History Repeats October 25, 2023
Does history repeat itself?
One of the greatest calls in the history of the NFL occurred well before the
modern era. Today it directly involves the NFL's Hall of Fame as it has
become an integral piece of Chicago Bear history. It involved a player
that retired ... then returned ... due in part to so many NFL players choice of
serving our country during World War II. This player was well beyond his
prime ... but that didn't mean that he was done with the NFL. I first
heard the call portrayed by the actor Anthony Hopkins in a movie ... and from
the tenor of his voice ... it was nothing short of NFL legend. At that
moment in time, for this individual coming back from obscurity, all you could
really point to was his pure instinct combined with determination. It
would be apart of his final push ... his final gasp ... his final opportunity to
carve out his legend in granite. Of course, by today's standards, none of
it, on paper, would ever make sense but past historic events ... of things that
never made sense ... would make opposing teams shudder at the mere thought that
the almighty might restore "Sampson his Hair" ... and his youthful
energetic burst ... on this one day, for the chance to repeat history once
again.
Lunacy! You might say, but there was something in those words of Randal P.
McMurphy ... the Bull Goose, leading that poignant V ... required "Bull
Goose Lunacy"!
Today it is mocked. The commercial involves Randy Moss, & the
Minnesota Vikings foolishly traded first round pick traded to the Poke's ...
where they lament about returning to the grid iron. For them, these
individuals are already in the Hall of Fame ... and for many others ... it's too
late. Some ... you might recall ... don't deserve this opportunity ...
from the perspective of the almighty ... but not all. Hashem created the
talents found within Cris Carter's hands ... he also created the things that
mankind can never understand. What was put into David's mind to believe
that he could face ... and slew ... that mighty
giant?
Today, the NFL has many new rules that we cannot simply ignore. For
example, the "Bush Push", that led to one of Pete Carroll's many
national championships. It has now been incorporated into the NFL's rugby
league ... of talking out of both sides of our mouths. Keep in mind that
under the rules of rugby ... you're not allowed even the most rudimentary
protection ... even a cup to protect your balls. The NFL claims that it
will do everything to protect its gladiators ... but still opens every defender
to a career ending injury on every play under the quickly evolving new
rule. From the NFL's perspective ... there is no justification for
mutilation ... but they allow it anyhow ... as the roulette wheel sells the
chance to marvel at a horrific event on par with Timothy Alan Krumrie's horrific
leg injury in Super Bowl XXIII or Joe Theisman's leg snap at the hands of
Lawrence Taylor. You see, every defender making a tackle, has to leverage
his body ... putting bones & muscle into both tension & compression simultaneously
... to be able to "offset-balance" to be able to bring down an
opponent. They refer to this as ... "Text Book Tackling".
The "Text Book" has been thrown out in favor of the potential of two
300+ pound lineman barreling in to destroy, what is considered to be only raw sinew
... to advance the ball. That's entertainment & it sells.
Unfortunately, this is just one more advantage that's been lumped onto the
offense's side of the ball ... one poorly decided rule change that's gone too
far. You see, in the history of the NFL this was never allowed & the
reason for it is beyond obvious. The NFL's players union cannot protect
the owners from what will follow this course change as negligence always can
pierce the corporate. These are human beings ... not robots ... that
you've sworn to do everything to protect ... only to act in this foolish
manner.
There is no shortage of lawyers in these United States where I can guarantee you
they are licking their chops at what will become millions of dollars in law
suits due to absolute negligence on the part of the owners which is the only
entity that is allowed to make such a rule change. Negligence offers no
protection combined with the NFL's negligent history of the marketing of your
product with handling head injuries ... well ... a dead grandma could litigate
that case. All that is needed is one horrific event ... and it's
coming. This is a copy cat league and the learning curve is directed
straight up!
There is one NFL rule change that is still in its infancy or in other words
hasn't been fully explored. It involves the Practice Squad which allows up
to 16 players with no experience limitations for up to six players. So
you're saying to yourself, this squad is there to develop players to develop
their potential to ultimately raise them to either be apart of the 53 man roster
or to develop that player into a starter. Yes, but I'm only talking about
one experienced veteran.
So, what one player might have the fire & dedication to surpass anything
offered as compensation offered to become just one member of our Practice Squad?
What one player might have an unquenched desire to change the future irrevocably
for all time? Who might have had gifts on par with no one on the
planet? Who might have been a physical specimen that could benefit from
months of a training camp routine to re-establish prior to the worlds greatest
contest? What one person was never bestowed an untarnished roster
(quarterback - Brett Favre would re-established himself at the pinnacle in Green
Bay when the Vikings lost to the Saints in 2009) of unquestioned character &
to be paired with a set of skill players of unrivaled ability? Who could
become the focal point of this teams destiny knowing that he'd never see the
field unless this franchise punched its ticket to the Super Bowl? Who
might be worried about his legacy ... like Brett Favre ... to re-establish the
conversation in regard to becoming a first ballot Hall of Fame inductee ... as
regret is the most powerful motivator on the planet ... especially if you have
the chance to change a historical event for all time?
Now ask yourself the following. What was Sweetness' greatest lament that
could not be cured or rectified till the day of his death. It was maybe
the NFL's greatest player of all time was never given the opportunity of scoring
a Super Bowl touch down. Instead what the world got was a by-line ... a
fad ... a fluke ... like Oswald's part in taking the life of JFK. The two
together were akin to a mole & a mighty mountain. The "Fat
Boy" ... or "Bisket" ... as Buddy called him ... got the nod over
the NFL's greatest most unselfish giant ... for what ... a media splash.
