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Shouldering burden
Posted by Charles P. Pierce
February 2, 2010 01:03 PM
The news -- leaked by various NFL anonymice -- that Randy Moss played the better part of the season with a shoulder separation will change exactly no minds around these parts. (At least he achieved separation in something this season! Thank you. No, you're too kind, really.) The people who have determined that he was an integral part of the team's mediocre finish will simply ignore the news -- or, without any evidence at all, decide that he and the Patriots are lying about the injury for their own reasons. At the very least, they'll minimize it, talk about what other players play through, and get around eventually to telling us (again) that Moss remains the antithesis of what the Patriots are Supposed To Be About. Personally, I still think that, even despite his injury, he should have done a much better job on personnel issues. Why he couldn't come up with a decent pass rush is beyond me.
Assuming the story is true, this is yet another cautionary tale about opining beyond the available evidence when it comes to issues like desire and the rest of the Intangibles. Exhibit A, always, is the case of former Astros pitcher J.R. Richard who, in 1980, after a dominant few seasons, complained of a dead arm. He was accused of jaking it, of being jealous of Nolan Ryan's contract, and of a number of other offenses against the Intangibles. Then, on July 30 of that year, Richard had a stroke, nearly died, and never really pitched again. (At one point, after his career ended, Richard was homeless and living under a bridge.) And this was 20 years before talk-radio and the Intertoobz, before the notion of "Having A Take" won out over the notion of "Knowing What The Hell You're Talking About," before unmoored opinion became a career catapult. Anyway, folks in that business should watch out. Sooner or later, real life can make you look like a jackass. Just sayin'.
Assuming the story is true, this is yet another cautionary tale about opining beyond the available evidence when it comes to issues like desire and the rest of the Intangibles. Exhibit A, always, is the case of former Astros pitcher J.R. Richard who, in 1980, after a dominant few seasons, complained of a dead arm. He was accused of jaking it, of being jealous of Nolan Ryan's contract, and of a number of other offenses against the Intangibles. Then, on July 30 of that year, Richard had a stroke, nearly died, and never really pitched again. (At one point, after his career ended, Richard was homeless and living under a bridge.) And this was 20 years before talk-radio and the Intertoobz, before the notion of "Having A Take" won out over the notion of "Knowing What The Hell You're Talking About," before unmoored opinion became a career catapult. Anyway, folks in that business should watch out. Sooner or later, real life can make you look like a jackass. Just sayin'.
Listen to Charlie Pierce

Featured comments
“Still too early, but I share the concern. Would love to see the eventual second unit guys – Baby, Jeff Green, Arroyo, West and probably Kristic – get to play together. Rondo looks exhausted and it would be helpful if Doc could cut back his minutes.
Also, I strongly suspect there were concerns that Perk was not the same player anymore.”
mfo817
“Packer was serious about hoops. I knew it was a big game when Musberger/Nantz would call a game with Packer. He was old school so he took delight in fundamentals such as a pick/roll or boxing out a rebounder. I'm still a young kid, but I enjoyed his analysis.”
Jhonny
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