OT: Manti Te'o

[Jlighter]

Originally Posted by cyseymour

How about Jeff George and Ryan Leaf? How'd it go for those guys?

How about we ask John Elway, Dan Marino, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Joe Montana, Roger Staubach, Aaron Rodgers, Brett Favre, Terry Bradshaw, Troy Aikman, Joe Namath, Ben Roethlisberger and Eli Manning?

And these are just off the top of my head.

[Hot Springs Bathers]

Brent Musberger thinks his fake girlfriend is/was hot!

[dani0100]

For the life of me, I cannot figure out why this story is getting the news coverage it is. Is it kind of weird? Yes. Do millions of people do much weirder things every day? Yes. Is there any crime being committed or was anyone wronged in any way? No.

Meanwhile, our soldiers are dying, our government is completely broken and nobody can pay attention longer than five minutes so we can fix it, etc., etc.

America....what a country!

[Jlighter]

Originally Posted by dani0100

Is there any crime being committed or was anyone wronged in any way? No.

I could be wrong, but they used the pictures of a different person without their permission which may be illegal. They could be considered public domain though since they were on Facebook.

In terms of someone being wronged, yeah over a million were. The American viewing public was doped into believeing this lie. We were feeling sorry for a person who we should have in fact shunned. Donations were made in this persons name that did not exist. Yes, they went to a good cause whether she existed or not, but they did it on false pretenses that she was real. It should have been axiomatic that she was real. What, do we have to question now whether someone we haven't met in the flesh is real? It is people like this are leading to the degradation of our society.

Is this a big story? Yes. Does it matter in a context larger then itself? Yes. Did Manti do something nefarious? It's very likely. Will I keep answering my own questions? Yes.

There was a decent documentary that had a situation similar to this called Catfish, I believe it was mentioned in the Deadspin article.

[teetwoohsix]

Originally Posted by dani0100

For the life of me, I cannot figure out why this story is getting the news coverage it is. Is it kind of weird? Yes. Do millions of people do much weirder things every day? Yes. Is there any crime being committed or was anyone wronged in any way? No.

Meanwhile, our soldiers are dying, our government is completely broken and nobody can pay attention longer than five minutes so we can fix it, etc., etc.

America....what a country!

+1000

This is exactly what I was thinking when I was seeing this all over the news yesterday. It's wierd, strange, but worthy of being plastered all over the news everywhere you look? Not in my opinion. I call it a "distraction".

Sincerely, Clayton

[cyseymour]

Originally Posted by Jlighter

How about we ask John Elway, Dan Marino, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Joe Montana, Roger Staubach, Aaron Rodgers, Brett Favre, Terry Bradshaw, Troy Aikman, Joe Namath, Ben Roethlisberger and Eli Manning?

And these are just off the top of my head.

Sure, it's an advantage to be tall. Just not a prerequisite, that's my point. It's also an advantage to be accurate, evasive, have great field vision, large hands, leadership abilities, etc. Wilson was a case where his assets were overlooked due to one small disadvantage that he has so far overcome.

I would say that having large hands is just as important as being tall. Ask Kurt Warner, who fumbled so often due to his small hands. Some games, Warner had five fumbles. Wilson has very large hands for his size. It is just one of those things that is important but people don't think about.

[alanu]

Now I wish he would have won the Heisman just to make any scandal bigger

[itjclarke]

Originally Posted by Jlighter

How about we ask John Elway, Dan Marino, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Joe Montana, Roger Staubach, Aaron Rodgers, Brett Favre, Terry Bradshaw, Troy Aikman, Joe Namath, Ben Roethlisberger and Eli Manning?

Not to digress too much from Te'o, but a QB's height is completely overrated.. as are many other measureables. If a guy is smaller but knows the offense inside and out, can keep cool during the play, has a live accurate arm, and can move when need be, he'll be able to see and get the ball out. BTW- Montana, though listed at 6'2" was probably about 6' and very very skinny.. but he was a smart, tough, supremely confident leader, and mobile when need be.. and also like Russell Wilson was a 3rd rounder. Brady, who I got to play against in HS, was a 6th rounder who backed up Scott Dreisbach then Brian Griese, and then had to split time with Drew Hensen at Michigan.. his big NFL break came due to a Bledsoe punctured lung. Who knows if he'd have gotten another chance?? Favre was 2nd rounder who ATL traded to Green Bay after his rookie year. Rodgers, had zero D-I offers out of HS and played JC ball.

It's a very non exact science and is impossible to predict who will succeed and who won't. Even the guys above who seem like no doubter superstar types all had college coaches, GMs, coordinators along the way that didn't see what they could become. I think having measureables gets you in the door easier.. see 6'8" Dan McGwire, or Jamarcus Russell.. but to make it, they have to put ridiculous study and work, not really ever get discouraged (much harder than it sounds), be incredible leaders of large groups of very alfa type men, and have generally unbreakable stones... see Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, and now Russell Wilson.

What is amazing to me is that for every Russell Wilson or Tom Brady that defies the odds, there's 50 guys just as talented that didn't get that break they needed, or were blocked out by a narrow minded coach/GM and are either journeyman back ups, or out of the league entirely.

[Jlighter]

In football there aren't many measurables to determine a QBs skill, especially in College. Height is one finite measurement, and height is an obvious advantage. If Jeff Ireland had taken Wilson instead of Tannehill in the first round, and Wilson was a flop, Ireland would be fired. Wilson was a "larger" risk.

[cyseymour]

Originally Posted by Jlighter

In football there aren't many measurables to determine a QBs skill, especially in College. Height is one finite measurement, and height is an obvious advantage. If Jeff Ireland had taken Wilson instead of Tannehill in the first round, and Wilson was a flop, Ireland would be fired. Wilson was a "larger" risk.

I see. So the best GM's are the ones who draft players with certain measurables in order to prevent themselves from getting fired in case the pick is a bust.

[itjclarke]

Originally Posted by cyseymour

I see. So the best GM's are the ones who draft players with certain measurables in order to prevent themselves from getting fired in case the pick is a bust.

I think there's plenty of truth to that, though "best" is completely subjective. I think a lot of coaches and GMs do the safe, thing.. make the safe pick, put the safer player in their lineup, especially if everyone else in the organization backs the move. They're humans who want to keep their jobs. Pete Carroll has always bugged the crap out of me, but he showed some serious guts giving the job to Wilson over Flynn who'd just received a huge contract (still no idea why they ever gave him that deal). Had he given Flynn the job and Flynn floundered, he would have at least had backing of the GM and owner with that decision.. Wilson was a total roll of the dice. I love that some guys have guts to do what everyone else tells them is wrong, especially when they can pull it off.. and in the process chip away at old paradigms.

[Ladder7]

Remember the man hands episode?.. Just a prank to get babes to pity him. Costanza faked his supermodel fiancee's death to scoop pity dates at the meat packing district's hot spots. Good wholesome fun.

[EvilKing00]

The height of a QB IS important BUT not an end all be all. Its important because the Line in front of him are guys who are 6-2 - 6-7 and the QB needs to throw over them.

There are exceptions to everything, but in general a QB is tall, a WR has big hands, a cornerback is fast, etcetctec