The Blind Side

I love movies and I got to finally watch the Blind Side over the weekend. The story of Michael Oher is a fantastic one and Joe Flacco and Ray Rice have to be thanking their lucky stars for a guy like Oher on that line. Sandra Bullock has come a long way since her Speed days, hasn't she? I thought her portrayal of Leigh Anne Tuohy was deserving of the Academy Award for Best Actress. Great story and wonderful performances. Here are a couple of other great stories going on in the NFL right now that could be in your blind side.



We've all become accustomed to the antics of Chad Ochocinco. Whether it was trash talking, his monster rides, or making us think that JaMarcus Russell was going to Cincy, Chad is always entertaining and egotistical. Just when you're ready to write him off, he goes and absolutely makes a young fan's dream come true. The story of how he made the dreams come true for 9-year old Ruben St. Hilaire, Jr, who lives with this mother in a homeless shelter in New York City, is right up there with The Blind Side. It's a touching moment that Ruben will never forget.



The NFL has announced that the 2014 Super Bowl will be played outdoors in New York/New Jersey. Some of the most memorable post-season games have been played in the elements so the 2014 championship should be very interesting. Not many saw this one coming, but it makes sense. New York is a huge market and the Meadowlands Stadium will be a great venue. Roger Goodell indicated that this could continue depending on how the 2014 Super Bowl goes. Goodell used the commencement speech at the University of Massachusetts Lowell to deliver a great story of persistence. In keeping with our "Blind Side", feel-good theme, I thought it was memorable that he sent 40 letters to the NFL office looking for a job in 1981 and was rejected every time. Finally, an NFL exec told him to "stop by when you're in the neighborhood." Goodell drove all night from Pittsburgh to "be in the neighborhood" and 25 years later, he's the Commissioner. Now that's persistence and there's a lesson to be learned there.



Patrick Crayton wants out of Dallas. The Cowboys have declined to release the receiver preferring a trade instead. Crayton hasn't been able to find a toe hold in that Dallas offense. Miles Austin is the clear leader at WR and there's too much money on the table to see Roy Williams go, so where does this put Crayton? Certainly not on your fantasy team until either Austin or Williams get hurt or he's lining up for another team. Oh yeah, and there's a new kid named Dez Bryant who is impressing the coaches.



Randy Moss has fired his agent. He's not retiring anytime soon but it looks like he doesn't plan on being with the Patriots after this season. He's looking for a big payday and he'll get that...just not in New England. Like a pro however, he has shown up for voluntary OTAs and will continue to be the deep threat that Brady needs. Moss is currently ranked 3rd among all Wide Receivers in the FantasyFootballNerd.com Draft Rankings and there's little reason to suspect that he won't be a Top 5 receiver at the end of the year.



Jeremy Shockey is apparently doing better after experiencing a seizure during a workout session. According to his Twitter account, Shockey says "Thanks to everyone who has shown their concern. Don't worry about me. I will be fine." Safety Darren Sharper was there during the incident and was seen at the hospital. "It was scary," Sharper said. "We didn't know what was going on."



Speaking of Darren Sharper, he's already jawing it up for the first game of the year against the Vikings on September 9th. Sharper posted to his Twitter account that he was going to target Brett Favre's surgically fixed ankle with an "X marks the spot" remark. TE Visanthe Shiancoe reminded Sharper that he's coming off a fresh knee surgery and "If x marks the spot on Brett, I wonder what marks the spot on Sharper?" While we don't condone anyone intentionally targeting another player, it is exciting to see the trash talking starting so early for what will be a ridiculously fantastic game.



Finally, coming from our blind side is LenDale White and his departure from Seattle. There's obviously more to the story than what's been made public. John Schneider, the Seahawks general manager, said "It became apparent at this time that LenDale was not ready to be a member of the Seattle Seahawks. It just did not appear to be the right fit at this point in our program. We wish LenDale all the best with his future." White will most likely face a 4 game suspension for violating the league's drug policy. Even if he catches on with another team, the suspension will most likely still be effective.

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