HANDOFFS AND HEADLOCKS
By Charlie Dudley on 8/4/2008 10:15 AM
Favre Reinstated-Aaron Rodgers is So Screwed
It came out Sunday night that Brett Favre was reinstated by the NFL. It also came out that Green Bay has opened competition for the starting QB job. What a Sunday for Aaron Rodgers. He went from being a starter, to being the backup without taking a snap. Open competition means Brett Favre wins, case closed.
Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers will still compete for the job. Does anyone really think Rodgers has a snowball’s chance in hell of leading the Pack? I’m pretty sure it’s a coin toss with a double-sided coin. Heads Rodgers loses, tails Favre wins.
Congratulations Aaron Rodgers, you will never be the guy in Green Bay. Brian Brohm is the third string in Green Bay. Brohm is way better than Rodgers has ever dreamed of being. Good Pac-10 quarterbacks in college are not good in the NFL. They usually do not pan out.
Ryan Leaf was good at Washington State, remember. Joey Harrington was so awesome at Oregon, remember that? Remember the Pro Bowl sensation Todd Maronovich? That’s right, you do not because Pac-10 quarterbacks in the NFL do not pan out. For every John Elway there are six or seven quarterbacks like Cade McNown and Kyle Boller.
Ultimately, Aaron Rodgers should be more upset that his parents actually bought season tickets this year. They were poised to make the trip from cozy Chico, California to frigid Green Bay. Now the only chance his parents have of seeing him start is if Brett Favre gives them a copy of Madden 2009, where Rodgers is still the starter. Favre can afford to give them a copy because he’s on the cover
Tony Atlas is Chef’s Dad and Finally, Chavo is enhancement
Matt Hardy isn’t a bad promo guy but he isn’t exactly Jake Roberts or Ric Flair. Tony Atlas is good for Mark Henry but he is so mush-mouthed; he does sound like Chef’s dad. When Atlas was talking to Hardy, I was waiting on him to ask Hardy about the Loch-Ness Monster or needing $3.50. On the other hand, Hardy and Henry should have an interesting dynamic with Hardy bumping like crazy for the world’s hungriest and strongest champion.
Weeks ago I urged WWE to reduce Chavo to enhancement, elevating young guys. Chavo is a good enough worker to make young guys look good. People also have seen him have a decent push to the top, so if people beat him, the fans think the new guy to be important. Chavo is too old and not a good enough promo to be anything other than enhancement. I’m sad to live in a world where Stevie Richards, a much better promo and worker, puts over more people than Chavo Guerrero.
How frustrating is it to see Finlay confined to tag matches with a midget? I hope the happenings on ECW on Tuesday started a storyline where Hornswoggle gets banned by Finlay from entering the ring and costing him matches. I love midgets just as much as the next guy, but enough is enough. I want Finlay to bloody and beat people’s asses.
Colin Delaney needs to be released. No one cares about him anymore. He is like a man without a country. His heel turn was as forgettable as the last shot of a 4 hour binge drinking session. Colin, it was nice knowing you.
Ric Flair, You’re Free to Go
PWInsiderElite reported that Ric Flair and WWE had parted ways. This makes sense for WWE, Ric Flair and most importantly, the fans. WWE has other people that are more mainstream worthy that can bring the generation of people they want to WWE. John Cena, Batista and Triple H can do the media appearances and bring the new fans to wrestling. Ric Flair, as great as he is, can’t really bring new fans to the product.
Flair is getting held back from WWE from giving back to his fans. WWE has alienated many wrestling fans throughout the years. Why should long-time Flair fans be penalized because they do not watch the current product? Flair fans want to see wrestling and the product they have grown to love with Flair. He has already missed the NWA Hall of Fame, and what is the NWA without Flair?
The fans get to see Ric Flair outside of the WWE sphere of influence. Also, we don’t get Flair brought back so much like a Mick Foley or any other older guy that cheapens the legacy. Thank you WWE for letting go of Flair and taking one for the team.
Thanks for Coming Back Freebird, Khali Still Sucks
Smackdown began with a nice promo by MVP, but what promo by MVP isn’t good. The match with Jimmy Wang Yang was good as expected. I’m really looking forward to MVP’s second feud with a Hardy. Jeff got his heat back with the Twist of Fate this week and had a little more fire than we’ve seen before.
