Chapter Sixteen, Part Twenty-Six: Goodbye Vick, St. Louis Trouble, National Bowl 2017, Bye Bye Billick, & Down Goes Johnny
January 26, 2017: The Buccaneers’ Michael Vick, former MVP and longtime quarterback for the Falcons, announces his retirement from the NFL, after sixteen seasons in the league. Vick, considered one of the most athletic players to ever join the ranks of the NFL, was picked first overall by the Falcons in the 2001 NFL Draft, and quickly became a phenomenon. His team came to dominate the unstable NFC South, at one point earning the top seed in the NFC, although his career was derailed by a drug-related arrest that spurned a search of his home, revealing his involvement in a dogfighting ring. He served three years in prison before he was released and signed with the Falcons’ rival NFC South team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. His Bucs squad frequently found themselves at odds with the Luck-Reid Falcons powerhouse, and the competitive post-Favre Saints. Vick will leave the league a controversial figure although, perhaps, the greatest mobile quarterback to play in the league. He announces that he will attempt to join coaching ranks in the post-playing period of his life.
January 28, 2017: The St. Louis Stars are put into “administration” by the FFL, after the board of majority shareholder Anheuser-Busch judges that the wisest move is to end the shaky investment. The franchise’s instability is the latest dagger to the league, which will likely run on a loss if projected costs and profits hold true.
January 29, 2017: In the Nation Bowl, the #1-ranked Tennessee Volunteers defeat the #4-ranked Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, 49-16, as Josh Rosen passes for six touchdowns and 458 yards, while Jake Fromm passes for only two touchdowns, 245 yards, and two interceptions. Rosen is named the game’s MVP, although the Tennessee defense is widely commended for a great showing. The Vols’ D held an offense that won 12 games and averaged 35 points per game to a mere 16, with most of those points coming in garbage time when the result was already decided. Tennessee’s Jamal Adams, their star defensive player, bolsters his first-round draft stock by nabbing a pick-six, the only non-Rosen touchdown for Tennessee in the game.
January 31, 2017: The Dallas Cowboys announce they will part ways with longtime head coach Brian Billick, after an up and down season that sees them miss the playoffs a year removed from an NFC Divisional Round appearance.
February 2, 2017: The Kansas City Chiefs cut ties with QB Johnny Manziel after a domestic violence arrest. Manziel, a former first-round pick, had an up and down three seasons with the team, notable for stretches of both astonishingly bad play and astoundingly great comebacks. The main issues with Manziel, however, proved to be that the bad play was much more frequent then the good and his work ethic wasn’t up to par with his counterparts. He is effectively blackballed from the NFL due to his arrest, and he is placed on the Commissioner’s exempt list. Further, it is rumored that the moment Manziel signs with an NFL team, he will be fined for his previous behavior.
As always, please comment your thoughts on the latest events, and feel free to DM me about your thoughts, ideas, or random musings. Be sure to like this, and thanks for reading.
January 28, 2017: The St. Louis Stars are put into “administration” by the FFL, after the board of majority shareholder Anheuser-Busch judges that the wisest move is to end the shaky investment. The franchise’s instability is the latest dagger to the league, which will likely run on a loss if projected costs and profits hold true.
January 29, 2017: In the Nation Bowl, the #1-ranked Tennessee Volunteers defeat the #4-ranked Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, 49-16, as Josh Rosen passes for six touchdowns and 458 yards, while Jake Fromm passes for only two touchdowns, 245 yards, and two interceptions. Rosen is named the game’s MVP, although the Tennessee defense is widely commended for a great showing. The Vols’ D held an offense that won 12 games and averaged 35 points per game to a mere 16, with most of those points coming in garbage time when the result was already decided. Tennessee’s Jamal Adams, their star defensive player, bolsters his first-round draft stock by nabbing a pick-six, the only non-Rosen touchdown for Tennessee in the game.
January 31, 2017: The Dallas Cowboys announce they will part ways with longtime head coach Brian Billick, after an up and down season that sees them miss the playoffs a year removed from an NFC Divisional Round appearance.
February 2, 2017: The Kansas City Chiefs cut ties with QB Johnny Manziel after a domestic violence arrest. Manziel, a former first-round pick, had an up and down three seasons with the team, notable for stretches of both astonishingly bad play and astoundingly great comebacks. The main issues with Manziel, however, proved to be that the bad play was much more frequent then the good and his work ethic wasn’t up to par with his counterparts. He is effectively blackballed from the NFL due to his arrest, and he is placed on the Commissioner’s exempt list. Further, it is rumored that the moment Manziel signs with an NFL team, he will be fined for his previous behavior.
As always, please comment your thoughts on the latest events, and feel free to DM me about your thoughts, ideas, or random musings. Be sure to like this, and thanks for reading.