Sports News
Michael Wilbon
Washington Post Sports Columnist
Monday, September 8, 2008
1:45 PM
Welcome to another edition of The Chat House, where Post columnist Michael Wilbon was online Monday, Sept. 8 at 2 p.m. ET to take your questions and comments about the latest sports news and his recent columns.
A transcript follows.
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DC: I know the NFL isn't reliant on stars, but if you lose Tom freaking Brady for the season, you have to take a bit of a hit, right?
Michael Wilbon: Hi everybody...Sorry we're starting nearly an hour late, but because of the ESPN MNF doubleheader tonight we had to tape PTI almost three hours early to clear the decks (and Lambeau Field)...so, here I am...And we have to start with Tom Brady, whose loss to a knee injury is monumental and regrettable. I hate seeing anybody injured, but most of all the great players who make the product what it is...It's not the loss that Tiger Woods is to golf because there are so many other great football players. Still, the Patriots with Brady are the marquee team and to many still the team to beat in the NFL. But pro football, unlike pro basketball, is not reliant on stars. The Patriots are reliant on Brady but the league's ratings won't suffer one bit. In fact, if Favre and the Jets benefit because of the injury to division rival New England, the New York viewers could bump the ratings...Still, I hate seeing Brady injured. What a downer to start the season. And I know the Patriots play what looks to be an easy cake schedule...but I don't believe they'll do any better than 9-7, and more likely will be looking in my opinion at 8-8 or 7-9 without Brady. The NFL IS reliant on quarterbacks...every team. Of the 32 teams I'd have to guess 28 of them would be greatly reduced without their starting QB.
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Patterson, NY: There was some great tennis over the weekend. No matter what the computer rankings say, if the Williams sister are playing and healthy, they should be seeded 1-2 in any tournament. Venus was the 2nd best woman in the US Open.
Michael Wilbon: You get no disagreement here. Thanks for the point well made. It was a great week of tennis, and I'm just sorry I got to spend only one day actually in attendance at Flushing...I did watch 90 percent of the feature matches, though. And plan to watch the men's final in a little bit.
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Columbia, SC: I think that in light of the Brady injury, it really shows that you need a good back-up QB. What baffles me is how some really good teams basically have no solid back-up. Indianapolis, New England, and Dallas are teams that seem to be playing a risky game. I understand that sometimes the back up may be good, if unheard of (Warner, Brady, Todd Collins, etc). But, I've seen Cassell, Sorgi, and Johnson play, and they can't do enough to help the team win - or help the team not lose.
My question is why? Why do teams put themselves in this position? Would it have killed the Patriots to draft someone in the higher rounds (ex. Philly with Kolb last year)? Or, spend some money on a solid back-up? Are they worried about ego? Do players not want to play behind Brady or Manning because they have a history of staying healthy?
Michael Wilbon: I totally agree with you, but the coaches and GMs of those team probably feel their backups are more than adequate. We'll see.
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DC: Tom Brady sat out the entire pre-season to protect himself, and yet it looks like his season is over with anyways.
In light of this, do you think Goodell is reconsidering having an 18-game season?
Michael Wilbon: I don't think Brady's injury has any connection to the 18-game season discussion. Suppose Brady had been injured in Game 4?
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Flushing Meadows: From last week's chat: "What I've said, and I'll say until Sunday when events could overtake opinions, is that I think Federer is done as far as winning Grand Slam events."
What are you thinking about how Federer handled the semis and about tonight's match?
Michael Wilbon: Federer has been great. Not good, great. He took Djokovic out, somebody who had defeated him in a Slam this season. Federer survived a 5-setter he could have lost. If he wins today, it'll be particularly impressive. I thought he'd lose to Djokovic...I didn't not think Nadal was going to win, so I was right on that half, but if Federer wins, given that I thought he was done winning Slams, I'll be the first to raise a toast.
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Baltimore, MD: Mike,
I wanted know your thoughts on the passing of Don Haskins and what he meant to college basketball.
Thanks, Mark
Michael Wilbon: Great questionl. At Tony Kornhesier's recommendation 24 years ago, I took a detour while at the Sun Bowl covering a Maryland football game, called Don Haskins office and asked if I could come and talk to him for 15 minutes.
We talked for two hours.
Mostly, he talked and I listened...And it was one of the most fasinating conversations I've ever had. We talked about everything relating to the 1966 Texas Western-Kentucky game...him recruiting black players from Chicago and Gary, Indiana, how he felt about being an historic figure, which he wasn't trying to do...What it was like to see overt bigotry up-close, happening to young men he came to love...It was like visiting a museum. I so appreciated him giving me that much time and will never forget the visit.
