What if there was a steroid era in football

August 5th, 2010 | By boadurichard

Alex Rodriguez hit his historic 600th homerun yesterday. Or was it historic? The steroids era has tainted baseball and its monumental records. People are debating whether this “great” player or that “great” player deserve to be in the Baseball Hall of Fame etc. And it got me to thinking what if football had a steroids era, what would it look like?

People say steroids were rampant in the NFL during the 60’s and them came back again in the 80’s. To be honest, I can’t tell. Steroids are supposed to make the players better and if the players are better then their stats are better. Well, the numbers in the NFL have gotten better over time while steroid use has decreased and been virtually non-existent. I’m confident when I say no one in the NFL is juicing, but what if they were? The steroids era in baseball is roughly from 1992 – 2007. What if football had rampant steroid use during this time period?

Now before I really go in, in no way shape or form am I implicating or suggesting anyone used steroids. But it’d be interesting to see what the NFL would have looked like and refreshing to know that this great sport never really had a serious rash of problems with steroids as baseball had.

Records

Brett Favre has he most consecutive starts of any quarterback at 285 for the regular season and 309 including playoffs. You could say that Favre is on steroids given his remarkable play at his age and never really being injured. Now, I’m about 150% positive that Brett Favre isn’t nor has he ever been on steroids. Look at his one year in New York, his bicep turned on him. Look at him now, he hurt his ankle seven months ago and it’s still not healed and if he was on roids, he’d be good by now. I think if he was, he wouldn’t have the record for consecutive starts that he has now because for as hard as this guy throws the ball, he would have thrown his arm out by now.

When they were in use, steroids were big amongst offensive and defensive lineman. Jose Canseco was the leader of the steroid revolution in the 90s, and most people associated with him got on the bandwagon. What if there was an influential NFL offensive lineman with Canseco’s star power to get the other four lineman on board with him. The passing game might not be where it is today, because the running game would be so dominant. Think about the Nebraska Cornhusker mid-90s option offense. If their o-line was roided up, they might have broken the Oklahoma Sooners 47 consecutive winning streak record. Who’s to say that if Barry Sanders Detroit Lion offensive line or Emmitt Smith’s o-line were on roids that they wouldn’t be chasing Walter Payton’s all-time rushing record in the same year reminiscent of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa chasing Roger Maris’ homerun record in 1998?

There have been several insanely good wideouts in football, and they’ve reached the milestones they’ve reached off hard work and God-given ability. Flipper Anderson set the single game reception yard record with 336 yards in 1989. Flipper Anderson is no Hall of Famer, good wideout that had a great game. Let’s say steroids kicked and say in 1994 an all-world receiver emerged. He’d uncover-able literally, drawing triple team coverage and even out running that. If he ever did get injured, he’d heal fast with the help of steroids. Jerry Rice’s records could be in danger.

You can easily use your imagination to think of an unblockable DE. Goodbye Derrick Thomas’s single game sack record, Bruce Smith’s all-time sack record, and Michael Strahan’s single season sack record.

I could go on and on with the records that would be tainted but you get my drift.

While I do think a few players would be monsters on the field, football is a game of leverage, change of direction, and instincts. Steroids obviously would have hurt the game more than they would have helped it. I think there’d be a rash of more injuries. Sure you’d have players that could power clean a Chevy pickup but many of them would have no hips. A lot of them would have no knee ligaments either, especially if there was a rash of steroid use mixed with the astroturf fields.

The worst thing a steroid era in football would have done would have been to the future of the game. High school athletes would have been looking up to these college and NFL athletes on roids and followed suit. Doing so would have destroyed their bodies long before they would have even been developed. The game wouldn’t be as fast as it is now. There’d be no need for the high octane spread offenses. The emergence of pure speed on the defensive side of the ball might have never taken place either. Bottom line, if football ever had a steroid era it might have done away with the game. We already have people vowing never to let their kids play football with all the concussion issues the game has, if steroids had ran wild for fifteen years as it did in baseball our great football athletes might be playing other sports now. Percy Harvin might be a baseball player, Sam Bradford may have been a star golfer, and we might not know who Tim Tebow ever was because I can’t see him playing anything other than football.

Thank God there are no steroids in football. None, that we know of at least. While we watch our favorite players and teams bring the wood this fall let’s take out a minute to knock on wood as well that cheating in the form of steroids doesn’t taint the CURRENT American pastime as it did to the FORMER American pastime.

