OTA: unretired

by Ryan Van Bibber on Jul 3, 2008 8:36 AM CDT in Events

What's an OTA you ask, why it's an "Off Topic Activity," i.e. something not immediately related to the Rams.

Why violate the sacred covenant of TST, a Rams blog, you ask? To jump in with our $.02 on the Brett Favre thing of course.

I always liked Brett Favre; it was hard not to. He played with class and more importantly he played at an elite level and with a distinct style and approach that puts his name among not only the game's elite talents but as a player who changed the game, one who helped shaped how it's played and how we view it.

That said, I think he ought to find another outlet for his passion for the game. Oh sure, I understand. When something's consumed almost evry aspect or your being for the last 16 years (more with college, etc.) walking away from it is terrifying because it's just so damn hard to imagine your life without it.

But if Favre comes back now, at 39, he risks tarnishing that legacy. He had a great season last year, but the two season's prior to that his INT% was higher than his TD%. Sure, that had a lot to do with his supporting cast, but 4,000 seasons aren't common for 39-year-old QBs. To find a team with the personnel to help him to another Favre-like season he'd have to be a backup. The Brett Favre legend starts with him as a backup; ending it as a backup takes something away, exposing his vulnerability, his pedestrian humanness. Leave us with the legend, that's how fans, this fan at any rate, wants to remember Brett Favre.

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totally agree

He played at a very high level last year, leading the Pack to the NFC Championship game, while breaking the TD record in between. Truth is, I could never really look at him the same after his teary-eyed press conference described how he didn’t want to play anymore, then have him suit up a year later. And by the way, I know he’s a living legend, but what he’s doing to Aaron Rodgers’ credibility (not to mention his confidence/mental health) in the Packer locker room has to be devastating to the kid. This is the ~~second~~ ~~third~~ fourth time Rodgers has mentally prepared himself and his teammates for him to be the leader, only to have Favre step in and say, “oh one more year.” Only Favre could get away with something like that, and I think he knows that.

On a lighter note, Football Outsiders’ piece on Day 2 draftees highlights our very own Justin King as a potential diamond in the rough.

by kevinramsfan on Jul 3, 2008 1:15 PM CDT reply actions

It's players who love the game

How may players have we seen do this? Just a couple come to mind (and I’m sure they barely skim the surface). Basketball had Hakeem/Akeem, Moses Malone, and nowadays my favorite player growing up, Michael Finley. Baseball has had thousands, and I won’t even begin to mention them here, except to say it’s time for Ivan Rodriguez to hang em up and get ready for the HOF. Honeslty, I’m not a big enough hockey fan to suggest what I think would fit here, and I won’t bore anybody with any soccer names. Football? I don’t want to start any TST fights, but let’s all admit, we have players we think left too late.
The truth is, great players who play the game they love and love the game they play can’t leave. Sure, it’s the only thing they know; but, it’s the only thing they know because it’s the only thing they’ve ever wanted to know. It’s tough to criticize the greats as the sun sets on their career. I could get overly allegorical and suggest that the god-athlete ending his career is akin to the mortal accepting mortality, but shit, this is TST, not a graduate class….

by 3k on Jul 3, 2008 5:30 PM CDT reply actions