his pit bulls, he will now be in jail and his professional football career is closed, for all intents. He will not get out until late 2009, meaning he will have been out of the game for three years. Even then, what team will want to bring him on, with his past following him?
It absolutely blows my mind that a guy with so much talent, so much opportunity, and so much available to him could do such completely stupid, idiotic actions. Michael Vick deserves everything that will now happen to him, and he will have a very, very hard time living the rest of his life, to any degree.
Tom Weppel talks trash with Greg Larson, Lonnie Marts, Eugene Chung, Artis Gilmore, and Ron Duguay on SportsAvengers.com 24/7.
|
