Keyshawn
out of line and off the team
Karl
Peterson
Just
give him some damn time off. That is Tampa
Bay Buccaneers' wide out Keyshawn Johnson's
new mantra after he was put on the inactive
list by the team Tuesday.
Team
general manager, Rich McKay, said that Johnson
had become disruptive to the team and had
missed mandatory workouts and team functions.
This is nothing new for Johnson who was
the first overall pick in the 1996 draft
by the New York Jets after a standout career
with USC.
Ever
since he published his book entitled "Just
Give Me the Damn Ball" after his rookie
season, Keyshawn has spouted off about playing
time and his involvement in the offense,
pretty bold actions for a player that doesn't
even show up to team meetings.
This
type of behavior is also nothing new for
star wide receivers, Terrell Owens problems
have been widely publicized as well as Randy
Moss and his tendency to take off plays,
the difference is Moss and Owens have performed
on the top level in the NFL and Johnson
has not.
During
Johnson's best season in the NFL he recorded
over 1200 yards receiving but had only one
touchdown. It's time for Keyshawn to pipe
down and hope that some other NFL team will
put up with his sulking behavior and the
$7 million he was due to make next year.
Some unfortunate team will pick up this
cancer and when they do the staff will realize
what is like to coach a player who reportedly
refused to wear sneakers at a walk through
in favor a sandals in the hot Tampa weather.
Johnson's
former team, the USC Trojans are also in
headlines this week and not because they
were ranked No. 2 in the nation by both
the ESPN/USA Today and AP polls, but because
it was ranked No. 3 in the BS or BCS poll.
Yes, some things never change, as sure as
Long Beach State doesn't have a football
team there will be controversy surrounding
the National Championships.
Ohio
State leapfrogged USC in the BCS because
the team beat a quality opponent in Purdue
and USC only walloped a suffering Arizona
team last weekend. While one could make
the point that Ohio State deserves the right
to defend its National Championship from
a year ago, the bottom line is the Sugar
Bowl should feature the two best teams in
college football and it probably never will.
As
long as the championship game comes down
to the opinions of writers there will always
be one team on the outside looking in who
people think deserve a chance to play for
the title. It doesn't matter if we go to
a four-team, eight-team or even a 16-team
playoff system there will still be a TCU
or a similar team that believe it deserves
an opportunity.
Jan.
1 used to be a day that football fans could
look forward to all year long; with the
Rose Bowl, Orange Bowl, Sugar Bowl and Fiesta
Bowl. Now two of those games are not even
played on New Years Day and the ones that
are have less importance.
So
the bottom line is just go back to the old
system that nurtured rivalries and actually
had the fans involved and at the end of
the games let the polls decide who is the
champion and be done with it. Oklahoma against
Washington State, how many people remember
that was the 2002 Rose Bowl.
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