NFL

[kds]

I'm posting this in the NFL thread, but it could've easily been Politics. It seems another player who sports a red jersey with the number 7 has become the center of attention, in an Election Year.

www.nbcchicago.com/news/sports/who-is-harrison-butker-and-why-is-he-at-the-center-of-controversy-an-explanation/3440096/

Harrison Butker, the placekicker for the Chiefs, has become a controversial figure after video of a commencement speech he gave at a Christian college in Kansas went viral, most notably his comments about how his wife embraced her vocation as a wife & mother, as well as some comments that don't seem to fully support the LGBT Community.

Quite predictably for life in 2024, he's become a target for far left and a hero to the far right. Personally, I think this is just the latest case of outrage du jour. Whether or not one agrees or disagrees with his comments, it's likely the comments were solely meant for that graduating class. But, thanks to the internet, the comments are everywhere now.

This reminds me a bit of the Bud Light controversy last summer when an ad campaign that was specifically targeted to the LGBT community went viral and blew up.

[Kapitan]

I thought the kicker's comments were generally misguided. I don't agree with his opinions, and I don't like the way some of the opinions were framed in a partisan, divisive, culture-wars kind of way.

But I also think the media jumping all over it is even more misguided. It's not illegal to be conservative--even very conservative. And a Catholic university is presumably more conservative than your typical institution, which is probably why they invited this guy to speak in the first place. What's the purpose of this story even existing? To inform America that there are people in America who openly hold views that are ... relatively common in America? I'm sure this is shocking to people in some quarters, but much of America is on board with some, most, or all of this stuff. 

Imagine FoxNews running a story in which a pop star gave a speech at a Planned Parenthood function promoting DEI programs, abortion rights, and gender-affirming healthcare policies. Sure, they can frame that as red meat for conservatives--but what's the point? We know what beliefs are out there. And we know, more or less, who holds them, because people are often so willing to just fully buy in to their prewritten identities of red or blue. 

Maybe--maybe--this would be a real story if this guy had given this speech at a Democratic National Committee meeting or a gender studies department ceremony at Cal-Berkeley. But as it is, it's not even a real story. They may as well have run a story that the guy ate dinner the night before, or that he went to bed that night.

That anyone bothers getting up in arms over this kind of thing is just absurd to me. It's totally unnecessary anger, and it's bad for a person's own mental and physical health. 

[kds]

May 21, 2024 12:36:03 GMT Kapitan said:

I thought the kicker's comments were generally misguided. I don't agree with his opinions, and I don't like the way some of the opinions were framed in a partisan, divisive, culture-wars kind of way.

But I also think the media jumping all over it is even more misguided. It's not illegal to be conservative--even very conservative. And a Catholic university is presumably more conservative than your typical institution, which is probably why they invited this guy to speak in the first place. What's the purpose of this story even existing? To inform America that there are people in America who openly hold views that are ... relatively common in America? I'm sure this is shocking to people in some quarters, but much of America is on board with some, most, or all of this stuff. 

Imagine FoxNews running a story in which a pop star gave a speech at a Planned Parenthood function promoting DEI programs, abortion rights, and gender-affirming healthcare policies. Sure, they can frame that as red meat for conservatives--but what's the point? We know what beliefs are out there. And we know, more or less, who holds them, because people are often so willing to just fully buy in to their prewritten identities of red or blue. 

Maybe--maybe--this would be a real story if this guy had given this speech at a Democratic National Committee meeting or a gender studies department ceremony at Cal-Berkeley. But as it is, it's not even a real story. They may as well have run a story that the guy ate dinner the night before, or that he went to bed that night.

That anyone bothers getting up in arms over this kind of thing is just absurd to me. It's totally unnecessary anger, and it's bad for a person's own mental and physical health. 

I agree with all points.   And, in the pre-internet world, this probably isn't even a story.   

[Kapitan]

Hopefully this is the last of this so-called controversy with the Chiefs' kicker's statement. I'm just posting to share what I thought was a good statement (or rather a non-statement) by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. From my local paper's republication of the AP story on it:

Commissioner Roger Goodell declined Wednesday to expand on the NFL's statement distancing the league from comments made by Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker during a commencement address at a private Catholic college in Kansas.

''We have over 3,000 players,'' Goodell said as the NFL concluded its spring meetings. ''We have executives around the league that have a diversity of opinions and thoughts just like America does. I think that's something that we treasure, and that's part of, I think, ultimately what makes us as a society better.''

The league already said last week in a statement that Butker's comments and "views are not those of the NFL as an organization.''

(Bolding mine.) I think he's right to try to quash it, and I think those few sentences above are exactly right.

[kds]

Well, I really don't think Goodell (or whoever wrote that statement for Goodell) could've put it better.

In the light of other off the field issues with players, Butker's speech is pretty mild.

[Kapitan]

May 22, 2024 19:16:32 GMT kds said:

Well, I really don't think Goodell (or whoever wrote that statement for Goodell) could've put it better.

In the light of other off the field issues with players, Butker's speech is pretty mild.

Yeah, that is one funny (not funny) aspect of this kind of thing: the level of freaking out over some provocative conservative statements that are arguably sexist or anti-LGBT compared to responses to the semi-regular incidents of domestic violence, for example. If a married couple is happy living in a very traditional, even Little House on the Prairie kind of arrangement, that's better than a guy punching his girlfriend...

[Kapitan]

RIP to Monte Kiffin, one of the great defensive coaches of the past 40+ years. Kiffin, 84, was one of the coaches who made the "Tampa 2" one of the most successful--and copied--defenses since the mid-90s. A 4-3 defense where the linebackers (especially middle) have deep coverage responsibilities, two safeties deep, an emphasis on speed and tackling over size, an odd combination of relatively conservative philosophy/lineup being played aggressively, it changed the NFL. I'd say in the '90s and '00s it was the defensive equivalent of what the West Coast offense was in the '80s and '90s.