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Silver Spring: Michael,
I'm a football fan but far from an expert, so please help me with this. People say that Jason Campbell needs time to develop as an NFL QB, but it seems to me that we know far sooner in a QB's career whether or not he's going to be good. Certainly Manning, Brady, Romo, McNabb, Roethlisberger (you know, the good QBs) seemed to be competent almost immediately and were at the top of the league soon after. It seems that development is overrated. If you're good, it'll be obvious.
What do you think?
Michael Wilbon: Yeah, I've got the raised eyebrows over this, too. I know a Hall of Fame QB who wonders if Campbell sees the field the way good quarterbacks have to. People think he's coachable, smart, a good teammate...he's got a strong arm, good feet...But you can have all that, and if you don't see the field, you're going to have trouble...That's just one opinion...well, not really. I've heard it from several former quarterbacks...Let's see. This, though, is the season Campbell has to establish himself...or else.
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San Diego, CA: Any chance Daunte gets a call from the Pats?
Michael Wilbon: No...Chris Simms and Tim Rattay have gotten the calls. Don't count on Daunte's phone ringing.
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Rockville, MD: RE: lack of good back up quarterbacks. Maybe the reason so few teams have good backup QB's is that there are barely 32 decent STARTING quarterbacks in the league, muchless 64.
Michael Wilbon: There aren't even 32. More like 20-25 in any given season.
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DC: When Bernard Pollard said he heard a scream, that wasn't Brady, it was Les Moonves, the president of CBS.
After all, three of the Patriot games last year were three of the most watched programming in CBS' history.
Michael Wilbon: That's a funny line...very funny. But remember, the Jets will draw just as many viewers as the Patriots, maybe more.
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WDC: Mr. Wilbon, The gnashing of teeth over Tom Brady's injury (extent unknown as I type) is border-line comical. As a buddy of mine said, listening to the talking heads you'd think the NFL might as well close up shop now. Someone even said something along the lines of "Everyone in the NFL is saddened by this." I would think that everyone outside a 1-hour radius from Boston is fairly happy by this. The Jets and Bills are probably dancing on tables. I don't wish injury on anybody, but this is football. Injuries happen, it's part of the game. And it isn't like Tom Brady got the Jim McMahon treatment; Brady got hurt while throwing the ball, not looking downfield seeing where his interception was going. Meh, my two cents.
Michael Wilbon: You've got a very good percspective on injuries overall in the NFL, who benefits and who cares. It's not the NFL where the league really is set back on its heels when stars go bye-bye for the season with injuries.
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Odenton, MD: Might as well start the hype early...is Matt Ryan the real deal, or what?
Michael Wilbon: Are you crazy? I hope he is, but you want to ask this after he beat the pathetic Lions. The only team that's possibly a bigger disgrace than the Lions are the Bengals. They're both hideous. But I'm happy for Ryan and for Turner, his running back who came over from San Diego...I'm happy for Arthur Blank, for the Falcons in general, given all they've been through.
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Washington DC: Re Campbell seeing the field: Would that Hall of Fame QB have the initial SJ?
Michael Wilbon: Reporters don't give up their sources...you know that, right? The intials were D.T. (Deep Throat). Ha.
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Ashburn, VA: Thanks for taking my question! Do you think the rules protecting the QBs are nonsense? Why not put bright colors (like the green or red jersies they wear in practice) on their knees and helmets and enforce a "don't touch here or it's 15 yards and an ejection" policy? That seems to be where the catastrophic injuries occur. That way too you could do away with the ticky-tack 15 yard penalties for hitting them after they release the ball...
Michael Wilbon: Yeah, and I know coming the day after Brady was injured like he was makes it tough to discuss this. But the protection given QBs is crazy to me. It's football. I understand the NFL wanting to protect its greatest assets. I get it. But it's making defense difficult to play and the games have no balance anymore. It's rare when you see a game like the Sunday nigher with the Bears popping the Colts. Brian Urlacher was hit with an absurd penalty...It should embarass the league.
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Bmore: I must say I was very impressed with Kyle Orton's poise last night. He's not surrounded by ANY talent at the WR spot, but he mananged to make all the throws. Forte was a nice pick and should do good things. This team will remind some of the Super Bowl team, but not sure if the D is as good. Anyway, good start for your Bears and they my have finally found a QB.
Michael Wilbon: It's a great start for my Bears. The defense flew around, Mike Brown lives to play a second game. Orton "managed" the game and didn't make Grossmaniac mistakes. And this kid Matt Forte was fabulous. We don't know jack about QBs in Chicago because we never have them. But we know LBs and RBs. We know Galimore/Sayers/Payton...and none of those distinguished men had the debut Forte had. I'm over the moon. And it's helping me forget about the Cubs and Kerry Wood blowing 3-1 lead in the ninth to the Reds yesterday.
