Philadelphia Eagle Robert Griffin III: Why the Eagles should trade up for RG3

A year ago, the Eagles had the most advantageous quarterback scenario in the NFL. They had an MVP caliber player in the resurgence of Michael Vick alongside a player viewed by many as a future annual Pro Bowler in the embryonic Kevin Kolb. Andy Reid has been credited many times with his ability to mold quarterbacks. I mean, some critics of Donovan McNabb claim that he was no more than a worn out napkin without the presence of Andy Reid and his ‘run and gun’ offense. Other critics (me included) view McNabb as an undervalued asset for the majority of his career. But that’s beside the point. The NFL’s Miami Heat, err, Dream Team, ehh…definition of mediocrity, 8-8 Philadelphia Eagles need to take a long, hard and serious look at Robert Griffin III – a phenom that could change their city’s terrible (insert word of playoff blunders and mishaps here).

Having produced an electrifying career, filled with scrambling, deep bombs, big wins and NFL superstardom, Michael Vick is not the long term solution in Philadelphia, despite what his contract may state. Vick, who will turn 32 this summer, battled through a 2011-2012 season where he had extreme difficulties staying on the field for the Eagles. His reckless style leads him to be a target for defenses, more or less a tackling dummy with a $100 bill stapled to his forehead. The argument stands – Michael Vick’s two years in prison makes him only 30 in NFL years. I see it a bit differently. I see a 32 year old quarterback, especially one who takes as many hits as him, as a 32 year old quarterback. Vick has strong years ahead, no doubt about that, but the Eagles need a 10 year future, not a 3 year future. In the same precarious position, the Colts are going to take Andrew Luck, which is why the Eagles should take a leap and go with Robert Griffin III.

Let’s commence the argument with a discussion of pure dimensions. Robert Griffin is taller (6’2”), bigger (223 lbs) and almost as fast as Vick. His 40 yard dash time of 4.41 made him the second faster quarterback in history. The fastest (?) – Yeah, Mike Vick. But Griffin remains ultra-uber-mega talented. There is a chance that no one in the NFL has ever quite seen a talent like Robert enter the league at the quarterback position. He is mature and has his senses about him. He handles the media well and is always well-spoken. He was a scholar athlete at Baylor and is going back for a Master’s degree in Communication (in an era where many NFL players don’t finish undergrad degrees). Griffin played for a Baylor program that has been the pooper scooper of the Big 12 for some time. He was recruited throughout the country my major programs, but was only given the chance to play quarterback by coach Art Briles, whom he followed in his commitment from Houston to Baylor. At Baylor, he transformed the program, whereas by his final season he led the Bears to a 10 win season and a bowl victory over Washington –in the process put up gaudy statistics. In comparison, Griffin saw 4 years of action to Vick’s 2 at Virginia Tech. Griffin posted a completion percentage north of 70% in 2011, where Michael Vick never eclipsed 60% at Virginia Tech (and has only done it once in the NFL – during 2010 where he made only 12 starts). Vick entered the NFL as a 21 year old (20 when drafted), while Griffin enters the league as a 22 year old veteran. The second best quarterback in Vick’s class was Drew Brees –taken with the first overall pick (of the 2^nd round). The second best quarterback in Griffin’s class, is… well, Griffin. He is behind a fellow quarterback from Stanford named Andrew Luck, who is the slam dunk first overall pick (and slam dunk hall of famer in the minds of some). The pressure isn’t on Griffin. He has the chance to be the exception. He has the chance to be the one who was snubbed.

This has been a lot of Vick vs. Griffin, with a lot of points made against Mr. Vick himself. It wasn’t my intent. Michael Vick has had to overcome a lot to get where he is in his professional career and what he accomplished in a year and a half in Philly was fun to watch, but when thinking Super Bowls and longevity of a franchise, the answer lies in Griffin. Under Andy Reid (which dear god, Philly must keep him at the helm), Griffin can flourish. He could be the best in the league. He seems almost like a perfect puzzle put together of the best quarterbacks in the NFL today. If anything, he is an Aaron Rodgers type who is more elusive, faster overall and with more experience coming out of college.

Griffin will be a star. The only thing holding him back from greatness is his bountiful list of gifts outside of football. Griffin has the intelligence of a Manning (bit of a stretch), the accuracy of a Brees (again, a tad of a stretch) and the speed and agility of a Vick (close, but same story). The fun part lies in the fact that he is one player. One quarterback. Anyone in the league would be lucky to have him on their roster. He should be like Ricky Williams (from a draft position, not a NFL career), where as any team should sell the ship for him. Trade everything.

