Blogging from A to Z Challenge 2022: T is for Tim Tebow

 Today's athlete has played two professional sports. Tim Tebow best known for his college glory days of winning two National Championships and a Heisman Trophy Championship.

He played in the NFL most notably with the Denver Broncos and New York Jets.

In 2013 he failed to catch on with the New England Patriots and in 2015 he failed to catch on the Philadelphia Eagles.

In 2016-2019 Tebow pursued a baseball career in the New York Mets farm system. In 2020 he failed to make the Mets in Spring training.

He tried a football comeback as a tight end with the Jacksonville Jaguars this past season but was cut before the regular season.

Blogging from A to Z Challenge 2022: Q is for Quick, Mike Quick

 Today we are going back to the gridiron with the letter Q. Today's athlete is the former Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Mike Quick. Quick led the NFL in receiving yards in 1983. He was a five-time Pro Bowler in his nine-year NFL career. He is also inducted in the Eagles Hall of Fame.

We keep rolling on with the challenge I will have a new post tomorrow!

R.I.P. Dwayne Haskins

 Former Ohio State standout and NFL quarterback Dwayne Haskins reportedly has died from being hit by a car. The 24 year old was on the Pittsburgh Steelers roster and had played for the Washington Redskins. 

Some of his college highlights....

Highlights from his rookie season...

It is a shame when any young person dies. He will be missed by fans, friends and family.

Blogging from A to Z April Challenge 2022: F is for Fred Taylor

 Fred Taylor was a Gator great at the University of Florida. The running back was part of a National Championship winning team and ended up being named to the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame.

                                                          His Gators highlights

In the NFL he finished his career as the 17th leading rusher in NFL history. He is a member of the Jacksonville Jaguars Pride. He holds multiple franchise records.

His NFL highlights...

Fred Taylor the athlete for F, as in football.

Blogging from A to Z April Challenge 2022: E is for Elway, John Elway

 In the 80's and 90's John Elway was a star quarterback in the NFL. Leading the Denver Broncos to five Super Bowls. He won two.

                                             Some of his highlights....

He was considered among the best quarterbacks! He played football and that lends well to the letter F which is next!

Congratulations to the The Los Angeles Rams

 The Los Angeles Rams defeated the Cincinatti Bengals 23-20 on Sunday to become the Super Bowl Champions.  This year the Super Bowl delivered a close, entertaining game. The game was packed with potential story lines no matter which team one.

The way the game came out the hometown team won the Super Bowl once again this year. Last year the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won in Tampa, this year the Rams won in Los Angeles. Quarterback Matthew Stafford finally won a Super Bowl in his twelfth year in the NFL. The Rams won their first Super Bowl as a team in Los Angeles. It was also the organizations first Super Bowl Championship since 2000 when they were the St Louis Rams. 

Highlights from the Big Game...

Congratulations to the Los Angeles Rams!

Tom Brady retiring

 Tom Brady could easily have decided to come back for another season. The 44-year-old quarterback through for a career best 5316 yards. He finished with a Pro Bowl Season. He leaves the game holding 10 NFL records, 7 Super Bowl Rings, and numerous awards and honors. Many regard him as the best quarterback to the play the game and he will certainly be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame.

Here is a collection of some of his top plays...

Against every team...

His rivals will be glad he is retiring. He will be missed on the field by his teammates and fans. However, Tom Brady will step into future ventures off the field.

 

Ben Roethlisberger enjoy your retirement!

Ben Roethlisberger the longtime quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers has announced his retirement. In his 18-year career he was a two timer Super Bowl Champion and a six time to highlight his awards and accomplishments!

Here is a highlight collection of 50 of his top plays.

He will be missed on the field by his teammates and fans.

R.I.P Dan Reeves

 Dan Reeves was a successful NFL coach, coaching in the Super Bowl four times and a member of the Denver Broncos Ring of Honor passed away on January 1st. Besides the Broncos he also coached the New York Giants and Atlanta Falcons. 

News of his death...

He will be missed by fans, friends and family.