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Mr. Snyder (DC): Do you think the Redskins should go after Bill Cowher or Mike Holmgren next year?
Michael Wilbon: Oh stop. Please stop.
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Montgomery Village, Md.: Michael,
Do you think old No. 4 might be wondering whether he could have been on the OTHER side of the field next Sunday when the Jets play the Pats, if only he had stayed "retired" a little longer?
Michael Wilbon: No. I think Favre thinks he's just fine.
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Washington, DC: I hope you can have a moment of silence in the Chat House today for Don Haskins. I was surprised to read that he was only 78. The game between Texas Western and Kentucky was so long ago that I thought he would have been older.
Coincidentally I saw that Pat Riley was just inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Was it you or your colleague Mike Wise who wrote recently about Riley and the Kentucky team?
washingtonpost.com:
Michael Wilbon: It wasn't me. I wrote about the men (and woman) being inducted Friday, so it must have been Mike Wise, who knows Riley well and writes about him with great insight all the time.
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Chicago, IL: Care to jump on the Kyle Orton bandwagon?
Michael Wilbon: If he keeps playing like he did last night I'll drive the bandwagon. But it's early. Stay calm.
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Richmond, VA: Before you retire, what sports figure who you have never met or interviewed would you like to interview and why?
Michael Wilbon: Wow. I gotta think about that. I dom't know. Wow, I might have to answer this next week...That's a lot of people to review. Okay, next week on this one...
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Maryland: Is Marvin Lewis on the hot seat? As in perhaps fired during the season. Yesterday's performance vs a division rival starting a rookie QB was very unimpressive. Also should they have just traded Chad "Oucho Cinco"
Michael Wilbon: I love Marvin Lewis, and I'd probably hire him in a second in another situation. But yes, he OUGHT to be on the hot seat in Cincinnati. His owner, Mike Brown, hasn't helped him much, but that's a disaster over there...And Marvin was so close to a breakthrough three years ago when the Bengals went, what, 11-5 and were in the playoffs when Carson Palmer got hurt? Bad, bad, bad choices with personnel have undermined the Bengals and I don't think they can get it back.
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Federer vs. Djokovic: I think Djokovic's problems with the crowd from his earlier matches had a dampening effect on his game. He looked disheartened by the crowd booing him in the middle of his service motion (which is appalling behavior from the fans) and didn't have any of his usual spark or fight. Not to say Fed played poorly but Djokovic wasn't into it.
Michael Wilbon: I totally agree with you...
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Baltimore, MD: Do you think the hit on Brady was a cheap shot?
Michael Wilbon: Not one bit.
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Laurel, Md.: What'd you think of the Colts' new stadium? Watching the fly-by last night, it looks impressive and very unique.
Michael Wilbon: I've got to see it in person...You can only tell by walking inside and taking the tour.
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D.C. Patriots Fan: I'm standing on a ledge looking down. Please give me a good reason or two why I shouldn't jump.
Michael Wilbon: Your team is wearing three Super Bowl rings and you want our sympathy. Go away...Please.
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Nokesville, VA: After watching the first week of the NFL season which team(s) impressed you the most?
You've got to be on cloud 9 today after the way your Bears played last night. What do you think Cedric Benson was doing last night?
Michael Wilbon: In order, the Steelers, Eagles, Cowboys impressed me the most. The Bears, Ron Jaworski says, were the most impressive because they went on the road and beat the Colts in their new stadium. "The Bears took that game," Jaws just said to me...(We're sitting here in Tony' bus, all preparing for something). Atlanta impressed me, given the circumstances.
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Washington, DC: Romo wasn't a top QB immediately. He was a backup for 3 years. Other QBs who took some time to develop include Favre, Hasselbeck, Warner, Eli Manning, and Brees. I'm not necessarily in the tank for Campbell. I'm just saying each player develops his own way, and that Campbell is still young enough to be given a full opportunity.
Michael Wilbon: Thank you for making a rational, measured point. That's the way we should leave this week's dicussion, with a bit of common sense perspective. I have to run and prepar to write a column about many of the NFL isssues we've been talking about, starting with Tom Brady, of course....Okay, thank you guys for indulging me and my altered schedule today...Back to the regular schedule next week from DALLAS, where the Eagles will visit in what should be HUGE. I can hardly wait...MW
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MD: Do you agree with the call in the Washington Huskies game over the weekend ?. That was so unfortunate for it come down to an "excessive celebration" penalty. A great play turned sour in seconds
Michael Wilbon: College football poo-bahs ought to be embarassed over that call. It's just awful. I'm offended by the call and the justification of it. The rule needs to be changed right now if it can't be interpreted any better than that...MW
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