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Warhorse

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  2. Warhorse
    In two days, the Indianapolis Colts take the field in their first game against real competition. Even though it is preseason, it is still the maiden event for what has become a completely revamped franchise. One would have to draw some very sketchy comparisons to find a team historically that has changed so many aspects in just one off-season.
    In review, this franchise lost it's franchise QB to injury and that loss was followed by poor team play, questionable coaching decisions, head scratching coordinator approaches, and overall lack of team confidence. What was a franchise that was feared, was now a team that was almost a lock to get the next years first pick before the season was half over. In short, it was like a plane running out of fuel and the descent gained moment as it plummeted towards the #32 spot in the league. No disrespect to those players who still fought their tail off all season. Far from it. They were simply not put into a position where they could succeed despite the circumstances.
    Fast forward to the present, we now stand on the edge of a new era. Gone are the gushing articles of praise, heaped weekly upon the Colts as result of their undeniable ability to win and win often. Twelve wins was always a possibility, tens wins was likely, and 8 wins was a given that bordered on ridiculousness when questioned. Gone is the media attention as a whole.
    What we have now are questions, but there is excitement around the questions. How will the team play? Will we run the football? Will we be tough on defense? Will our coach be animated? Will we do anything like we did before...or will we have a whole new identity?
    Just the notion that these questions, and many many more just like it are about to be answered, has the beginning of this new era busting with potential, possibilities, and hope. As we talk about what could happen, express concern about how long it might take to get there, and shamelessly heap vast expectations upon this new Colt era to help us get past our own disappointments, this writer hopes that we acknowledge the challenges that this franchise has had to emerge from, and move on. I see article after article about how Andrew Luck is expected to replace Mr. Manning, or how this team needs or wants to erase the ugliness of the past season.
    I could not disagree more.
    Like a reawakening of the soul.....player, coach, owner, and fan alike have had their mental framework reset about who the Colts are. The choice belongs to each and every one of us. Tabula Rasa. Blank slate. We can see the success of the past as a reminder of what we no longer have. We can see any failure or challenge that the team faces this season as an example of what this team no longer is. We can also view those challenges and failures through a filter of excitement, hope, and fierce pride, as one who has emerged from the fire. This team, this year, can be the start of the best Colt era ever.....and it can exist, without diminishing or lessening a single accomplishment that any Colt player or team has given their fans in the past. And it can exist without the responsibility of replacing or erasing anything from the past. They are quite simply, two different eras.
    Bon voyage, Colts. May the journey be a memorable one.
  3. Warhorse

    Everyone's NFL

    By Warhorse,

    It was January 17th, 1971. As an 11 year old smallish kid from a no sports family who was growing up in a 97 population town, Superbowl V was a pretty good way to see my first football game at the home of our families friends. I instantly fell in love with the game...and the horseshoe on the helmet. Since then, I have been a Colt fan and I feel truly blessed to have chosen such a great sport and such a fine franchise.
    As I began to watch the game, I listened to others talk about the game and I quickly realized that each fan appreciates something different. Oh sure, we all love to see our team score a TD or win a game, but there are little victories, plays, or moments that each individual fan gleans joy and appreciation from. My appreciation has changed over time, especially with the increase in knowledge of how the game is played from the players perspective. The one thing that I get from watching the NFL is displays of incredible human ability being performed at the highest athletic level, and simultaneously being filmed by the best sports filming crew in the world. No other sport or event captures the amazing feats of athletic prowess quite as magnificently as the NFL does. The one handed catch by Marvin Harrison in the middle of the field against the Titans will be forever etched in my memory.
    In the last few years, the league has begun to pay close attention to player safety, especially where concussions are concerned. As the information about how often it actually happens to the average player, how it is affecting the players in their life after football, how they try to hide it from their coaches and teammates, and how there is pressure to hide these events comes forward, it appears that we are heading down a road of disclosure that leaves no option for turning back. Well over 100 former players, many of whom are household names, have filed a collective lawsuit and this subject will get the attention it deserves whether fans or players like it or not.
    I know that I have cheered many times when I saw a great hit put on a player. It is part of the game. But what we are all finding out, is that there are many parts of the game that some of us didn't know existed. I truly did not know that players targeted other players with intent to injure. Nor did I know that coaches would ask players to take other players out of the game in return for monetary compensation. Does that make me naive? Perhaps, but I don't think that I am alone. There are many fans who have played football, who see things differently than others, but both are legitimate fans. I am hearing a lot of fans crying out that the NFL is dying, that violence and injury is part of the game. That our current commissioner is trying to take the fun out of the game. Well, it is this writers opinion that he is actually trying to save the game. It is very easy to cite how rough and tough players from the past were. The rules were very lax and the play was extremely forceful. But this is where the argument against protecting players more loses its credibility....how does the force compare?
    Players on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball have grown considerably since that first SB I watched. Todays TE's are bigger than many of yesterdays offensive tackles. In addition, players train year round, take supplements, have access to HGH, and work with nutritionists and conditioning experts. Basically, they have become freakish athletic specimens. The rules have to change because the physicality is changing. If it isn't, physics will win. More players will pass early, perhaps even on the field during a game. There is a fine line between keeping the game a big time contact sport, and keeping players from killing themselves. I don't think anyone wants to take away the physical battle that ensues every football Sunday. But it might be a good idea to work at keeping a balance between the improving human player and love by fans for violent contact.
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