R.I.P John Madden

"Madden Football" was probably the most iconic football game ever.  The man the game was named after has passed away at the age of 85. John played the game, was a successful coach, and one of the best commentators on the NFL.

A clip of his best announcing bits...

He will be missed by the sport, his fans, friends and family may he rest in peace.

R.I.P Colt Brennan

Colt Brennon had a college career that showed glimpses to bright future. The pass happy quarterback set all kinds of records as a University of Hawaii Rainbow Warrior. He lead them to a big Bowl, he was a Heisman Trophy finalist. 

Highlights from his college days..

He was drafted in the 6th round by the 

Washington Redskins. He stayed on the roster for a couple of seasons, bounced to another team, bounced to other leagues never catching on. Soon the former quarterback was out of football. In the real world he suffered from injuries from a car accident and battled a healthy dose of demons.

Sadly his life ended during mental health awareness month.

R.I.P Vincent Jackson

 Former NFL wide receiver Vincent Jackson passed way yesterday at the age of 38. The why is unknown as of now. He was a success. Bright enough to go to Columbia but chose to go to Northern Colorado. Vincent wasn't the most recruited guy but was able to play football and basketball in college. He blossomed in college and ended up being a second round draft pick.

In the NFL  he played for 12 seasons, seven with the San Diego Chargers and five with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He was a three time Pro Bowler. He had six thousand yard seasons.

                                                Highlights of his career...

He will be missed by his fans, former teammates, friends and family!

R.I.P Marty Schottenheimer

 Following a football season where the current Cleveland Browns coach was named Coach of the Year, a season where the Kansas City Chiefs fall in the Super Bowl, former NFL Coach Marty Schottenhiemer has passed away. 

I mentioned Cleveland first because that is where Marty started his head coaching career. Leading the Browns to the playoffs 4 of his 5 years including two trips to the AFC Championships. In Cleveland he had a record of 44-27 and was 2-4 in the playoffs with the Browns.

He Coached the Chiefs next. Making the playoffs 7 out of 10 seasons and adding another trip to the AFC Championship game. He was 101-58-1 with the Chiefs and 3-7 in the postseason. His career earned him a spot in the Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame.

His next stop was with the Washington Redskins, now the Washington Football Team, they went 8-8 in his one season.  The Football Team somehow made the playoffs this season. On a side note I actually met the Coach in Pennsylvania during training camp.

His final NFL coaching stop was with the San Diego Chargers. In 5 seasons there his team made the playoffs twice. He compiled a 47-33 record but was 0-2 in the playoffs.

The Coacwill be missed by his family, friends and fans.

Congratulations to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

In the end the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Tom Brady and myself all won championships. I won my fantasy football league and Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won the Super Bowl. We all get bragging rights, but they get a ring and big bonuses. Sadly I do not. 

I was hoping for a close game. The greatest quarterback against the elite quarterback of today.

Highlights... 

Congrats to the Kansas City Chiefs for making it to the big game. They have been to two in a row. Tom Brady continues on after earning ring number seven. Five Super Bowl MVP Awards is very impressive. 

Phillips Rivers Calls it a Career

 Phillips Rivers just completed his 17 season in the NFL. 2020 was his first season with the Indianapolis Colts and his last in the NFL. His first 16 years in the National Football League he spent with the San Diego Chargers. He qualified for the playoffs seven times but never reached the Super Bowl.

Rivers has thrown the most touchdowns and for the most yards for a quarterback to never reach the big game. He was an eight time Pro Bowler and many consider a future Hall of Famer.

Below are some his highlights...

He will be missed by his fans. The Colts will look for a new quarterback, and time will tell when he gets inducted into the Hall of Fame.

R.I.P Gale Sayers

 The great "Kansas Comet," the legendary Chicago Bears halfback, the author of the book that inspired the movie Brian's Song, the one and only Gale Sayers has passed away at the age of 77. The grid iron legend had suffered from dementia in his latter years. 

Not only was he an outstanding halfback he was a dangerous return man as the highlights demonstrate!

His NFL career shortened by wear and tear was filled with accomplishments.

