Football.

January 28, 2015June 1, 2018 Melbee No Comments

Super Bowl Weekend.  Why haven’t they declared it a national holiday yet?  Even if you aren’t a fan of football, if you are American, chances are you’re watching the game this weekend.  If you’re someone who actually supports a particular team and cares about how they do each year, you are passionate about your team and will defend their honor against anyone who dares question they’re “greatness”.  They say there are two things you should never discuss at work or family gatherings: politics and religion, but maybe football should be thrown in that group as well.

I enjoy sports of all kinds.  I have been that way since I can remember.  It’s part of what makes me, me.  Since my early to mid teens football, in particular, was something I enjoyed watching with my father, it was a way to connect with him.  He always supported the Rams, even after they left Southern California, so I would cheer them on with him, but I wouldn’t say they were ever “my team”.  Funny, it seems choosing a football team is quite often like “choosing” a religion.  You often end up choosing the one your parents like, or the one that is most popular in your region.  Since both the Rams and the Raiders left L.A. in the mid 90’s, there was the Chargers in So. Cal. and the 49ers in Nor. Cal.  I’ve never been fond of San Diego teams, and though I liked Montana, I never really followed the 49ers.  I was sort of a free agent.  There were certain players and teams that I enjoyed watching over the years, but I wasn’t attached.  However, in 2010 when Pete Carroll decided to leave college football and try his luck in the “big leagues” again up in Seattle, that changed for me.  After several exciting seasons at USC (he had a record of 97-19 during his time as head coach) I was interested to see what he could do at the professional level.  He had a reputation for being good at developing young talent and I felt that it could be the start of a beautiful relationship.  Since then, the Seahawks have gone 50-30, have been in the post season 4 times, won a Super Bowl and are the first team in a decade to be playing in back to back Super Bowls.

I like talking sports with people who have an interest in the subject and have always been able to do so with my father and brothers-in-law without any problems or conflicts because of my “free agent” status.  But, in recent years the growing rivalry between the 49ers and Seahawks has made that a little more difficult.  You see, both of my brothers-in-law are 49er fans.  And ever since the 2013 NFC Championship game, where Richard Sherman blocked a pass to Michael Crabtree in the end zone to end the game and win it for the Seahawks, they have been bitter and angry at Richard Sherman.  Richard Sherman did a post game interview directly after that play which lambasted Michael Crabtree for being mediocre and talking trash about Sherman, which he took a lot of criticism over (these are just some of the ‘tamer’ examples) and later apologized for.   And in recent memory (since 2012) The Seahawks have got the better of the 49ers 5 out of 7 times.  So I can understand the bitterness and frustration, but to claim that they’re all crap, except for Marshawn Lynch, that’s taking it a bit far.  in a brief conversation with my brother-in-law last week, he also said that Russel Wilson is a terrible quarterback and won’t be in the league in the next five years, whereas Kaepernick will.  When I pointed out to him that Russel Wilson has taken his team to the post season two of the three years he’s been in the NFL, and is a Super Bowl champ, whereas Colin Kaepernick is not, he resorted to calling me a “band-wagoner” and said it isn’t Kaepernick’s fault he’s not a Super Bowl champ, it’s the offensive coordinator’s fault.  Well, okay Bro, I checked some stats and compiled them in a table so you can see how Wilson and Kaepernick compare with two of the best quarterbacks in the league.  I also found this article which is an interesting read.

Looking at these numbers I’d say Wilson and Kaepernick are fairly even, maybe coaching really is the difference between them.  But if you’re trying to make the point that Russell Wilson is a terrible QB, perhaps you should take a second look at the numbers and realize what that says about Kaepernick.