11/23/24
August 22, 2007
Drew Colors: "Bledsoe’s NFL legacy: all he really wanted was to be somewhere else."
I never could dislike the guy and this doesn't change things. I think it's completely overblown and that site seems like an overstretch from bostonsportsmedia.com. Boston bloggers describe a fairly simple arc: passion, interest from the internets, mistake web traffic for proof of your correctness, become what you abhor and start overblowing every story.
posted by yerfatma at 07:18 PM on August 22, 2007
Some of the comments are the best part of the article: There isn't a fisherman on this lake that is going to succeed if he is handed a new pole every single year. Which is a damn shame, because Drew legitimized this lake. BTW Whitefish is a beautiful lake. Can hardly blame a fella for wanting to return.
posted by THX-1138 at 08:40 PM on August 22, 2007
I come to praise the Cougar, and not to bury him, as I would like to do with most Cougars. I think this article is totally unfair and overly harsh. Bledsoe had a phenomenal career, went to a couple Super Bowls and has one ring. He put up some pretty gaudy numbers and in a different era those numbers would have garnered him some Hall of Fame consideration. Just because he spoke honestly about enjoying the downtime of his vacation more than the rigors of the season doesn't mean he was a pussy. Other guys (Tiki Barber, I'm looking at you) chose to walk away from the game once they had the money salted away and not because their bodies had given everything they had to play this brutal fucking sport. Bledsoe kept going until nobody wanted him, and for that even a WAZZU alum gets a pass from me.
posted by vito90 at 08:55 PM on August 22, 2007
Sometimes the competetive fires burn out at 35 when you have a kid, a lot of money, and you want to do something else with your life. Also, none of us know the true condition of his back, knees, or other joints that tend to really hurt after a season. You also have to think there are some environments that would be perfect for him and if they weren't interested, who is to blame him for hanging them up and enjoying the lake.
posted by jc at 10:39 PM on August 22, 2007
Just because he spoke honestly about enjoying the downtime of his vacation more than the rigors of the season doesn't mean he was a pussy. Other guys (Tiki Barber, I'm looking at you) chose to walk away from the game once they had the money salted away and not because their bodies had given everything they had to play this brutal fucking sport. So where would you put how Barry Sanders retired in all of this?
posted by jojomfd1 at 03:14 AM on August 23, 2007
So where would you put how Barry Sanders retired in all of this? Lions related burnout. Its amazing the whole team doesn't retire each and every year before season's end. The only entry on their exit interview: "Demoralization" or "Looked unfavorably upon by the Fates".
posted by gradys_kitchen at 09:58 AM on August 23, 2007
I can't blame him either. At the end of the day, football is just a job to these guys. Maybe not in thier rookie year, but by the time they are in their 30's it is. So he wanted to retire. So what? I know I would retire at 35 if I could. Also, I would like to point out that his comment was in whitefish review. Perhaps it was just an overly nice comment about how nice whitefish is and how much he loves the place.
posted by Steel_Town at 10:28 AM on August 23, 2007
Lions related burnout. No doubt at all Gradys. I was just wondering if that made him a "pussy" also, because he got his money and left early like Tiki did. At least the two of them will be able bodied enough to enjoy the money they earned. I say good for them, thanks, and you were fun to watch.
posted by jojomfd1 at 11:30 PM on August 24, 2007
One thing that made Sanders leaving hard was that he left more abruptly than Barber did, giving the Lions basically no warning that he was going to retire.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 07:23 AM on August 25, 2007
He also did not have to go endure all of the media asking him question after question every game about his retiring. I wonder if Tiki would have done it the same way in hindsight.
posted by jojomfd1 at 11:36 AM on August 25, 2007
Maybe, but it wouldn't help strengthen his relationship with Giants fans if he did. What Barry did made him look like a complete asshole, he was the only thing the Lions had and then he was gone. Combine that with the fact that he was not at all far from Payton's record and Lions fans missed out on what would have been the most exciting Lions football moment in at least the past decade.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 06:08 PM on August 25, 2007
What Barry did made him look like a complete asshole, he was the only thing the Lions had and then he was gone. Combine that with the fact that he was not at all far from Payton's record and Lions fans missed out on what would have been the most exciting Lions football moment in at least the past decade. Maybe, but if he had to choose between being able bodied for those he loved and people who enjoyed watching him work, he made the right choice, and people can think what they want.
posted by brainofdtrain at 01:14 PM on August 26, 2007
Mr. Bledsoe's "pedigree" is showing . . .