Though it may be one of sport's traditionally slow months, August is still a very exciting time to be a sports fan. In addition to Major League Baseball, where pennant races are beginning to take shape (and where my beloved Braves are holding on to a slim NL East lead), NFL, NBA and NHL teams are rounding out their rosters and beginning preparations for their respective seasons. Many fans have begun studying frantically for their fantasy football drafts (a ritual which will be covered in depth on this blog in due time), and college football is just around to corner, too. The WNBA is approaching its playoff season, there are numerous golf and tennis tournaments to follow, and the NASCAR chase is heating up as well.
While there are tons of interesting sports storylines emerging everywhere, you wouldn't know it from watching ESPN, reading SI.com or listening to WFAN. Recently, the sports media landscape has only reported on two stories: Alex Rodriguez's awkwardly and painfully long chase for home run number 600 (which mercifully ended yesterday), and the constantly conflicting reports on Brett Favre's retirement. Though I don't know any, there obviously must be people out there who are interested in hourly updates on whether or not Favre will be returning to the NFL this season. There must be people out there who tune in to SportsCenter, anxiously awaiting the "Table of Contents" on the left hand side of the screen to scroll to "Favre Decision" or "Favre Update"to better understand Favre's decision making process. Others must sit inches from the screen, awaiting an NFL update on the bottom line and hoping that Favre will have been generous enough to give us all just a little hint as to where he's leaning. The more vague Favre is, the more reporters and analysts speculate, creating a vicious cycle of obnoxious rumors and misinformation.
Personally, after years of Favre's constant flip-flopping, I couldn't be more tired of both the story and the man. In my eyes, Favre's selfish hogging of the media spotlight is insufferable. Once Favre has made up his mind for the year, I'll be happy to hear if he's coming back and plan my fantasy draft strategy accordingly. Otherwise, I don't want to hear about it every day. Favre clearly knows that he can force reporters and fans to eat out of the palm of his hand, and he obviously enjoys having the public continually speculate as to what he's thinking. My question is, how do people find this behavior tolerable and acceptable? I find it interesting that flamboyant and outspoken NFL stars like Chad Ochocinco and Terrel Owens are often critized for their antics and labelled as egotistical for their onfield celebrations, reality TV shows and postgame interviews. At least 85 and T.O. are open and honest with their fans; these guys love the spotlight, they want to be noticed, and are trying to build themselves up as public personalities and individual brands. Favre loves being the center of attention as much, if not more, than Ochocinco and Owens do - he's just a lot more sneaky about it.
Ochocinco and Owens take a lot of flack for seeking out the limelight, but I find these characters entertaining, upfront and fun. While I wouldn't want every NFL player to act like those two do, I think it's good for the NFL to have a few colorful "love 'em or hate 'em" types. Favre, on the other hand, just bothers me. Not only is he not nearly a good enough player at this point in his career to justify all of the media attention, but the way he thrives on his ability to keep his fans, and teammates, in an awkward state of suspense drives me (and I assume others) nuts. After all he's experienced as an NFL quarterback, Favre should know that being the leader of a football team means being honest to your teammates, coaches and fans. Even after this latest chapter of the Favre saga is resolved, I'm sure Chad Ochocinco and Terrel Owens will be labelled as the NFL's attention hogs. In my opinion, though, the way Favre is holding out on the public is far more selfish and self-promoting than anything Ochocinco and Owens will do this summer on VH1.
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