Let's just say it's pretty obvious San Diego Chargers general manager A.J. Smith knows how to hold a grudge. Former coach Marty Schottenheimer learned that the hard way. And Smith recently made it clear he still hasn't let go of his animosity for New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning, seven years after Manning refused to play for the Chargers when they drafted him No. 1 overall in 2004.
"He was a Charger for 45 minutes," Smith said "and that was too much time to be a Charger, in my opinion."
Nice, A.J. Way to be a grownup and move on with your life.
Smith also said he believes Philip Rivers will quarterback San Diego to a championship.
"I believe with my heart and soul that he one day will lead the Chargers to a world championship," Smith said in an interview with Sporting News. "He’s a great quarterback—a phenomenal leader with great character, great work habits."
Best of NFL: NFC East teams - NFC East Blog - ESPN
ESPN has been looking at bests of the NFL. When it comes to the NFC, the Worldwide Leader nominates Giants-Eagles for best NFC East rivalry. Judging from the vitriol around here any time the Eagles are mentioned, that would be correct.
Look, the beautiful part of this division is the rivalries -- that every team has such an intense rivalry with every other team in the division. It's what makes it the most intense division in the league and the one that's most fun to discuss and debate on a daily basis. But right now, the best rivalry in the division is Eagles-Giants. The Eagles have managed to win six in a row. The Giants hate it, and willingly admit that it's in their heads. They will open the 2011 season, whenever it does open, determined to stop that streak and beat the team they believe is standing between them and the playoffs. The Eagles will open the season coolly confident that they have the Giants' number. The head-to-head matchups will be the two must-see NFC East games of the year.
Tiki Barber's Fall From Grace Shouldn't Come as Shock | LostLettermen.com
He seemed smarter than everyone else, the guy who quit early to save his body with another lucrative job lined up.
But that’s the thing about sports heroes. They’re flawed just like the rest of us.
Look at Tiger Woods. While the troubles of Woods are different from those of Barber – I want to make that clear – the principle is the same.
We built both up – granted Woods had a higher apex than Barber – only to be shocked when guys we don’t know personally don’t live up to manufactured expectations.
Woods is not a criminal. But he was considered a golden boy before he was unequivocally found using poor judgment.
Heck, Barber had his previous lapses in judgment – with classless criticism of coach Tom Coughlin while he was playing and quarterback Manning after he retired.
But we still thought Barber was above it all. He wouldn’t be the guy caught up in this type of mess. We should have known better.
Izenberg: If NFL lockout lingers, stadium workers are the real losers | NJ.com
Forget the NFL owners and forget the players. Hell, they forgot you a long time ago just like baseball did in a long, long strike. Think, instead, about this army of honest workmen who would lose everything if the master puppeteers make this a battle forever the major part of the upcoming calendar of autumn Sundays.
They will be the anonymous "civilian" casualties.