1965 NFL Rookie of the Year

NFL Rushing Leader 1966 and 1969

Four Time Pro Bowler 1965, 1966, 1967 and 1969

Five time First Team All Pro 1965-1969

NFL Comeback Player of the Year in 1969

The youngest person to be enshrined in the NFL Hall of Fame

His #40 jersey retired by the Chicago Bears

His six touchdown game...

Here the Comet runs for a 99 yard touchdown in college...

He played three seasons for the Kansas Jayhawks. Gale was a two time All American, he was all conference all three seasons and his #48 is retired.

He leaves a legacy of success in life and on the football field.

R.I.P Don Shula

90 years is a long life. In his life he became a coaching legend in the NFL, a successful restaurateur, an author and a family man. He coached the Miami Dolphins for 26 seasons. Currently the longest active coach in the NFL with one team is Bill Belichick with 20 seasons. Shula's 33 seasons (his first 7 with the Baltimore Colts) ranks him tied with Curly Lambeau for 2nd place. George Halas tops the list which you can read here.

Don Shula is the only Coach in the NFL to have an undefeated season including playoffs when his 1972 Dolphins won the Super Bowl. Shula had a 2-4 record in Super Bowls. He stopped coaching at the end of the 1995 season. He still has the most wins of any coach in NFL history. He is inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame. If your gonna be a coach I guess being the winningest Coach would put you near the top. 

He co-wrote three books. Two of those with Ken Blanchard of the One Minute Manager fame. I might have to look them up. I'm sure he has some good insights on motivation and leadership. He was involved in a lot of charities as well. He will be missed by fans, the community and family.

  

Congrats to the New England Patriots

Been out of town for a bit so starting to post about things that have happened this month. The Super Bowl happened Sunday night. I  caught the fourth quarter f the game at a pool side bar.

Highlights from the game..

The Patriots didn't have a dominant season. They put in another gear for the playoff and Tom Brady will get his sixth ring. 

You can hate him all you want. However, in the clutch Tom Brady is the best in my opinion. In this game credit needs to go the defense holding a potent offense to just three points. In the fourth quarter it was not Tom throwing the pick or missing the late field goal. The Rams didn't help themselves and the Patroits beat them.

R.I.P Dwight Clark

Dwight Clark will always be remembered for "The Catch." The 49ers hero played in the NFLZ from 1979 to 1987 all with the same team. Honored by the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame and the Clemson Hall of Fame.

He was part of two Super Bowl Champion teams in San Francisco and was a two time Pro Bowler. His number long retired by the 49ers.

He passed away yesterday due to ALS. He will be missed by fans, family and business partners.

Thoughts on Cam Newton

 Cam Newton is taking a lot of heat about the Super Bowl. Certainly one could criticize him for not diving after the fumble but perhaps he lost track of the ball. Maybe he felt it was too late to dive in after it.

He is taking even more heat about walking out on the press conference after the game. Obviously he didn't want to be there but the NFL requires it. First it is disrespectful for the interview to take place where he can hear interviews from other players on the other team. Trust me there is plenty of space under the stadium top prevent that.

He didn't say he wanted to go to a strip club or drink a lot of beers. He did say they were outplayed. He was upset he had a bad game, his team lost, and it was on the biggest stage. You want a player who is upset in that situation. The interview questions weren't great, he said they were outplayed and he left. It is better to do that then say something emotionally that wouldn't be very nice. Rip him for that all you want but I think he may have done the right thing.

No he wasn't dabbing, dancing or celebrating. The Denver Broncos defense took care of that. If a team doesn't want to see him do that be like the Broncos and stop him. Manning had an awful game too. However his team won.

I like that Cam Newton has fun win he wins or makes big plays. The NFL is big business but it is a game! He doesn't like losing. He is upset when he does. That is understandable. Do the interview in a better setting. Journalists when the interview is ended or going nowhere end the interview.

Cam Newton is a new generation player. He brings excitement.  I love that he gives the footballs to young fans. He is involved in lots of charities. Maybe he could have handled the loss with more class but maybe the press could have handled him with more class. There is always another perspective.