Eagles, I know you have assembled a “dream team” of talent – but instead of using it to try and finish above .500, use it to acquire Griffin. We already know you met with Griffin. He was a nice guy right? Send Asomugha, Jackson, draft picks, whatever. The Rams are sitting by the phone. So do it. The worst case scenario for  picking in the number 2 slot, is that you might be stuck with Andrew Luck…

Troy Klongerbo Griffin III

Super Bowl XLVI – What will you remember?

After a festival of commercials and snacks leave, our memories retain legacies. Super Bowls produce legacies. For the NFL, more than any professional sport, a Super Bowl victory defines its players. It places them in the lexicon of all-time greats – of legends.

Visualize a legend. In our minds, legends are black and white. Legends appear as ghosts. They do not speak, they are noble and revered. We do not envision the living legends we watch today. We are, indeed, watching legends before our eyes, even though we don’t realize it. Tom Brady is amongst them. The Patriots quarterback is the stuff of legend. A 6^th round draft pick – over looked at every level of his career – couldn’t even garner the respect of his college coach. He is the quintessential blue collar quarterback, despite at times looking like a pretty boy with his Cali swag. He has dug his career out of the dirt, appearing about as physically talented as a mechanic at a local Jiffy Lube. He wins with his mind. He wins with his desire. He wins with his 'it'.

If anything, this Super Bowl feels anticlimactic. Rewind time and we’ve seen this before. A boring rematch. It is the first time in history two quarterbacks meet again in a Super Bowl. It is also, the first time that two Super Bowl champion coaches meet in the Super Bowl. Revert to 2007, a struggling Giants team, turned scorching hot, ran through a NFC – seemingly stuck in the mud – to a Super Bowl. The 2007 Giants, anchored by a strong pass rush and clutch quarterback play from an underrated leader, reached the Super Bowl as an underdog to...the Patriots. The 2007 ‘Rat Pack’ Pats, as they were called by my memory, were the Super Bowl favorites for months on end. The epitome of continuity in an NFL that preaches parity, the Patriots had been the standard of excellence. And the two teams meet again.

Now we’ve looked at Tom Brady, but let’s not forget this is a match-up of elite quarterbacks. Elite quarterbacks. Eli-te quarterbacks. I have understood reservations to place Eli in this select category, because despite his ring, he doesn’t match his statistics with the gaudy statistics we see in New Orleans, Green Bay, New England and the 1999-2010 Indianapolis Colts. With the most road playoff victories in history and his second visit to a Super Bowl in 4 years, Eli can be considered elite. Better than the top four? Probably not, but elite none the less. If he beats the Patriots again, he will have more Super Bowl wins than his Hall of Famer brother. Both of his Super Bowls would be won over the same team that has held Peyton back from arguably winning 3 or 4 rings. Eli would join and surpass many of the NFL’s greats.

But he won’t. The Giants cannot and will not win this game.

It was hard enough to beat the Patriots in 2007. The ’07 Pats were under the burden of perfection bearing down on their bodies. It took a record breaking Brady returning to normalcy to have an opportunity to win. It took adhesive help from David Tyree’s helmet and a Houdini act by Manning just to summon a winning drive, to win by a mere 3 points.  

It is near impossible to beat the Patriots twice in the same season. The Giants got the best of Brady and Co. in October. The Patriots haven’t lost since, winning ten straight contests. Belichick will not allow himself to be outsmarted, not again, not this Super Bowl. The ultra-competitor Tom Brady will pick through the Giants defense, Gronk or no-Gronk. The mesh-like Patriots defense will make enough stops to allow Brady to finish his unfinished business.

When the clock hits zeros, Tom Brady will not be an elite quarterback in this league. He will be a legend. 

Troy 'bobo' Klongerbo

Friday (Unassisted)

Can someone please find video of Pavel Datsyuk catching the flying puck on his stick during the All-star game? By now our readers know that we are big fans of #13 #dats here at Friday (Unassisted), and that play reaffirmed our faith that he is the most talented healthy hockey player on the planet and therefore universe. I'll ask Bryz for confirmation on the latter just to make sure. I couldn't quite believe the play when I saw it: the puck dropping from some fifteen feet above the ice (I don't know, and it probably doesn't either, what it was doing up there) when Datsyuk brought his stick up to meet it and calmly eased the disc back to its rightful place on the ice. Now, know that the play separated from its context is not all that difficult. But to do it in a game setting, albeit an all-star game, is downright preposterous. Above all, Datsyuk's smoothness in executing the difficult plays separates him from a litany of other very talented players. Alex Ovechkin flails at flying pucks like a child might swipe at a fly: swinging tirelessly, hoping to smack the fly just so he can show it off to his friends. Datsyuk on the other hand, reaches up and plucks the wings off the same fly in mid-flight and leaves his admirers in awe.
Enough about him, let's take a look at some other things.

