 |
| Aaron Rodgers had to deal with a chip on his shoulder but this only made him stronger |
Green Bay may have been the gamblers’ favorite road team the past few weeks but we have to note that they took the backseat when other NFC teams were making waves prior to the playoffs. Michael Vick was headed towards full redemption as he led the Philadelphia Eagles’ explosive offense. Remember the huge comeback win against the New York Giants? What about Michael Vick’s amazing statistical display that had fantasy football experts raving? The Atlanta Falcons were dominating. Matt Ryan’s corps rarely lost at home. The Atlanta Falcons belonged in the Top 2 of the NFL Power Rankings for majority of the season. Lastly, the New Orleans Saints were peaking at the right time as they defeated the NFC-leading Falcons in the road.
What about the Green Bay Packers? It was highly improbable for them to reach the playoffs after they lost to the New England Patriots. Thanks to Vick’s Eagles, they prevented the Giants to take the easy road to the playoffs. Philadelphia’s major comeback against New York in the regular season gave some glimmer of hope for the slumping Packers. They may have been the preseason favorites but they barely reached the playoffs. They started the postseason with that chip on their shoulder.
Pittsburgh had a relatively easier path. They were the second placed team and they are still led by Ben Roethlisberger and Troy Polamalu. I even thought that they were on pace to be the #1 team again in the regular season. However, they were overshadowed by New England’s amazing performance in the regular season. Pundits were pegging the Patriots to go all the way to the Super Bowl. But with some luck (two fumbles by the Ravens and the Patriots getting eliminated early), the Steelers were suddenly in a favorable position to return to Super Bowl. And, return they did.
Both Green Bay and Pittsburgh are extremely talented teams. Even statistics support this claim. Both teams are balanced offensively and defensively. Yet, they entered the playoffs with huge question marks. They had a chip on their shoulder even if they have exemplified greatness along the way.
They vindicated themselves by reaching the Super Bowl.
But other than the two successful teams, this NFL season also had several people who had monkeys at their backs. Let us take a look at them and how awesome their story ended.
 |
| Tom Brady will surely be the MVP this year |
There were several stories about Brady this season but I have not read of an angle like this one (and since it somehow fits with the theme), so I am discussing this.
Before the start of the season, I read an article by Bill Simmons on holding out/importance of a high contract for athletes. (For the rest of the article, read this: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/100813) Players hold out for contract purposes. Bill mentioned how furious he once was when his team’s star player refused to play because he was not offered a good salary. But now, Bill understands why. Star players – yes, they are already millionaires – sometimes sacrifice their salary for a bigger cap room for the team. That’s what happened to Brady. He agreed to get a low deal ($60 million for six years) in 2005, one year after Peyton Manning of the Indianapolis Colts got a massive deal ($99 million for seven years). (Note: Brady already won three Super Bowls then while Manning had zero). Brady did that so that the Patriots could keep its core. After five years, the Colts were actually the ones who spent more to keep their core than the Pats. Frustrating, right?
Yes, I am having empathy on a handsome, wealthy athlete who has multiple championships, a Victoria’s Secret model of a wife and has millions of fans. He should not be asking for more, right? Wrong. Look, the guy earned it. He is near the end of his prime and he has not cashed it. Nobody gets younger. Getting a high deal shows how your team values you. In a way, it is a show of respect. Tom Brady might not have whined about his mediocre contract but a little sensitivity makes us understand that Brady can leave the Pats if they screw things up by neglecting to offer him a strong contract. He did not hold out but it was implied that he could eventually bolt.
That’s why Bill Simmons named Tom Brady’s action as “You Betrayed Me, And By The Way I’m Starting To Truly Hate You, But I’m Not Saying Any Of This Because It Might Affect The Team; I’m Just Trusting That You’ll Do The Right Thing, And If You Don’t, I WILL Get My Revenge” Non-Holdout Holdout to the New England Patriots front office.
Chip on the Shoulder (because the sixth round draft pick storyline is already too old and he has vindicated himself from it): “Underpaid” even if he has proven that he has been a multiple champion.
Well, the Pats responded quickly on this one before Brady proves himself. The Patriots offered Tom Brady the highest salary for any NFL player. The result? Tom Brady is in one his best seasons ever as he is the leading MVP contender by leading the Patriots to become the winningest team in the regular season (14-2). He shattered records on interceptions as he threw efficiently with just four picks for the whole season. He did these in a season where his superstar receiver was traded away. His options were Wes Welker (undrafted), Deion Branch (has-been), Danny Woodhead (waived earlier this season) and Rob Gronkowski (rookie).
