JayarJackson

             The late rapper Big Pun said it best, “I’m not a player, I just crush a lot.”  Well, he had more colorful words in the version of that song that didn’t get radio airtime, but his sentiments were clear.  Since I’ve been using this line consistently, it has a totally different meaning.  In the past few days I’ve spent here in Tampa for Super Bowl XLIII, I’ve had some access to areas that NFL players, coaches, and celebrities see on an everyday basis.  Since I never like to look like a tourist, (I’d throw on a cowboy hat, some tight ass Wranglers, and serious boots in a town full of cowboys to avoid looking like an out of towner) I strolled around this city as if I’ve been to the last 5 Super Bowls.  Where people were armed with a camera, sharpie, and NFL jerseys, I rolled with sunglasses, a designer looking t-shirt, and a connection to my cell phone.  Just being a typical Californian spending some time in Florida.  Despite my simple desire to just fit in, I was still surprised when I was first asked for an autograph.


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The saga of The Oakland Raiders involving someone Al Davis is displeased with has taken a curious turn after Sunday’s beating handed to the Kansas City Chiefs.  It’s well-known that the 79 year-old managing general partner of the team (lets just call him the owner) has an insatiable desire to claim two more Lombardi trophies before his time is up.  This craving is so great; he seems to have no patience or thought process when it comes to the coaches he hires and immediately fires, or the rejected players he brings into a rehab facility set up for failure. 

His latest quick trigger decision of hiring the league’s youngest coach, Lane Kiffin last season has Davis ready to run the 33 year-old out of town after only one game into this young season.  The public disagreements between the coach, owner, and coaching staff’s decisions from player personnel to game plans had news conferences and headlines written waving goodbye to Kiffin’s first stint as an NFL head coach despite the result of Sunday’s match up with Kansas City. 

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Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young arguably made the most exciting play in a college football National Championship game when he nearly single-handedly knocked off the “unbeatable” USC Trojans.  Life was great; he was on the top of the world and was soon drafted as the Titans top pick in the ’06 Draft. 

Quickly after the tickertape parades and glowing compliments about his elusiveness, the harsh criticisms that come with being a starting quarterback in the NFL came down upon Young.  Before he even threw his first pass in the league, many questioned his unorthodox side-armed throwing motion, and many USC Trojans like me couldn’t wait to see the speed of pro linebackers and the complicated nature of professional defenses slow him down. 

With 2 NFL seasons now under his belt, Young has seemingly begun to crumble under the extreme pressure of the league.  After not making the playoffs his first season and a 1st round loss to the Chargers in last year’s playoffs, where the Titans only put up 6 points, the insane impatience of football fans with Young’s lack of magic has bogged the 25 year-old down.  Where’s the guy that ran all over and around USC? 

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Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson…excuse me, Chad Ocho Cinco, has definitely kept himself in the spotlight during the offseason.  After being so upset about the moves, or lack thereof by his team in making sure they are a Super Bowl contender this season, he demanded a trade and eventually vowed to never play for them again.  After that got him nothing but grief from fans and the Sports Supreme Court we know as ESPN, he revisited a controversial issue from 2 seasons ago, just to spice things up. 

Although known for his innovative touchdown celebrations, Chad Johnson started warm-ups for a week 8 game against the Falcons in ’06 with “Ocho Cinco” attached to over his name with Velcro.  This harmless stunt which ended in Carson Palmer ripping the fake name off, revealing his normal, “C. Johnson” jersey cost Chad $5,000 in fines from the league. I guess those precious young NFL fans might get the wrong idea and start asking their parents about the devil language of Spanish in hopes of understand what their hero; Chad Johnson was trying to say with that devastating statement. 

Just before this fresh, new ’08 season began, Chad Johnson legally changed his name to Chad Ocho Cinco.  On Sunday’s season-opening game when everyone expected to see the name legally and freely splattered on the back of the guy everyone loves to hate, we saw the boringly familiar C. Johnson instead.  What the hell, how did they put shackles on him now? 

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