Goodbye, Rush

In My Humble Opinion
21

There is a significant issue underlying this whole thing… clearly, Rush doesn’t know a damn thing about football.

Even IF the Philly defense has been better than the offense, the fact remains that the Eagles have consistently ranked in the top ten NFL offenses since McNabb’s arrival, despite having 2 recievers who’d be lucky to see starting time on most teams, a solid but hardly spectacular tailback (3 1000 yard seasons in six years, and only one over 1200 yards), and an extremely brittle tight end. If anything, McNabb is underrated- he carries that offense.

Now, the flip side of the coin: name a white starting tailback in the NFL today. You can’t. The closest you’ll find is Mike Alstott, a fullback who can’t block. Now, Alstott is a really nice guy (met him in Tampa once or twice) and extremely good at running people over, but he has never rushed for 1,000 yards in ANY season. He’s been to three (or four) Pro Bowls though as a fullback. The truth is, the media wants to see white players succeed far more than it does black players. Thus all the attention that Alstott, one of the few white guys who can carry the ball, recieves despite not really being a standout.

22

I don’t think he receives more attention than he’s due - except, of course, for his selections as a Pro Bowl fullback, when he’s a halfback. But he’s not being overhyped, and any hype he does get has nothing to do with his race. I don’t think “the media” (as if this were a group acting with one voice) cares a lot about a player’s race.

Alstott’s value is in blocking and gaining short yardage. He’s not a flashy back, but his numbers aren’t awful, either (3.8 ypc in his career, plus 230 receptions).