Larry Brown Sports

Greatest Quarterbacks of All-Time Don’t Throw Pick Sixes to End the Super Bowl

Larry Brown — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 23:58:20 +0000

A ton of talk leading up to the Super Bowl was about Peyton Manning’s place in history. Many people were starting to talk about him being the best QB of all-time. After he shredded the Jets — the top defense in the league — Rex Ryan and others lavished Peyton with endless praise. People were saying that there wasn’t anything you could throw at Manning defensively that he hadn’t already seen. People said that Manning prepares better than any other player and that defenses can’t confuse him. Many people suggested that he was poised to become the best quarterback of all-time. While I recognize the greatness of Peyton Manning — supreme consistency, excellent stats, an uncanny ability to run the two-minute drill and lead his team to comeback wins — he’s only been average (by his standards) in the postseason, and that’s a major concern.

In recent years, Manning’s Colts have lost in the postseason to the Chargers twice. Previously, they couldn’t get past the Patriots when they had to play in Foxborough. There are two undeniable truths to take from those facts: one, Manning’s success in the passing game is related to the weather, and two, the Colts have a tendency to lose to inferior teams in the playoffs. Additionally, a problem that plagued Manning early in his career reemerged in the Super Bowl. Peyton used to throw a lot of pick-sixes (28 interceptions his rookie year, 23 his fourth season) and that had a large role in the eventual resignation of Jim Mora as Indy’s head coach. It also came back at the most inopportune time for Indianapolis.

I’m not saying Peyton Manning isn’t a great quarterback and that I wouldn’t love to have him as my franchise’s quarterback; that’s not the issue. What I’m saying is that the greatest quarterback of all-time doesn’t throw a pick six to end his team’s chances at winning a Super Bowl. What I’m saying is that Peyton’s alleged invincibility does not exist. Apparently defenses can get to Peyton with pressure and apparently they can confuse him with different looks. If that weren’t the case, then how did Tracy Porter know the play was coming and how did he bait Manning into that throw? If Peyton Manning is the most well-prepared player in the league, then how is it that extensive film study led Porter to make the game-clinching play over Manning? And I’m sick of hearing people blame Reggie Wayne for the interception; did he make the throw? Did he decide to run a play the defense knew was coming? I thought Peyton Manning was a coach on the field and Indy’s offensive coordinator? If that’s the case, then he made a bad call. Peyton Manning is an outstanding quarterback but he’s still a notch below Tom Brady in my eyes, and possibly on an equal level with Drew Brees now. The greatest quarterback of all-time doesn’t make that throw.

By the way, even Tony Dungy admitted on Dan Patrick’s show that the throw would hurt Peyton’s legacy: “Those are the situations where you expect the great quarterbacks to make the play and to go down and win it. I was sitting there expecting that they were going to go in and tie it up. One throw a lot of times can impact a legacy.” No doubt about it.

Tony Dungy Cursed the Colts

Larry Brown — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:01:08 +0000

If I were running an NFL team trying to rebuild (the Rams and Lions come to mind), my first item of business would be hiring Tony Dungy. I wouldn’t try to make him my head coach or even my team president, the way the Seahawks tried to. Oh no. My role for him would be much simpler: motivate my team by picking against them. That sure seems to bring out the bests in opponents. Back when the Saints were 13-0 and the Cowboys were coming off back-to-back losses, Dungy said on NBC that the Cowboys had no chance against the Saints. Dallas of course went on to hand New Orleans its first loss of the season. That brings us to Super Bowl week where Dungy’s prognostication yielded headlines once again:

“I think they’re going to be so far ahead that people are going to say, ‘Oh, ho-hum, he played a good game, they won by two scores, the Colts won their second championship,’ ” Dungy said of Manning on Thursday. “He’s going to have those rings Sunday night. I don’t think it’s going to be close.

Not to say I was flawless with my predictions (at least I had the Saints plus the points), but man, could you be further off than that? Actually, if the Saints don’t recover the onside kick to start the 3rd quarter, it could have played out the way Dungy predicted. I know Tony’s job is to take stances as an analyst, but he might have to start watching his words now that he’s seen their impact. Either that, or he’ll continue to make picks figuring he has nothing to do with the actual play on the field. This should be interesting.

Megan Fox Super Bowl Commercial Was Funny but Crossed the Line

Larry Brown — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:29:05 +0000

There isn’t too much about which we should complain when Motoblur sponsors a commercial featuring Megan Fox bathing in a tub. While it was clever and attention-grabbing, they didn’t get across the message of the product they advertised, and I thought there was a questionable moment. I can’t believe that CBS didn’t allow the ManCrunch gay dating site to advertise yet they allowed a scene in the Megan Fox Super Bowl commercial where a young boy was beating off in his bedroom! Check out the video:

Like I said, the concept was clever and the premise was cute, but how did that questionable display get through the CBS gatekeepers? You’d have to be pretty naive not to pick up on the implication of the mom knocking on the bedroom door. The commercial ranked 19th out of 63 in the USA Today Ad Meter, so that’s not bad. Anything with Megan Fox half naked is a success.

Getty Photos Includes Saints Fan Flashing Camera on Bourbon Street

Larry Brown — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:14:27 +0000

They said New Orleans would throw the greatest party in American history if the Saints won the Super Bowl. Well, the Saints did indeed win the Super Bowl and the partying on Bourbon Street in New Orleans has been spectacular. It’s been so spectacular that I guess Getty Images photographer Skip Bolen figured he had to portray the wild scene in the most realistic way possible; he decided to photograph a Saints fan flashing the camera:

It doesn’t get more authentic than that. Some time from now, maybe a few weeks, that chick is going to wake up and realize half the country has seen her bust. And she probably won’t care. Why? Because the Saints won the Super Bowl.

