Running on Fumes
The biggest news that came out of the NFL today was the trade that involved Jerry Rice going to the Seattle Seahawks for a 7th round draft pick. Jerry Rice is, no doubt, the best wide receiver to ever play the game. One can argue that he may even be the best football player ever in the history of the league. So, why is it that he insist to continue on playing when it’s obvious now that he is no longer the player he once was? For the past 2 years, he hasn’t been a major contributor to the Raiders offense. It’s actually sad and sort of embarrassing for a player of his caliber to be degraded to a 3rd or 4th option on offense. And now, to be traded for a 7th round pick … how low can you go Jerry? Michael Jordan did the same thing when he came out of retirement to play for the Wizards. I understand the competitive nature of these men, but I believe that it’s better for people to remember them as great players than the washed up versions of their former selves. Good examples of retiring on top: Barry Sanders, Mark McGuire, Steve Young, John Stockton, Larry Bird, and even Joe Montana. Let’s hope that Jerry Rice would hang it up after this season. Watching him now is painful.
3 Comments:
Yeah, it's tough. I don't know if this is true for Jerry, but for some of these nfl guys, they've been playing since they were little kids in the pee-wee leagues--they don't know any other life without a season of football.
...another example playing way too long is Jaworski!
Oh man. Jaworski!
I guess playing dirty is not really a skill. Even 50 year-olds can do it. He was good back in the day though.
Thing is, these guys just love the game, love it so much it's been their lives and still is their lives and it's hard to let go. I say if they wanna continue to compete athletically, push themselves even when they're old and almost keep up with guys half their age, then why not. They'll still be remembered as the greatest or at least one of the greats. Michael Jordan and Jerry Rice, they'll still be remembered as the best athletes in their game.
Post a Comment
<< Home