Hurry Up Already!
By author
Another day has passed, and NFL fans across the planet still have no idea when a new CBA will be signed and implemented. All we have learned the past two weeks is that the Owners and Players Union are meeting, and trying to get a deal done. We have no idea what the discussions are about, we have no idea how far apart the sides are on any of the issues, all we know is they are meeting, and are instructed to not talk about the issues they are working out. Does anyone else find it weird that they are actually keeping quiet? No leaks, not one!
Now, I’m not going to sit here are write about what I think both sides should do to get a deal in the works. I have no idea what it’s like to be in their shoes. I’m not a million or billionaire, I’m not part of a union, I don’t play a sport for a living, nor do I own my own business. What those guys are doing is way beyond me. I will never see a fraction of the money those guys are dealing with. I will however, continue to be a contributor to that pile of money they are talking about, and for that I believe I have the right to say………Hurry Up Already!!!!
We are still a few days away from a potential lockout and I have faith a deal will get done and the NFL offseason will get back to normal. Right about this time last year we Dolphin fans were talking about Karlos Dansby coming to south beach! Now, with no free agency to talk about, we are beating to a pulp which QB Miami should take in the draft next month. I agree the subject needs to be brought up, but I’d much rather be talking about the new players Miami just signed and who’s next on their radar, and I’m sure all of you feel the same way. But as the days without a deal keep adding up, so do my worries.
I’m worried about what effect no deal is going to have on the draft. I know there is still going to be a draft, but I’m wondering if the Dolphins have had to change their plans about what they are going to do. With no free agents, they have to fill the holes on their roster through the draft. Who knows, maybe they had plans of signing a few players in need positions so they could take a shot at moving up and getting a top notch QB. Maybe they had plans of getting a QB through a trade. Maybe they planned on trading some of their own players to get a 2nd round draft pick. Well, if there ever were any plans like that, they are definitely cancelled for the time being.
I’m worried about missed practice time. With a new OC coming in…….wait I forgot Henne is already practicing with the new playbook. I also forgot that he plans to work with the receivers and get them schooled on the new playbook if in fact there is a lockout. Wheew, that really makes me feel better. C’mon….really? Missed practice time learning the new offense is going to be a huge misfortune.
Most of all, I’m worried about what a lockout will do to fans like me. From September thru the first week of February, Sundays are just flat out glorious. Waking up, turning on the TV a couple hours before gametime to get all the latest and greatest info for your fantasy team. Lounging around in your lucky jersey anticipating the early game kickoffs. See where I live in the mountain time zone, games start at 11am, so you really don’t have to wait too long before the early games are on, especially if you tie one on Saturday night! Watching the early games on your Sunday Ticket, then the late ones, and if Miami happens to not be playing on Sunday the Redzone Channel on Directv just can’t be beat. Getting mad at the playcalling, shedding tears of joy when Miami beats the Jets, yelling obsenities, screaming like a madman at the TV, not talking out of pure anger……all those wonderful things will be lost of there is no NFL.
I guess if I were a true football fan, a fan of the pure competition of the game, I could make Saturday my new Sunday. I do watch college football, but not with the passion I watch the NFL with. I don’t even have a favorite college team to root for. I went to a small private school called Coker College in Hartsville, South Carolina, so I don’t have any ties to a major university. I could cheer for the Gamecocks, but something about yelling “Go Cocks!” just doesn’t sit well with me. I have nothing against the school or the state of South Carolina, I really enjoyed my time there, but the nickname has to change if I’m going to root for them year in and year out. I’m originally from New Mexico, but the Lobo’s and Aggies are more doorstep programs, not the type you root for unless you graduate from them, and even then you find yourself having another favorite college team come football season.
So what are we fans supposed to do? Taking football away for any length of time will really throw off a lot of biological clocks across the nation. Football fans will be absolutely depressed…..and bored out of their minds. So I’m begging you, Owners and Players Union, please get a deal done, please. And most of all, Hurry Up Already!!!!
Phins Up!
BEL