Kennedy-Shelton Benjamin was a good match that told a story of each guy working body parts. I like how the crowd is consistently getting behind Kennedy, welcome to the bandwagon America, I’ll be your driver today. If Kennedy winning the match and Shelton with his bronchitis excuse is a start of a feud between these guys, at least we’ll have good matches. I wish they would give Kennedy promo time because I would love to him work the crowd.
The Kendrick has to be a product of Mike Adamle. Wait, Kendrick is actually good and entertaining. I like how Kendrick is such an arrogant prick with his large bodyguard. The potential is there and the sky is the limit. I was sad to see Stevie Richards do the job again but at least he earns his paycheck. Richards is unlike that free-loader Super Crazy. Jokingly, of course, I compare the two. Is it worse to earn you money by jobbing out on TV or sitting at catering having hot dog eating contests with TNA rejects (See Braden “Wildcat” Walker).
Speaking of wastes of time and talent, Maria (time) pinned Victoria (talent). Read that again and tell me what is wrong with that. WWE, please keep Maria out of the ring. She posed for Playboy, sure, but she looks like a blind kid in the ring. How bad do you have to feel for Victoria? Victoria arrives at the arena and gets told, “You get to job out to a blind kid, I mean Maria.” Awesome, waste the best woman worker you have in the company.
Khali wasted our time this week by making Jeff Hardy bump around and make him look decent. It didn’t work. Khali is still horrible and needs to quit. Khali, Giant Gonzalez called, he wants his work-rate back.
Many people say that Edge is the greatest heel in wrestling today. Many people would be correct. I’ve said before that Edge is awesome. I even went as far to say in my last column that Edge and Jericho are heels that are so good they make smart fans love them. The exchange between Foley and Edge was a thing of beauty. The beginning, the middle and the end. Awesome. I really liked when Foley told Edge that the only person that could help him was the old Edge. I’ve been wanting Edge to get away from the whole Vickie storyline and hopefully this is the step in that direction.
Remember when Saturday Night’s Main Event Meant Something?
Back in my childhood, I remember watching Saturday Night’s Main Event and story lines getting advanced or big angles happening. This edition kind of limped through the night. I hope this is the last edition they do if they can’t do something better than this. The eight-man tag screamed filler and felt like a re-run of something we’ve seen before or didn’t want to see in the first place. Cena-Batista did nothing to advance their storyline, Kane still has his sack lunch and Cryme Tyme is still running in place.
The Edge-Jeff Hardy match salvaged a horrible show. Granted Hardy is beginning a feud with MVP, but a feud with Edge and Hardy would be great. I liked that MVP cost Hardy the match and looking forward to what happens next, which is a mark of a good feud.
Manny was already Hollywood, Now he plays there
Manny Ramirez is a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The smear campaign has begun in Boston. It has come out now that Manny loves cancer, hates puppies and spits on orphans. Not completely true, but people in Boston are saying that Manny skipped out on visiting kids with cancer with his teammates.
Both sides are going to be better off without each other. Manny will add another big bat to the Dodgers. Boston got Jason Bay, which has done equally well as Manny since the trade. I think Bay will be quieter and will fit into the Red Sox mix a little better than Manny now.
Boston has done what they needed to do, win a championship. Now they have gotten a little too big for their britches. When they were winning rings, Manny being Manny was cute and cheeky. Now, it is a distraction for Manny to jog to first and look like Jim Abbott in the outfield.
Manny, along with Matt Kemp, James Loney and Andre Ethier have a great chance to win the NL West. Granted, winning the NL West is like being a bronze medalist in the Special Olympics.
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My column here is an extension of the topics I cover on my radio show on WEGL 91.1 FM on the campus of Auburn University in Auburn, Ala. You can listen to the show “Handoffs and Headlocks” online at www.wegl91.com by clicking streaming and selecting a media player. The show airs during the summer on Monday at 1-3 p.m., Tuesday 1-2 p.m. and Thursday 1-3 p.m. (Note: All times are Central Standard Time).
Handoffs and Headlocks: No Hype Necessary, Just That Damn Good
