Yes, I know what you're thinking. "Kev, you put a question mark up there by mistake." Actually I didn't. This isn't a post to argue statistics, because Ray Lewis has them all. This is merely to describe a hypothetical situation. The Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio has halls lined with the busts of all time greats. Coaches like Vince Lombardi and Bill Walsh and players like Bart Starr and Steve Young, the names that resonate with fans of the game. A 46 member selection committee is charged with the task of determining who belongs in the Hall of Fame. From the Pro Football Hall of Fame website, "The Committee consists of one media representative from each pro
football city with two from New York, inasmuch as that city has two
teams in the National Football League. A 33rd member is a representative
of the Pro Football Writers of America and there are 13 at-large
delegates." These men and women determine who belongs in the halls of Canton, and anyone who gets 80% 'Yes' votes gets in. Which brings me to this question, should they pick Ray Lewis?
Before I answer that question, let's examine how baseball selects their hall of famers. In order to be on the selection committee for baseball, you must have been a member of the Baseball Writers' Association of America for at least 10 years, and last year there were 573 votes cast. Anyone with 75% 'Yes' votes gets in. But here is where I make my point. According to the website for the baseball hall of fame, "Voting shall be based upon the player's record, playing ability,
integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to the team(s) on
which the player played." And according to those criteria, apparently no one deserved to be elected this year. This was undoubtedly due to the prominent use of steroids in the era, and being linked to steroids has no doubt kept Clemens, Bonds and others out of the Hall in recent years because their use of steroids defies the "sportsmanship" portion of the criteria which I have no problem with.
Lewis in his court appearance in 2000
The NFL doesn't seem to have this specific criteria. Only that each player will be evaluated thoroughly in the election process. Which finally brings me to Ray Lewis. Ray Lewis has been one of the most dominant defensive players that this game has ever seen. He is the only player in NFL history with 40 sacks and 30 interceptions in his career, and has anchored a feared defense for 17 seasons. His numbers are mind boggling and are certainly worthy of Hall of Fame recognition. But if the NFL followed suit with the baseball Hall of Fame voters, would Lewis get in? The reason I ask this is because of an incident that happened after the super bowl in Atlanta in 2000, causing Ray Lewis and two other men to be indicted on charges of a double murder. To make a long story short, Lewis plead guilty to misdemeanor obstruction of justice charges in exchange that he testify against his two friends who end up being found not guilty (You can read the whole story here). Lewis got only a year of probation and served no jail time.
Now in no way am I arguing that Ray Lewis was guilty of murder, though there are plenty who still feel he is. What he is guilty of, is being involved in a very messy situation, one that does not present a good image for the NFL and certainly does not teach children a good lesson about the game. To get back to my question, after being involved with such and incident, should Ray Lewis be rewarded with the Hall of Fame? In baseball, Pete Rose received a lifetime ban for allegedly betting on the game of baseball. Rose was not implicated in a murder charge, he was making money on the side by influencing the games one way or another. The all time hits leader won't make the hall of Fame because he bet on the game and "ruined its integrity." And very soon (should Lewis retire this season) another type of 'hits' leader will be eligible for selection to his respective Hall of Fame. There isn't a doubt in my mind that Lewis will be selected, and probably in his first year. But if the tables were turned, would we be so sure? Does Ray Lewis' past demonstrate character, integrity and sportsmanship? The real answer is I don't know. What I do know is this: in this day and age with sports being as prominent as they are (especially the NFL), voters should not turn a blind eye to off the field conduct. Because we should not reward athletes who have escaped the arms of the law with a slap on the wrist because of their fame.
And now, the Ray Lewis dance we've all seen for 17 years and wondered what the hell he was actually doing...
And on a more positive note, something we can all take away from Ray Lewis, "If tomorrow wasn't promised, what would you give for today?"
I've been thinking a lot about Mr. Armstrong and his career as of late, obviously because of the black cloud of controversy that's hanging over his head. His career accomplishments are (officially) nothing, since he was stripped of all seven of his Tour de France titles after he refused to fight the accusations of steroid use any longer. But he did actually win all of those races, and he did that after recovering from testicular cancer. He won the world's most arduous, intense and physically demanding cycling race after recovering from cancer, and then he won that same race six more times. This is a feat that no one has come remotely close to, so without a doubt this is a tremendous accomplishment.