Conclusion: This just shows how good of a sportsman Tom Brady is. Most athletes slack off during the year they get fat contracts. That is why there is the term “contract year” – referring to the last year of an athlete’s contract where they immensely become great in order to attract better offers after their contract is up. Tom Brady acted differently. He just got a fat contract this year and he quickly rewarded the Patriots by being the best quarterback in the league. He is wired differently from other athletes and that is what I appreciated a lot about him in his MVP season.
Brady’s contract showed that his team values him. Even if he is nearing the last stage of his career. In the end, Tom Brady’s non-holdout holdout became a win-win situation: he gets the money, the Patriots got the W’s.
Brady and the Patriots may have been eliminated but this does not diminish the fact that he had an awesome season.
2) Seattle Seahawks
 |
| Credit: cfnews.com |
The Seattle Seahawks pull off a major upset by defeating the defending champions, the New Orleans Saints. People deemed Matt Hasselbeck as old but he went on to toss four touchdowns for the Seahawks and their ecstatic fans.
Conclusion: Don’t stop believing.
3) Michael Vick (Philadelphia Eagles)
Chip on the Shoulder: Guilty of illegal interstate dog fighting. Bankrupt. Not good anymore.
 |
| Credit: Yahoo! Sports |
Conclusion: It is never too late to redeem oneself. But once you get the opportunity, go grab it. Then, you shine.
4) Rex Ryan (New York Jets)
Chip on the Shoulder: 45-3 loss to the New England Patriots. Getting lambasted for talking a lot than getting praised for overachieving
As much as I hated him the past few weeks, I have to say that Rex Ryan had an amazing journey. He and his New York Jets were in several controversies like the Ines Sainz one. The New York Jets started strongly but they were overshadowed by the Patriots. The 45-3 defeat did not help them either. Furthermore, the Jets appeared to be afterthoughts because most of their wins came from under-.500 teams. They eventually defeated a strong team – Pittsburgh Steelers. Yup, everyone thought the Jets would be a team that will just lose in the playoffs even if they have proven that they were contenders last year after they reached the AFC championship game. And they even have star receiver Santonio Holmes this year.Then, Rex Ryan shocked the world when he defeated the team that eliminated them last year – the Indianapolis Colts. Thanks to Jim Caldwell’s dumbass move to call a timeout, the Jets made an easy game-winning fieldgoal (although I think they would have fixed the situation earlier – but this would have been hard – by angling the kick instead of making the Jets have the long kick return).
But even if Rex has finally defeated Peyton Manning and the Colts, critics lambasted him for his loud mouth. I am guilty as well as I was tweeting about it. I assumed that the Jets will have their fishing vacation early because their next opponents were my beloved Patriots. But, I was wrong. The New England Patriots lost another home playoff game as Rex Ryan outcoached the legendary Bill Belichick. Rex Ryan’s smack talk, which was underestimated by folks, paid off. The Pats had to keep their mouths shut because of Belichick’s style. Wes Welker could not contain himself and targeted Rex Ryan’s foot fetish in an interview. It riled up the Jets and it made Belichick bench Wes at the start of the game. As a result, the Jets came into the game fired up with all the momentum they needed. This escalated when they intercepted Tom Brady’s pass in New England’s first drive. The complexion of the game changed after that and the Jets’ defense became invincible as ever. New England had a hard time scoring a touchdown all game long. The Patriots had to waste precious time in the last quarter by running the ball because the Jets were covering up the receivers very well.
Conclusion: Rex Ryan used (his self-inflicted) chip on his shoulder as a motivation to prove the critics wrong. He used it to fuel some passion on his team. Congratulations, Mr. Foot Lover.
Sorry, I could not resist. (Hey, this does not tarnish Rex’s amazing season but since he turned me into a Jet hater, I am mentioning this.) Seeing Rex Ryan disgustingly throw his headset = PRICELESS.
 |
| Danny Woodhead running against the New York Jets | Credit: ESPN |
Chip on the Shoulder: This has been well-documented recently so I will just summarize what happened to Woodhead. He was a hardworking high school player in Nebraska where he broke a lot of records and led his team to the state championship. But amidst this, he was not given that much attention by college scouts. He had to settle with a state college where he racked up statistics and broke more records in NCAA Division II. Yet, this was not enough for him to receive an invite in the NFL Draft. He went undrafted even if he has proven that he is a good player time and time again. The main concern was his height. He was taken for granted over and over again in his life despite showing signs of achieving.
