Lori Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 I agree with the gist of what you're saying. But I don't think we all know it's show biz. Many fans are invested in the drama to an unhealthy degree and they can't see the forest for the trees. They'd never admit that this is anything like what the readers of US magazine and People and TMZ are up to. I'd like it if more fans took a step back saw it as just chit-chat and entertainment, with all of the marketing and packaging that we expect to come along with things like movies and celebrity. That's on them, not the writers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ham Sandwich Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 No...you picked out what you liked by quoting a selected, truncated version of my post, and then sought to assuage me by saying "I agree with your gist". Nice try, but no soap. Actually I picked out the stuff that I wanted to respond to. That's the stuff where I don't entirely agree with you. The stuff I left out was what I pretty much agree with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuckincincy Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 Actually I picked out the stuff that I wanted to respond to. That's the stuff where I don't entirely agree with you. The stuff I left out was what I pretty much agree with. Be sure to look over your shoulder when you back up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ham Sandwich Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 That's on them, not the writers. Yes and no. The writers are trying to have it both ways, mixing factual reporting about sports with human interest pieces. If the fans aren't sophisticated enough to be discerning consumers then the writers shouldn't take advantage of that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ham Sandwich Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 Be sure to look over your shoulder when you back up. OK. and... Look both ways when you cross the street. your turn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bills_fan Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 Thank you for the kind response, much better than "chill" or basically calling me a terrible person. I get you on that, I just think we've had a lot of players like him and it feels like we're spoon fed how great guys they are, instead of what great players they are. This is especially true for BuffaloBills.com. I'd like to know why Maybin came out this year, and how he plans to gain/maintain his weight. What kind of person is he on the field? Is he a softy like Dockery, or a pit bull like Wood? Obviously time for that story, but feel those are the questions that relate to his game and I'd like to see answers to. In the end, if he doesn't live up to the #11 pick, fans won't care about his back story. They'll throw him to the garbage like they've done so many times with feel good players. I agree with you. The human interest stuff is nice, but my patience for it is wearing thin given all the losing. I really don't care what guys like Lynch or Whitner do in the offseason, provided they bring it on fall sundays. To the extent they can't bring it on fall sundays due to offseason issues, then I care. Kelly/Bruce/Reed etc. were no choirboys. If the internet, cell-phone cameras and the break down of the good ol boys network existed in the early 90s, a lot more offseason crap would have been known. Guess what, I don't care. They brought it on fall sundays. Tim, nice article. I do wish you had covered a few more of the football related items such as weight (keep it or lose it), speed and possible role for Maybin (every down or one trick pony) in the piece (although I understand such information may not be known). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 Yes and no. The writers are trying to have it both ways, mixing factual reporting about sports with human interest pieces. If the fans aren't sophisticated enough to be discerning consumers then the writers shouldn't take advantage of that. "Take advantage"? So you're saying we shouldn't be ALLOWED to write "human interest pieces"? Good grief. If you don't like the story, stop reading or change the channel. Easy as that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuckincincy Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 OK. and... Look both ways when you cross the street. your turn. Done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sac bills Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 I thought it was a great story about someone who seems like a great kid. I like feeling an attachment to our players, something that gives us another reason to root for them, and having guys who seem grounded and have nice stories is part of that. Plus, is anyone else a bit embarrased by all the shenanigans this off-season? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuckincincy Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 I thought it was a great story about someone who seems like a great kid. I like feeling an attachment to our players, something that gives us another reason to root for them, and having guys who seem grounded and have nice stories is part of that.Plus, is anyone else a bit embarrased by all the shenanigans this off-season? Good post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsNYC Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 I thought it was a great story about someone who seems like a great kid. I like feeling an attachment to our players, something that gives us another reason to root for them, and having guys who seem grounded and have nice stories is part of that. I'd rather root for a player who WINS, not one with a great back story. That's the problem with the coverage of the Bills, its all about the back stories because they're a losing team. It's like the first college I attended, instead of them focusing/promoting academics, they touted how they had one of the most diverse campuses in the nation. In the end, who cares about campus diversity if the academic portion isn't there? I transferred out. Both sides make great points - It IS interesting to read back stories and learn more about players, and if you don't want to read about them just don't. On the other hand there is an increasing focus from the media on the drama off the field (Favre, Vick, Lynch) and its getting harder to get the needed real facts that truly influence gameday. There's being too far to one side focusing just on stats/facts, and too far on the other side focusing on drama. I think sports reporting is starting to tip the ship on the drama side and needs to come back a little bit to the stats side to even the ship. I agree with Ham and others that I'd rather know about Maybin's weight issues, why he came out early, what kind of player he is on the field. In the end that has a lot more to do with the 2009 season than being pulled off the wrestling team in high school. I'm not challenging Tim personally, I'm talking about the sports media in general who is subtracting from the tough game questions to focus on the drama off the field. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VOR Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 I don't see what the big deal is. You can tell from the article's title, or at worst the first few lines, as to what it's about, so you don't have to read it. It's a nice little back story. Maybin's been poked and prodded the last month, with questions about his weight being answered at his pro day (he was 250# and ran in the 4.6's), he's relentless on the field, and has a great work ethic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bills_fan Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 Plus, is anyone else a bit embarrased by all the shenanigans this off-season? Only to the extent that Lynch is missing the first few games of the year which puts more pressure on our passing game and on Fred Jackson. Otherwise, no, not all. When I was 22-24 years old, I did some pretty stupid drunken things as well. They would have been exacerbated had I been a famous millionaire NFL player. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VOR Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 Only to the extent that Lynch is missing the first few games of the year which puts more pressure on our passing game and on Fred Jackson. The signing of Dominic Rhodes makes it a lot better. I'd still rather have Lynch, but Jackson and Rhodes will be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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