Mark Sanchez Makes Women Swoon with Super Bowl Ad

Larry Brown — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 08:18:34 +0000

Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez didn’t waste any time capturing the heart of the press and female population in New York during his rookie season. He further cemented his budding Joe Namath “Ladies Man” status with the ad he starred in for the Super Bowl. In case you missed it, Sanchez was in some sort of PSA called “CBS Cares.” Its objective was to raise awareness with women regarding heart conditions, from what I gathered. Anyway, here’s video of Mark Sanchez’s Super Bowl ad in case you missed it:

While Sanchez’s commercial didn’t touch into humor the way fellow quarterbacks Brett Favre and Tim Tebow did, Sanchez is already picking up brownie points with the ladies. Check out some of the following comments on YouTube:

love you Mark, you are the best.
<3
hoy tendre dulces sueños
...
this made my night! jets all the way! mark is amazing! i seriously adore him
...
this made me love him more than i already do ...if that is even possible !! lol
...
i screamed when this came on! i made my dad rewind and watch it again. i love mark and i love my jets! my favorite commercial!

Judging by the repetitive nature of the comments, I would go so far as to suggest some P.R. firm was responsible for the lot. Then again, it was the Super Bowl and teenage girls were watching, so it’s entirely possible these were authentic. Bottom line: there’s no doubt that chicks dig the Sanchize.

Marques Colston Takes a Nut Shot

Larry Brown — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 07:51:02 +0000

While most Saints fans and players will celebrate with champagne on ice, wide receiver Marques Colston will be using it for a different purpose: to ice his balls. When the Saints embarked on their long drive that culminated with a ballsy call to go for it on 4th and goal at the one, Marques Colston caught a 13-yard pass on 3rd and 3 to take the ball near midfield. He also took something else home with him:

The celebration will be fun but Colston might not be in the happiest of moods. At least he has the entire offseason to heal the family jewels.

Tracy Porter’s Hair and Play Steals Super Bowl Show

Larry Brown — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 07:39:22 +0000

Tracy Porter may have sported flamboyant hairstyles for the Saints two biggest games of the season but he matched the brazen fashion efforts with awesome play. Two weeks ago, Porter sported a pacman video game haircut and topped it off with an interception of Brett Favre. On Sunday, Porter had SB44 shaved into his head along with a road leading the way from the Superdome to the Lombardi Trophy. He capped that off with the play of his career — an interception of Peyton Manning to seal the Super Bowl. Not a bad month of work for Porter.

You think it said “MVP” on the other side of his head? May as well have with the way he played. Porter may as well grow an afro and quit while he’s ahead because there’s nothing he has left for an encore.

Tracy Porter Does it Again!

Larry Brown — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 07:22:30 +0000

Three weeks ago, only Saints fans, Indiana football fans, and the most intense NFL fans knew who Tracy Porter was. Now, over 100 million people know the name and associate it with one of the biggest, most game-changing plays we’ve seen in the postseason, not to mention another that took place two weeks ago. Tracy Porter intercepted Brett Favre to end the Vikings chances of winning the NFC Championship game in regulation and lead the Saints to the Super Bowl. Once he got there, Porter took advantage of the largest possible stage at the most opportune time:

Another claim to fame for #22: Tracy Porter has some of the best hair in the league and he outdid himself with his Super Bowl ‘do. By the way, how about Phil Simms’ analysis on that play? If the Saints listened to him, the game would probably be tied at 24 and headed to overtime. I think he was calling it from a quarterback’s perspective and what he’d like to see from an opposing defense, not really what the Saints should do. The lesson to be learned is that you have to pressure quarterbacks in order to disturb them otherwise they’ll pick you apart. Porter’s pick was a pretty clear example of that lesson in practice. It’s also quite cool that Porter attributed the interception to excellent film study, essentially saying he knew what was coming. I love it when hard work pays off!

Tim Tebow Anti-Abortion Pro Life Ad Video from Focus on the Family

Larry Brown — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 23:54:09 +0000

After two weeks of debate and outrage, we finally got to see the infamous Tim Tebow anti-abortion pro life ad. It really was nowhere near as bad as it was made out to be and it’s no wonder CBS allowed the commercial to air. I actually understand why they approved it even though I criticized their decision before. Here’s the video of the Tim Tebow pro life abortion ad brought to you by Focus on the Family:

Much thanks to the Boston Herald via PFT for the video. It really was much more innocent than I thought and now I see why they weren’t reluctant to let it air. Offensive? Hardly. Most people won’t have a clue unless they go to the website. It actually seems like a waste of money to me to have aired the ad. All the pre-Super Bowl they received is really what they paid for.

Colts Fan Matt Ellis has Autographs Tattooed on His Body

Larry Brown — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 09:44:03 +0000

Some dude named Glenn Timmermann became pretty well-known for having a bunch of Chicago Bears autographs tattooed on his body. He topped off the look with the Bears logo inked on the back of his skull. Yeah, that’s a nice look. Anyway, apparently Timmermann has inspired an entire culture of superfans. Maybe not, but Colts fan Matt Ellis is following in his footsteps. Ellis has 33 Colts autographs tattooed on his body. WANE channel 15 in Indy actually did a story on Ellis to provide the background for the insanity:

If you ever wondered what type of person would do that to his body, now you have the answer. Pretty much anyone whose resolution to not having enough memorabilia for players to autograph is get them to sign his body obviously isn’t a very deep thinker. The good news is that Ellis can just chop off various body pieces for auction if he ever runs low on cash — not to say he would ever have trouble finding a job looking like that. Not at all.

Larry Brown Sports

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