All-Star Player Draft
I was only needling my Sharks fan friend when I told him that Logan Couture would be the last pick in the All-Star player draft, but I was still right. Not my first correct prediction, nor my boldest (I correctly predicted that Santonio Holmes would win MVP of the Super Bowl three years back. I will always brag about that), but it was an educated prediction. Couture plays for the very good, but consistently anonymous San Jose Sharks. I say anonymous in the sense that if you asked a general sports who's not necessarily a hockey fan to try and name every team in the NHL, he would undoubtedly struggle to name the Sharks. In other words, the Sharks don't receive the kind of national exposure that they probably deserve. A humble Couture took his status as last pick quite well explaining, "He's a young guy," and as a young guy he must acquiesce to the veterans. I like the player draft, I do. But I think there's something to the notion that the school yard style draft embarrasses those who get picked in later rounds. Although Couture, and Phil Kessel last year, handled the selection admirably, they day will surely come when someone won't. The NHL couldn't handle such an occurrence whilst they're on the national sports radar for the weekend. My solution is similar to Don Cherry's, who believes that the captains should resort to the old sticks in the middle way of picking teams: goalies' sticks first, followed by defensemen's, and then concluding with the forwards'. I agree that goalies should be selected separately, but why not let the forward and d-men sticks stay intermingled? So what if one team has nine d-men and the other has three. I'd like to see how some of the games most talented forwards would fare on the blue line. The dangle-fest that is the All-Star game would only become more danglier as Marian Gaborik gets walked routinely for Team Nash while playing the point. Plus d-men, I know from experience, love going forward. In regular games coaches might chastise them, calling out "You're not f-ing Bobby Orr!" (I've heard that one before). Here though, they can go forward all they want, and get this, not back check just to get back at all those lazy forwards. I'm emailing a link to Gary Bettman right now.

Pay to Watch Players
Recently Sports Illustrated's Michael Farber asserted that the league lacks "pay to watch" players. Farber called the dearth of these stars "a looming crisis." Certainly with Sidney Crosby injured and Alex Ovechkin tamed, there is a vacuum of star power growing the league. Evgeni Malkin has been playing on another level recently (see last week's post), but he lacks his countryman Ovechkin's flair. Jonathon Toews is the consummate team captain: he scores, kills penalties, wins faceoffs, and works to milk every drop of talent out of his Chicago teammates. But Toews lacks the obvious talent. He produces consistently but his goals are rarely of the highlight variety. And then there's Pavel Datsyuk. Farber sums up Pavel's plight as a "pay to watch" player superbly: "No hockey connoisseur can get enough of the Red Wings center, who, like Lucy's ballet music or sweetbreads, requires a more refined pallet." In other words, the average fan, let alone the casual sports fan, cannot appreciate the smooth Russian.
I think the problem lies not in a dearth of uber-talented players, but rather in the league's inability to market those players. For five years now the NHL has seemed to put all of its eggs in the Crosby-Ovechkin basket while also relying on the success of national teams such as the Red Wings, Flyers, Blackhawks, and the Stanley Cup champion Bruins. Now, with Crosby out and Ovechkin struggling through a comparatively mediocre season, the NHL has lost some of its star power on the national sports level. Penguins and Capitals highlights are no longer featured on Sportscenter, and their road games don't produce the kind of attendance they have in recent years. I'd like to see the NHL work to market some of the other young players who are taking their games to new heights such as Steven Stamkos in Tampa Bay, Claude Giroux in Philadelphia, John Tavares in New York, and the aforementioned Couture in San Jose. These players have the talent to carry the NHL while appeasing Mr. Farber's concern.
The question still remains though: Who would you pay to see live? For me, I'm traveling to the Le Centre Bell this Saturday to watch the Capitals take on the Habs (The rare environment that you'd pay to see). I'm hoping Ovechkin does something crazy.

I'll leave you with this cheese from our boy.

 

We'll talk again when I return from the Mecca of hockey.

That's Friday (Unassisted)