Kiffin was a defensive assistant in Minnesota for much of my childhood, 1986-94 (with a brief gap in there), but went on to greater acclaim when fellow Vikings coaching alum Tony Dungy (who had been defensive coordinator here) brought him in as his defensive coordinator in Tampa Bay in 1996. They, of course, turned a laughingstock franchise into a Super Bowl champion, largely on that defense.

[Kapitan]

Last year, rookie WR Jordan Addison was a surprisingly big contributor: 70 catches, 911 yards, 10 TDs. Fantastic.

But before the season even began, he was stopped for driving 140 mph on a metro area interstate. He was given a slap on the wrist, and both team and he insisted he'd learn from it, and it would never happen again.

A couple of weeks ago, he was found by police "sleeping" (let's be serious: passed out) in the driver's seat of his vehicle on a highway in Los Angeles near LAX airport. This shortly after would-be rookie cornerback Khyree Jackson was killed in a car accident in which the other driver was suspected of drunken driving. Surely the hammer will fall, right?

Our GM said this: "Any disappointment we might have in Jordan, Jordan has more in himself. He knows the types of behaviors he needs to do to be the best version of himself. And he's kind of let himself down in that regard. Using words like discipline and different things like that, we don't really talk about it like that inside these walls. Inside these walls, it's about designing for the outcome we want. The outcome we want is for Jordan to be the best version of himself on the field and off the field, and he's bought into that same exact same thing."

Our head coach said the team needs to "wrap our arms around Jordan."

1. I'm all for second chances. I don't want some old-school disciplinarian, the kind of coach who makes everyone run until they throw up or pass out. But especially in an incident like this, somebody needs to get Addison to understand that at the very least, he should hire a f#$kin' driver (but also probably should seriously consider whether he's got an alcohol problem and seek treatment).

2. Beyond that, the way these coaches talk now! It's the same kind of jargon you get from a coporate HR department (or a progressive activist or teacher, or a therapist). I am sick to death of that kind of lingo. Between our two main football teams (Vikings and Gophers), we're drowning in jargon. (Gophers coach PJ Fleck is even worse. He's got a cutesy slogan for everything. I can't understand how anyone would choose to play under a guy like that.)

[kds]

I honestly can't comprehend these young athletes who drink and drive. From what I understand, the NFL offers a ride program for free.

The Ravens had an issue with their rookie WR Zay Flowers, when there was news that he was involved in a domestic altercation. The incident allegedly happened in mid January, possibly while the Ravens were in the playoffs. It does make me wonder if that had anything to do with his meltdown in the AFC Championship. But, the story pretty much went away, and I don't believe any charges were filed.

[Kapitan]

The Athletic posted its preseason power rankings. The home teams of people on the board whom I think follow a team in the NFL:

#1 carllove's Chiefs
#5 kds's Ravens
#10 Sheriff John Stone's Eagles
#14 The Cincinnati Kid's Bengals
#23, my Vikings
#28, B.E.'s Giants

[B.E.]

Jul 24, 2024 12:29:55 GMT Kapitan said:

The Athletic posted its preseason power rankings. The home teams of people on the board whom I think follow a team in the NFL:

#1 carllove 's Chiefs
#5 kds 's Ravens
#10 Sheriff John Stone 's Eagles
#14 The Cincinnati Kid 's Bengals
#23, my Vikings
#28, B.E. 's Giants

Ouch!

[The Cincinnati Kid]

Jul 24, 2024 12:29:55 GMT Kapitan said:

The Athletic posted its preseason power rankings. The home teams of people on the board whom I think follow a team in the NFL:

#1 carllove's Chiefs
#5 kds's Ravens
#10 Sheriff John Stone's Eagles
#14 The Cincinnati Kid's Bengals
#23, my Vikings
#28, B.E.'s Giants

I'll go on record and say the Bengals are far too low. They nearly made the playoffs last year with by far the toughest schedule in the league and no Burrow for half of the season. Although, you do have to question at this point if Burrow will be injury free the entire season.

[Kapitan]

I want to say the Vikings are getting the short shrift, but honestly, I have no clue how good or bad we'll be this season. We've got a formerly can't-miss QB who became a journeyman and is trying to resurrect his career, Sam Darnold, as he keeps the spot warm for JJ McCarthy. But we've had great luck sometimes with similar guys, from Randall Cunningham to Case Keenum. The offense around him should be great. The defense has a lot of unknowns, but was at least interesting last year under aggressive and unpredictable DC Brian Flores. But the secondary was sketchy, and we've had the death of one talented rookie (Khyree Jackson) and just heard of the torn ACL of a talented second-year CB (Mekhi Blackmon). So that's not great.

At this point, I wouldn't be surprised to win 7 games, or to win 10 games. I don't see us as being AWFUL, but I doubt we'll be very good. So if we're better than #23, we still may be, say, 20. 17. 15. It's not like we're title contenders.

[kds]

I don't put a lot of faith in Power Rankings, especially ones released in July.

But, 5 for the Ravens feels fair. My only real concern is OL. They have a ton of turnover there, and a LT in Ronnie Stanley who can't stay healthy. But, I pulled expect them to be in the mix for the Super Bowl.

[Sheriff John Stone]

A very emotional story:

www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nfl/steve-mongo-mcmichael-who-has-als-enters-the-pro-football-hall-of-fame-in-ceremony-at-his-home/ar-AA1obpD8?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=c7733b04ba8c46eef80a6d86e04afc37&ei=14