Lance Armstrong, during his record seventh Tour victory
Yet here is where we come to the fork in the road, where people have diverged down two different paths in regard to Armstrong and his career. Down one path are those who value, above all, athletic integrity. The people who believe also that Pete Rose doesn't belong in the baseball Hall of Fame because he bet on baseball, the same people who will always consider Hank Aaron the home run king and not the steroid inflated Barry Bonds. And their opinion is completely valid. Armstrong will apparently be admitting to the Queen of personal interviews Oprah Winfrey that he took performance enhancing drugs, and for some that discredits his entire career. Fair enough. Then the other path people will take is more of a accepting path. These people generally accept that this era in sports will be defined by performance enhancing drugs. They probably also have a mindset that believes that Armstrong wasn't alone in his use of steroids, just like Bonds wasn't alone in his, and that these athletes were still the best of their era. They believe that, while Armstrong cheated, so did many many of his competitors, and by that logic he was still the best.
I'm actually still standing at the fork in the road. I had traveled down the path of most, complete adoration of Armstrong because of his incredible dominance of a sport that honestly isn't very interesting. But since the supposed admission to using steroids, after years and years of denying it, has me backtracking my opinion. For me the jury is still out. But here is what is undeniable. Lance Armstrong, steroids or not, made riding a bicycle incredibly interesting. If it wasn't for him, I would've never taken the slightest interest in the Tour de France. I know for a fact that I am not the only one who tuned in just to see if Lance was going to pull out another astonishing victory. Since Lance has left the sport, ESPN's coverage of the event has gone from highlight worthy to mere afterthought. Not only has Armstrong done incredible things on two wheels, but also off of the bike as well. He started an incredible organization known as Livestrong, which raises money for cancer research. If you never owned or saw a yellow bracelet bearing the word Livestrong then you probably lived in a closet for about 10 years. The Livestrong foundation has raised nearly $500 million for cancer research, and has obviously raised awareness about the terrible disease. These are the facts, and they are undeniable. Critics have gone so far as to say his work with Livestrong is discredited because "He lied to everyone who believed in his story". I find that ridiculous. Armstrong lied about using steroids, yes. But even if his legacy reads "Cancer survivor wins Tour de France seven times while using steroids in an era that is already marked by widespread steroid use," he's still an inspiration to anyone afflicted with cancer. This man was at the apex of his sport after surviving a killer disease. Most patients want to survive, but Armstrong showed them all that not only can they survive, they can thrive.
It is because of his incredible achievements, both on and off the bicycle, that I am still unsure about where I stand on Armstrong. I find it hard to accept his repeated denial. And it also hurts to think that all the time I admired him he was not abiding by the rules of his sport. I wouldn't want my (future) children admiring an athlete who cheated to gain success. But I am certainly not ready to admit that he is a compete fraud, because I DO want my (future) kids to admire a man who beat adversity, and against all odds did something that had never been done and will never be done again.
Wow. Simply wow. What
a weekend in the NFL. Easily one of the best weekends of football I have
watched in a long time. All four losing teams scored at least 28 points, and in
the game that was the least competitive we saw Colin Kaepernick break a single
game record. It was both heartbreaking and triumphant. Extreme emotions flowed
from both ends of the spectrum, depending on which team had your support on the
day. But if we look at the games simply as a spectator it was an incredible
weekend to be a football fan.
I personally had my heart ripped out of my chest with the
mind blowing shocker in the mile-high city. I am unashamed in my support of
Peyton Manning. I firmly believe he’s the greatest quarterback of all time, but
I will also admit that there are plenty of very reasonable arguments for other
signal callers (especially that super model’s husband in New England). I was
devastated to see Manning do everything he needed to win the game, only to have
it ripped from his hands by what could be called the WORST play by a safety in
recent memory. I also firmly believe that John Fox blew the game by being the
most conservative coach EVER. He decided to run the ball three straight times
to try and milk the clock for every second and to leave the Ravens with as
little time as possible. That is absolutely the correct strategy if Jake
Delhomme is your quarterback. But let me do you a favor Fox, and introduce you
to PEYTON MANNING. You know, the bionic man who led your team to 11 straight
wins, holds innumerable records and is quite possibly the man with the highest
football IQ the game has ever seen. But no, good old John Fox put away his man
parts in the fourth quarter and made the cardinal sin in the NFL. He played to
not lose the game. Allow me to quote Mr. Herm Edwards, who once said so
convincingly that “You play to win the game.” Fox apparently missed that day in
NFL coaching class, and instead left it up to Flacco to not come up big. Turns
out Flacco has a rocket launcher for an arm and Jacoby Jones can run kinda
fast. Then John freaking Fox decides that 30+ seconds and two timeouts and
Manning at quarterback isn’t enough time to try anything, so he takes a knee.
