Tagliabue will NEVER allow the floodgates to open... Towhereas the league (NBA) can have players like Carmello Anthony, Stephon Marbury, Garnett, and others come in and be a viable talent early on, in the National Football League..well, the best way I can explain it is like high school Algebra... If you miss a week in Algebra, you HAVE to go back and learn what you missed. In history, you move on to the next time period. In Civics, you move to the next branch of government. In English, you move to the next part of speech. But, in Algebra, you move on the next week to something that's based on what you learned the previous week. You incorporate what you already know into a new, more challenging discipline. That's what the NFL is like. You've played, but now you have to play not only smarter, but your body must be at a wholly different and stronger level. If your body is not ready, it will crumble, just like your grade would crumble in Algebra if you didn't have that strong foundation. Williams will excel more quickly than Clarett does, because Williams plays a less strenuous position, and a less mentally challenging one. But, the majority of NFL players are not skill position players, and the same is true for collegians. So, by and large, the majority of college football players will not make the jump to the next level. Of all the major sports, Football is by far the most team oriented. Other than Michael Vick, there is truly no one player that can seriously make or break a season for an NFL team (other than a franchise type QB-ala Vick). Baseball and basketball are far more individualistic and egocentric when it comes to the skills that someone needs to become great at in order to excel. Football requires not only yourself to be at a top physical level, but also for your team to be as well.
I don't believe they're telling them who they have to ALLOW in. They're telling them who they have to ALLOW to give an opportunity to work. This is a very ironic viewpoint coming from someone who espoused previously on this very site that, "...no rule of law governs me or makes me follow it..." What you're now saying is that the rule of law that the NFL put in place to govern itself should be something Maurice Clarett should follow? Maurice Clarett should now be forced to pay attention to rules and governing decisions of the NFL, while you yourself claim to not have to pay attention to police, the Secret Service, the FBI, your local bank, etc...(which you claim not to, by the way)... I'm curious...How does this all jibe together in that silly dome of yours? Explain it to me, Obi-Wan...
It's not up to him. You make some good points in your argument, but if it was up to Tagliabue then the Clarett case wouldn't have gotten as far as it did... It's all about the $$$$. Nobody really cares about "the team", "the person", or "the athlete" anymore. That genie left the building A LONG TIME AGO. It's all about who got game for the $$$$ (REAL game) Now the size of the guy's paycheck is more important than his game! How absurd is THAT! And we still call it SPORTS! Methinks it should be called economics, or accounting, or investing, or banking. Face it, professional athletics are no longer "sports".
Let's see.... Poor ghetto-raised kids deciding to skip college and instead make millions of dollars, thus providing large sums of money to their family and friends for the first time in their lives.... Gee, why would they do that? That means we can't watch good college bball games. Who's being selfish?
If you don't think that Tagliabue has the ear (and the balls) of the owners, then you're silly...The only guy who doesn't follow the company line in the NFL is Al Davis. That's IT. If Tagliabue didn't want Clarett drafted highly, he wouldn't be. That's my whole point. I think you'll see the league send a message to those who don't fit into the "Larry Fitzgerald" mold in which they're 2 years out of High School. With the drafting of Clarett lowly, the league will send a message to those who try to take Clarett's path behind him...
first of all, your use of the word "ironic" makes me question if you know what it means. and your inability to comprehend my stance on the rule of law is not relevant to this, nor will i make any efforts to explain it to you here. if you must, you can take it up with me on free speech alley, but i warn you, i will surely make you look stupid. i am saying the NFL should be allowed to govern itself, and decide whom they want to allow in their league. if they decide they want to hire only people over 25, then they should be allowed. that would surely be a stupid decision on their part, but nevertheless their right as private owners of the league. i believe the government should not intrude on the business decisions of the NFL, and the nfl has no responsibility to allow anyone any sort of opportunity whatsoever. so basically i am wondering if the NBA had a rule whereby they waited 2 years for high school kids, and that would obviously be good for college basketball, and the sport in general, and possibly the NBA. for example carmelo anthony made himself more famous by playing one year in college, and he became a more marketable player for the NBA than he might have been had he gone directly.
What small percentage are actually in the position to be millionaires? How many more BELIEVE that they will be millionaires, eschewing education, job training etc. to chase a dream that will never happen? There aren't enough teams OR $$$ to support that... Because we live in "a free country' and "everybody has the right to dream"... Even if the dream has absolutely zero chance of happening... It's not about good college ball games. It's really about the guys that need to stay in/go to school for any one of a # of reasons, whether it be physical, mental, or emotional maturity... ...and an education "just in case" things don't go according to plan... ...when was the last time you met a rational thinking 18 year old? A million $$$$ is great, but if you don't take care of it... ...where's ya gonna be then??????? PS Ask Mike Tyson.
So, what you're saying is that you don't DENY saying that the police, laws, and social norms don't make you pay attention or heed ANY rules governing any public agencies stances or private corporations decisions? Well, if you can't deny that you said it, I'm STILL waiting to see how you can say that Maurice Clarett should be FORCED to pay attention to the NFL's rules regarding his age and his restriction from participation in the league... I've never been afraid of being made to "See the Light"...As I said before, educate me, Obi-Wan...or take that pompous high road and snort about how I'm not on a high enough comparable intellectual level to comprehend the fact that you said no cop, law, or institution will force, coerce, or make you pay attention to laws/rules/restrictions you feel irrelevant. You were QUITE clear on your stance, though it'll be interesting to see you wiggle and whirling dervish your way (dare we say in a Clintonesque manner) out of your statement... Please...EDUCATE ME...I am BEGGING... LOL!
maurice clarett doesnt own the NFL. the NFL owns the NFL. therefore they should call the shots on who they allow in. that is the way private property should work. the league should make the decisions on who is qualified for the draft, not the other way around. repeat: please pay attention so i dont have to repeat myself.
martin is saying the NFL is its own private industry not having to adhere to public laws as long as they are within the boundaries of a private practice. It has nothing to do with NO ONE can run redlight w/o being pulled over. Its 2 totally different entities and laws are different accordingly. please pay attention instead of just trying to be right.
