Good Grief!

At Least He Isn't Picking His Nose Like Jerry Jones

I know this is supposed to be a soccer site most of the time, but I have to admit I didn't watch much this past week. All I know is that DC United blew a golden opportunity to stake a claim in the MLS playoff sweepstakes, and FIFA and CONCACAF have once again given U.S. Soccer the shaft by keeping next week's crucial World Cup Qualifier in Honduras, despite the continued civil unrest. Hope the boys are ready for the multi-hour bus ride into the country. We could possibly fight it, but then that would jeopardize our chances to get the 2022 World Cup, right? Don't tell me there isn't much of a difference between FIFA and the IOC. Everybody's got a price, huh?

Anyway, I'm in the mood to talk some football, particularly the Washington Redskins. Now, at one time I was almost as big of a fan as anybody else. Like thousands of others, though, I have withdrawn my support from the overpaid, underachieving team; with an dickhead owner who doesn't give a rat's ass about the fans; and an organization that just doesn't seem to "get it."


My final straw was December 2006, when I watched Tiki Barber run for 225 yards in his final regular season game with the New York Giants. As bad as the team was that night, the whole "gameday experience" was worse. It took 3 hours to get there, $35 to park, then take a shuttle to get to the stadium, had to walk several hundred yards to get to the gates once we actually were dropped off, then another 20 or so minutes to get in as only a few of the gates were open, and they only had 5 or 6 people staffed at each entrance.


But wait, there's more...

Another $20 for a hot dog, pretzel, and a coke. My friend and I didn't even TRY to get a beer.


So after this, we at least knew we had good seats in the club level, as my friend's father had given them to her as a Christmas present. The seats had a good field of vision but were so small that we were literally hanging out of our chairs (and no, neither one of us is fat!)... Then we're subjected to the drunken idiot "fans" who curse and swear and try to fight guys w/ the opposing jersey, even though their kids are sitting next to them.


The final straw was when I had to use the bathroom. Remember, we're in the club seats, which are supposed to have nicer facilities. It was at the end of the 1st quarter, and I walked into a bathroom where urinals and toilets were overflowing, water was all over the floor and nearly ankle deep, and there were no towels in the dispensers. I went and pointed this out to one of "ushers" at the stadium (who easily weighed 300 pounds, and if she ever had to haul ass, she'd have to make 4 trips), who told me "it's like that every week. What do you want me to do about it?"


That was it. I was done w/ that team, Snyder, and the rest of them. It's gotten so that I won't go to Fed Ex for ANYTHING anymore, not the DU United/Real Madrid game this past August, not Paul McCartney, not U2, not even my favorite band, The Rolling Stones, when they embark on their 2010 World Tour (no, I'm not kidding; they've got one more in them, apparently).


Dan Snyder has ruined this fanbase and doesn't care as long as there are sellouts for the games and there is money in his pocket. However, I'm saying right now there will be 20,000 empty seats for the "home" game this week against Tampa Bay, another struggling squad that has a good chance to pick up their first win of the year.


Thank God I've always been a Colts fan. If you want a "real" gameday experience, go to Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis sometime. It has working bathrooms, friendly employees, reasonable tickets and concessions, fun and happy fans, and most importantly, a franchise that understands and knows how to win. Nothing was more apparent than their beatdown of Arizona last night.


Other football thoughts:


1. That was a really nasty (but clean) hit Tim Tebow took Saturday night. All of Gainesville held their breath for a few minutes, especially when you see a trainer bring out a stethoscope. It's at that point where it stops being a game and your genuine concern is for the health and safety of the player. Kudos to the Kentucky fans who gave him a loud ovation as he went off the field and into the locker room.


2. There goes your Heisman campaign, Jahvid Best, as well as any chance California had for the big prize. Now they get to play an agitated USC team with renewed life as all of the other top schools are losing as well.


3. When Maryland plays Virginia later in the season, is anybody really going to care? I'm going to see U2 this Thursday at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, and a UVA. fan told me it'll be the only time this year the place will sell out.


4. Damn you , Brett Favre!!!!!


5. Pittsburgh Steelers are 1-2 with a visit from San Diego coming on national tv Sunday night. They really don't want to drop any further behind Baltimore...


6. ...who is the best team in football through the first 3 weeks.


7. Still, Pittsburgh has 1 more win than Tennessee.


8. There are some truly terrible offenses this year. Oakland, Kansas City, Cleveland, St.Louis, and , oh yeah, the Redskins. It's almost like the forward pass is something new that they're trying to figure it out.


9. If they want to learn, just watch Peyton Manning.


10. Vegas this weekend for a few days of football wagering. I never win, but just watching 8 games at 1 time on big screen tv's at 10 am on a Sunday might be the coolest place on Earth...