A good teammate? 'Favre' from it

Don't be relieved by the rumors that Brett Favre has decided to retire for good. Forget the fact that we've been through this selfish circus multiple times before, and instead consider the damage he has done to his supposedly-former Minnesota Vikings teammates.

Viewing the 2009 NFL preseason through the rearview mirror, it is clear that Favre planned all along to play last season despite his announced retirement and relentless waffling. Head coach Brad Childress was making trips to Hattiesburg, Miss., with a pretty strong inclination that Favre would be joining the team after sidestepping training camp. So the fact that they didn't pursue another legitimate quarterback to push Tavaris Jackson turned out to be a sensible non-move.

This season, however, Childress has had little reason to believe that Favre's antics would lead to anything less than a late preseason return to get him ready for Week 1 in the nick of time. He had a surgery this year, just like last year; he was throwing with high schoolers this year, just like last year - and the list goes on.

So for Favre to apparently be retiring for real this year (and I'm still not sold that it's final) puts the Vikings in a precarious position. Behind Favre on the depth chart is Jackson and Sage Rosenfels, neither of which has proven capable of taking a team deep into the playoffs. I don't care how well Adrian Peterson, Sidney Rice and Visanthe Shiancoe play; without a top 10, or even a top 20 quarterback, the Vikings are going nowhere. This doesn't bother me from a fan perspective because it will clearly benefit my favorite team, the Eagles (since they're both in the NFC), but from a character perspective, what Favre has done this year is worse than any past offseason shunning.

The Packers had Aaron Rodgers, the Jets drafted Mark Sanchez and the Vikings have, well, not much. They would almost be better off running a wildcat all season with Peterson and Chester Taylor than trying to fit a round peg into a square hole. The biggest positive that will come from this is that we didn't find out via a one-hour special on ESPN.

Bad case of Beli-mia

I'll remember Bill Belichick as one thing - a cheater.
If he wins the next five Super Bowls, the next three American Idols and an Iditarod, I won't think anything more of him.
Two years ago I would have told you that he rivaled Vince Lombardi as the best coach in NFL history.
Now, for two reasons, I'll tell you he rivals Barry Bonds. Firstly because he's simultaneously the biggest and most successful cheater in the history of his sport. Secondly because without cheating he still would have been one of the most successful figures in the history of his sport.
And it's the latter realization that perplexes me. What is it that makes someone's desire to succeed so high that he feels justified cheating to reach his goals?
Spygate tarnished Belichick's reputation for sure, but since all the tangible evidence has seemingly surfaced, it appears that his actions were overblown and in some cases falsely exaggerated (by The Boston Herald).
He and the organization were justly punished and like an old french fry the the scandal was swept under the rug.
Then this happens. Matt Walsh, the "third video assistant" who "doesn't know football" told Commissioner Roger Goodell that Belichick uses players on Injured Reserve in practice.
He reminds me of the people at the gas station who take six pennies out of the change tray so they don't have to break an extra dollar.
He takes every minute edge he can to get a leg up on his opponents.
Whether that means taping their signals, practicing with extra players or cutting the sleeves off his hoodies so he can throw his challenge flag a little farther, he'll do it.
And that's what I can't stand.
He's clearly a genius and without cheating his stats would undoubtedly make him one of the best coaches ever. But the cheating on his resume is the mustard on your favorite T-shirt.
That stain won't go away like the Spurs in late spring.
The only explanation I can think of is that Belichick has a sickness. Call it Beli-mia because every time he cheats I want to throw up.
When everyone said Belichick and his Patriots were in a different league, they were right - the league of cheaters.
Don't be offended by me grouping the whole team together because of Belichick's actions. After all, he preaches the team concept more than
anyone in the game. If they don't want to be cheaters they can find another team to play/work for.
That includes everyone from owner Bill Belichick to kicker Adam Vinatieri. They're all cheaters. Remember how angry you got when your sister used to always be the banker in Monopoly and somehow she would never run out of money? Multiply that anger and the importance of the game by 100 and you can understand where I'm coming from.
But with the talent that Belichick and the Patriots have, I'll never understand where they're coming from.