Danny Woodhead’s story was quite heart-wrenching. He proved that he was legit but was shunned as unproven athletes were chosen over him. He eventually got a call from the New York Jets but he spent most of his time as a reserve. Last year, he was waived. Taken for granted again.
Fate intervened when Woodhead was signed by the New York Jets’ division rival – the New England Patriots. The Pats just traded running back Laurence Maroney away. Coincidentally, New England lost another running back when Kevin Faulk had a season-ending injury. This paved way to Danny Woodhead’s shot at fame. Yes, he is small but he made up for it with a bigger heart. He rushed in several crucial plays that let to Patriots’ victories in the 2010 season. Because of his height, pundits began to realize that he was a matchup nightmare for the defense. Heck, I even have a hard time seeing him whenever he runs. With his agility, he had an easy time dodging defensive tackles. In the end, Danny vindicated himself after years of being taken for granted.
 |
| Big Ben is not only an excellent passer, he can also run! | Credit: Sports Illustrated |
Chip on the Shoulder: Big Ben’s season started awfully. He was suspended for the first four games as he was charged with sexual assault. His image was quickly tarnished because of his bad extracurricular activities. His jersey sales even fell out of the Top 25 early in the season.
The bad start could have easily demoralized Roethlisberger. But the Steelers were able to do well in Ben’s absence. Then, they were on a roll for the rest of the season. Once again, the Steelers were performing like they normally have. Ben Roethlisberger, amidst his blemished image, was playing a great season. What a way to shake off adversity.
When I watched his Steelers defeat the red-hot New York Jets, I realized how great Ben Roethlisberger was. He might have a horrible passer rating but he has shown how good he is in delivering big-time plays. His third down pass was pure clutch.
Conclusion: Never discount someone who “has been there, done that.”
 |
| Passing of the torch became an advantage to the young Aaron | Credit: Sports Illustrated |
Chip on the Shoulder: Aaron’s "chip" is the most talked one in the past few weeks. Aaron, like most of the people in this list, was used to being taken for granted. He did not start with a Division I college and had to work his way up in order to be recognized by California. He was outstanding as quarterback for Cal so he entered the 2005 NFL Draft. It was the perfect scenario for him. The 49ers, his favorite team, had thoughts of picking him as the first pick. Instead, they forego and decided to pick Alex Smith. From potential first pick, Aaron Rodgers was picked 24th instead.
As Green Bay already had a superstar quarterback in Brett Favre that time, Aaron had to be the backup for three years. Aaron had to wait before he could show the world that he is for real. The Packers organization gave him the huge opportunity when they decided to trade Brett. When Rodgers took the helm, he was up for it. He posted outstanding numbers that had writers oozing with praise. Yes, he had the chip on his shoulder of being the 24th pick but he used it as a motivation to be better. Furthermore, it worked wonders for him. He got to sit and learn from Brett Favre (not sure if Brett mentored him though). His past was filled with several struggles despite the fact that he has proven how good he was. Undervalued before, but not anymore. This coming Super Bowl, Aaron Rodgers will be leading Titletown to battle the Steelers in the grandest stage of them all. Some things happen for a reason. Aaron Rodgers might not have dreamt of the path that he took but that exact path has molded him to what he is now. Who knows? Had he been the scouts’ darling early, he might have grown to be too cocky and arrogant (which would lead him to eff up his career). Had he been picked as the #1 in the 2005 NFL Draft, he might have not reached his potential due to the 49ers’ weak lineup. He might have started right away but he would not have the opportunity to learn from watching Brett Favre. Rodgers might not be playing in the Super Bowl this year had he been picked early in the drafts.
Conclusion: Aaron Rodgers story offers us a valuable lesson that it is never too late. You may experience early struggles which you hated. But in hindsight, these disappointments actually pave the way for your success in the future. Having such experiences also help you face adversity better. Aaron Rodgers fought against adversity by leading the Green Bay Packers to five straight elimination game wins. Four of which were against playoff teams. Four of which were on road.
 |
| Hopefully, Rodgers will get a real championship belt next week |
Go Pack Go!
No comments:
Post a Comment