How short sighted was that?
After watching this teams recent contest versus the 49ers what was this teams
most glaring shortcoming? My gosh, we had 1st & goal from the 1 yard
line & we have no confidence running the ball into the end zone, where time
after time, in this 2023 season, we have had negative play after play.
Again, due to the inexperience of not settling down in the zone, we had another
drop in the end zone due to not being in position, adding to a long list of
notable drops that lead the team. Sure this is due not to skill but to
either inexperience or the lack of having the ability to understand that there
is much more than being handed the rock. What is for certain, is this in
past years having the ball first & goal on the one meant a sure 6
points. I'd say 7 but after last year we all know that's never been
automatic.
Again ... will his brother finally seek me out? Again, 1/2 of my prophesy
... beating the 49ers ... has been fulfilled. In laying out my hard earned
"pecunia" ... the death knell of hope in regards to the outcome of
game 2 ... I've have purchased that ticket. So you might ask,
"Exactly what did I purchase?" Well you'll all have to wait to
seek out that answer.
So who might have smashed Eric Dickerson's rookie rushing records where instead
lost it due to a mid season injury ... the only thing that slowed him down in
that 2007 season? Who got to play in only one game in the 2014 season
being suspended with pay where we were made to pay to see him sitting on his
couch in his prime where again this special commissioner exemption has only
applied to this one & only player? Who only gained 907 yards in 12
games due to having is knee blown to pieces playing in Washington? Who was
just seconds away from taking Eric Dickerson's season rushing record in favor of
instead taking a meaningless field goal to make ... as it turns out ... the
meaningless playoffs ... instead of registering a mark on immortality? Did
you forget who was quarterbacking this franchise? Who garnered no real
support ... to be considered an afterthought ... playing for franchises that had
no stomach for a legend that was only held in esteem playing for this Minnesota
franchise. Accruing nothing of note, he was made to waste his final
years. Might he have surpassed Emmitt Smith's career rushing record by
surpassing it, needing just 3,438 yards to do it? For his final five years
(2017 thru 2021), when he was not in Minnesota, although he had still
established two unheralded 1,000 yard seasons, he became an after thought with
no directive to play him ... regardless of what might actually be playing in
front of him. Compare that to Frank Gores final five (5) seasons, who he
was chasing & something quite burning becomes telling, especially being only
351 yard away from Barry Sanders playing in Detroit in 2020 gaining only 604
yards. Could Detroit have squelched "Peterson" in favor of the
all world Barry Sanders? We'll never know.
To be direct, no Viking
fan has any idea of Adrian Peterson's actual status. The only thing that
we do know for sure is that he didn't play in the 2022 season ... so he should
be healed up by now. We also know that he's a freak of nature, which means
exactly what? We don't know.
What we do know is that even though he was clearly better than Frank Gore, an
outstanding back in his own right, Adrian Peterson is 5th on the all time
rushing list, being 1082 yards behind San Francisco's Frank Gore's 16,000
rushing yards. What this means, to Adrian Peterson, and every Viking fan
on the planet, is the potential re-hash of Cris Carter's entry into the Hall of
Fame. Dollars to Doughnuts, you'll see Adrian waiting year after year
being shunned pointing directly at Frank Gore being 3rd on the overall
list. Do you think this might be enough motivation for Adrian Peterson to
get off his ass? I think that it might?
Which brings us to the following set of questions. Do you think Adrian
Peterson has earned the right to have a member at the end of this present squad
to sit on the bench so that he could suit up & actually play in the Super
Bowl? Might that odd man out be dictated by the brutal aspect of playoff
football that is beyond everyone's control? How might that play out in the
media? Do you think that would measure out positively or negatively
considering our present roster? Do you think that Adrian Peterson ... the
legend ... would be properly motivated to be a positive influence upon this 2023
Minnesota Viking's squad? Do you think that there is something beyond
money that can motivate a man to be able to flip his script in life? Do
you think history might actually repeat where you hear the bellows of those
Bronco Nagurski championship calls (most have never heard it)? Will
history repeat itself? Will the stains of this Vikings franchise, dating
back to January 4th, 1970, and the establishment of this modern NFL (AFC/NFC)
... finally be washed from the bilge of humanity?
Can you hear it? Can you envision it? Are the Minnesota Vikings
buyers?
Will we become the laughing stock of the league? What will the league
think & will those thoughts change over time? Randy Moss is not Adrian
Peterson as the two were coming from vastly different arenas. Randy's hat
was never in hand where he had nothing to prove to anyone. Red McCombs
business decision does not reflect our present status or outcome. Business
decisions are only considered one way however sometimes the decision can be made
by players that might live in regret. Money is nice but how does it
compare with legacy? Bidding my time ... for a show that must go on!
Kirk Cousins is my quarterback. Adrian Peterson is a legend ... with one
of his hands tied to his back. Can we change that? Is it too
late? Is Sunday, February 11, 2024 too soon for him to return to
form? What does it mean to bookend legends? Do we dare stack the
blocks?
"Realization": Look back, the story began with Jupiter within
Taurus, my birth sign. Those horns are that of a bull. The journey
began just prior to the selection of Adrian Peterson as our first pick of the
2007 draft. The sign, was hoped to be immediate. As it turns out, it
was the start of a journey. Was this destiny?
Does this apply to all 32 franchises? For this 2023 season ... it only
applies to one (1).
The Viking Ghost Writer
http://MyVikingBlood.org
Date: October 25, 2023