The expletives that flew from my mouth at that moment were enough to make a
sailor blush. I’ll paraphrase by saying that Fox has the same genitalia as a
Ken doll. Yes my hero Manning did throw the game away in OT with that bonehead
interception, and ultimately I guess you can blame the loss on him. But if you
did blame him, you’d be wrong.
Flacco's miracle heave (Sorry, best quality I could find)
The Patriots won, despite losing the little engine that
could Woodhead and the “Half man half hulk” who seems to have hit the next
level of the evolutionary chain, known to most simply as Gronk. Any of this
sound familiar to anybody? Because it should. The boys from the North do this all
the damn time. It’s sickening, but admirable. They just win, and as the lovably
loquacious Billy Belichick always says… wait he never has anything to say. This
section is short because there’s nothing unique to say about this game. It’s
January, in the NFL playoffs, Tom Brady and the Pats won. In other news the sky
is blue and the sun rose today.
This one is for the ladies
The Atlanta Falcons, the number one seed that nobody thought
was any good. All we heard all week was the team that tied for the best record
in the NFL had no chance. Matt Ryan was a choke artist and the Falcons never
show up in the playoffs. I’ve got news for you, that’s not true anymore. Ryan jumped
all over Seattle, giving his team a 20-point lead early in the game. Then, as
if it was scripted for Hollywood, the Seahawks charged back led by the rookie
quarterback who was “too small to be a pro.” But the Boston College product
known to Atlanta faithful as Matty Ice put that Hollywood finish on hold,
surprising the shit out of everyone by driving his team into field goal range
in the blink of an eye and watched as Matt Bryant silenced all of the Atlanta
critics… for now.
Falcons got a nice cold glass of Matty Ice
Then we have the 49ers. What an interesting story, Alex
Smith leads the team to the conference finals last year, and was in the top
five in the NFL in QBR until a little bump on his head changed everything. A
young man named Colin Kaepernick ripped Smith’s job away in about 4.43 seconds,
which happens to be Kaepernick’s 40 yard dash time. But what would the second-year
pro do in his first playoff game? He’d probably fold under the pressure of the
big stage, right? Wrong. He ran for an astonishing 181 yards, an NFL single
game record for a quarterback, and discount double checked Aaron Rodgers and
the Packers all the way back to Green Bay. Can Kaep keep this show rolling?
Only time will tell.
Yes it's corny, but oh so true
I guess I would be remiss if I didn’t talk about the Ravens,
who hung around long enough in Denver to pull out a miraculous win. Led by the
future hall of famer Ray Lewis, who is on his farewell tour, the Ravens have
found a way to win. On the football field it is undeniable that Lewis is an
emotional leader, and maybe the greatest middle linebacker in NFL history. Off
the field is another story, but I’ll leave that topic untouched. Joe Flacco has
been one of the most criticized quarterbacks in the NFL for a while now,
because he “doesn’t win big games.” However, Flacco is the only NFL quarterback
to win a playoff game in his first five seasons. The sound of critics being
silenced was apparent on Saturday, as Flacco made throw after throw, hitting
Torrey Smith on repeated deep throws and of course the absolute bomb to Jacoby
Jones to tie the game with only a few ticks on the clock. Then Flacco and the
Ravens took advantage of Manning’s mistake in OT to win the game on a field
goal. All allegiances aside, it was an impressive performance and Flacco
deserves a lot of credit for the win.
Apparently this is what "shit luck" looks like
Sitting here with my fingers on the keyboard I can still
feel every up and down of the emotional roller coaster that these games took me
on. I can only hope that anyone reading this had half of the emotional
excitement that I did watching these games, because it’s my opinion that sports
have the ability to make someone forget about the world we live in. From
kickoff to the final whistle, it can take your mind off of all the trials and
tribulations this crazy ass world puts us through, and I believe that’s pretty
special.
