The National Footsie-Ball League?

[BigRedskinDaddy]

Let the reader beware: in my extended absence from this forum I have become so like a grouchy old man that I am now nearly indistinguishable from the real thing. This piece will therefore be chock-full of crochety, traditional, hidebound looks to the glorious past (when men were men and women were there for the men)...I kid, ladies. I kid.

But only a little.

I'm not sure when exactly it happened, this age thing...but suddenly one recent day I looked in the mirror and saw a person I didn't much recognize. Instead of me staring back there was this guy more than a little curmudgeonly. Some pseudo-AARP more than a little set in his ways, and that more than a little too soon.

I'm not happy about it, but such is life. Ever the opportunist, I intend to synergize what's left of my youthful enthusiasm and open-mindedness with my newly emerging, ever growing cynicism and irascibility. I don't know about any of you readers, but I'm more than a little afraid of what might come of this unlikely pairing -- but damn the torpedoes and full steam ahead, as my generation used to say...

Last warning: DANGER - NARROW-MINDS AHEAD. PROCEED WITH TACTFUL CAUTION. Let no readers who brave this entire piece later claim I did not give sufficient notice. While there may never be much of a rational explanation for these particular peeves of mine, as outlined below -- at least I can admit that much.

It's an exceedingly small victory, but I'll take them where I can get 'em.

Without further ado, here's what has my knickers in a knot. Roughly two-and-a-half weeks ago the NFL held it's annual spring meeting in Dana Point CA. While this particular gathering is less about actual business than it is about creating the preseason groundswell of excitement scant weeks before each season's draft and beyond, there are a couple of pretty significant items on the agenda every year. One of them is the meeting of the league's Rules Committee, which as it's name implies legislates all new rules or addendums to existing rules.

These are the guys who decide when and where the popcorn will fly. That is, they write the rule book; take that a step further and they more than anything else shape the game into not only what it is now but also what it will become. They do this by changing the rules, which subsequently changes the way the game is played.

Change is inevitable; it is, ironically, an unalterable fact of life. No matter who you are or what you do, you will face changes. Furthermore, each time you do, every time you adapt to your fluid circumstances...changes you. There is a saying that it is not the destination in Life but the journey that matters. We all experience that to some degree. Here endeth the cribbed version of Basic Life Philosophy 101, and my point is this: change is a necessary function of life. As such, I accept it because I must -- not necessarily because I want to. At times, when the pressure of mounting change and other factors becomes too heavy, I do what everybody does at some point. I look for an escape -- a brief respite from my daily reality.

That's where sports come in.


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Your Daddy's Redskins

[redskinjim]

draft is coming what are we to do ??

[Zerohero]

I still have no idea where they came up with no wedge or 5 man onside kicks. I cant think of any serious injury lately?

[Dirtbag59]

Originally Posted by Zerohero

I still have no idea where they came up with no wedge or 5 man onside kicks. I cant think of any serious injury lately?

Me...in high school (well not injured just some bad shoulder pain the next morning). I personally hated that. I mean I always played hard but my senior year my coaches made me the wedge buster. At which point I was like "whats that?" "Oh your going to line up on one side of the kicker and run straight into the middle of the opposing teams wedge." Never a pleasant feeling running into a bunch of guys holding hands.

Anyway as far as the safety rules. I don't necessarily like them but I definitely don't oppose them. Especially after seeing what happens to the bodies of some of the guys that play. Hell I had a D-Line coach that was a backup for the Bronocs and he walked with a limp due to the damage football did on his body. Another played for the Packers in the 70's and he has horrible back pain. Some guys can't even walk without someone helping them. It's in the leagues best interest to protect their players besides it's not like all of a sudden ballerinas are suddenly going to be able to play football because it's no longer violent.

[53Fan]

Originally Posted by Dirtbag359

Me...in high school (well not injured just some bad shoulder pain the next morning). I personally hated that. I mean I always played hard but my senior year my coaches made me the wedge buster. At which point I was like "whats that?" "Oh your going to line up on one side of the kicker and run straight into the middle of the opposing teams wedge." Never a pleasant feeling running into a bunch of guys holding hands.

Anyway as far as the safety rules. I don't necessarily like them but I definitely don't oppose them. Especially after seeing what happens to the bodies of some of the guys that play. Hell I had a D-Line coach that was a backup for the Bronocs and he walked with a limp due to the damage football did on his body. Another played for the Packers in the 70's and he has horrible back pain. Some guys can't even walk without someone helping them. It's in the leagues best interest to protect their players besides it's not like all of a sudden ballerinas are suddenly going to be able to play football because it's no longer violent.

With all the flack the NFL and NFLPA has been taking lately about not taking care of former players, maybe they're trying to reduce the number of future former players who will hold the NFL liable for their injuries?