That’s all I got,

Ricky Writer

The NFL Mid-Season Awards by Ed The Sports Fan

November 11th, 2009 | By boadurichard

This much is clear when we talk about the 2009 NFL season. There are the “have’s” and the “have-not’s”. The pundits will tell us that there are some truly exceptional teams and there are some really crappy teams. Things have changed so much from what we thought we knew at the beginning of the season, to what we thought at the quarter pole, to what has defined at the end of the first half speaks volumes to the parity in the NFL. With that being said, here the studs who are making some of these teams play phenomenally. Oh, and I definitely expect some of you to disagree. Here we go…

MVP of the 1st Half: Brett Favre, Minnesota Vikings

Obviously the easier choices here are Drew Brees and Peyton Manning, as their teams are both 8-0. However, nothing about their offense is any different that its been in prior years. Minnesota on the other hand, had been EXTREMELY handicapped in recent years as they relied on the likes of Brooks Bollinger, Gus Frerotte, and the Tavaris Jackson experience. #4 has made this team a Super Bowl contender and has energized an offense that now all of a sudden has a ton of playmakers, plus the ability to change the world with a single throw. Look at Percy Harvin, Bernard Berrian, and Sidney Rice…is there a better trio of WR’s in the league right now better than those three? Purple Jesus is still in the backfield, and the fact remains that this offensive line is very solid. The 40-year old graybeard can sit back in his Wranglers’ and pick apart defenses like he’s shooting cans on a fenceline. Easy pickin’.

Offensive Player of the 1st Half: Cedric Benson, Cincinnati Bengals

Clearly if I went by the pure numbers then you’d again go with Brees or Manning, or even by who’s leading the league in rushing I could’ve selected Chris Johnson of the Titans, however…there’s no way in hell you could’ve told me that in 2009 that CEDRIC BENSON would be 2nd in the NFL in rushing yards and on pace to finish with almost 1700 yards rushing??!? Never, couldn’t happen. He wins this by a landslide, its not even close.

Defensive Player of the 1st Half: Darren Sharper, New Orleans Saints

For someone who was released by the Minnesota Vikings, for someone who’s been an all-time great in our generation of football, to see that the Saints safety already has 7 interceptions through 8 games and has helped turn a mediocre defensive 11 into an elite 11 is truly astounding. D-Sharp is doing it all, as he has returned three interceptions for touchdowns this year and has assumed a leadership role for his team. My buddy Tyrell, who is an avid Saints fan, would always get nervous when teams would throw deep on the Saints. They were liable to give up a big play nearly every time. Sharper has eliminated that fear, and is leading the Saints to glory in 2009.

Rookie of the 1st Half: Percy Harvin, Minnesota Vikings

By far the easiest choice I’ve made in a long time. Easier than choosing Alpha, easier than choosing my prom date back in high school, easier than choosing my favorite ice cream, (butter pecan) Percy Harvin has done EVERYTHING the Vikings have asked him to and excelled. Catching the ball, running the ball, returning the ball…Percy’s done it all. He is the essential X-Factor in football, and anytime he gets his hands on the ball he is feared that he’ll take it to the house.

Coach of the 1st Half: Josh McDaniels, Denver Broncos

Simply put, I cannot believe what’s going on in Denver. There was more turmoil in the Mile High City than could ever be imagined and they hadn’t even played a game yet. He traded away their supposed franchise QB, had multiple quarrels with their superstar wide receiver, and made some questionable free agent acquisitions in the off-season. They were picked to be in the CELLAR behind the RAIDERS & CHIEFS! What???? Now they are 6-2 and sitting pretty atop the AFC West where the Chargers were predicted to stand all along. Yes they just hit a 2-game skid, but there’s no shame in losing to the Ravens and Steelers. McDaniels is a smart & young coach and he’ll figure it out. Denver’s making us all look real bad.

Team of the 1st Half: Indianapolis Colts

No Marvin Harrison, no Anthony Gonzalez, no Bob Sanders, and a severely depleted offensive line have all been major speed bumps to the Colts. However, losing the Gandhi of pro football in Tony Dungy might be an even bigger blow to this team. Yet, Peyton Manning, Reggie Wayne, and Dwight Freeney have manned up and put on a masterful performance through the first 8 games of this season. #18 is simply a maestro on the football field. I don’t even think Jim Caldwell is actually coaching anyone out there, he’s just a figurehead. #18 does it all. The defense has been high-energy all year and there are a ton of new faces that are continually making plays for this team. Plus, with the AFC as loaded as it is now, their 8-0 record looks all the more elite with every passing week.

THOUGHTS ON THE 1ST HALF AWARDS? WHO WOULD YOU PICK? LET US KNOW YOUR PICKS!

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com