Matthew Stafford Will Exorcise "The Curse of Bobby Layne"
The 2009 NFL Draft will transpire this weekend at Radio City Music Hall in New York City and fans in Detroit are imploring the Lions organization to select former University of Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford with the first pick to finally exorcise the “Curse of Bobby Layne."
Layne, who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1967 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 1968, quarterbacked the pathetic Lions franchise during some of their rare glorious years in the 1950’s.
Layne, a five-time Pro-Bowl selection that Sports Illustrated named “The Toughest Quarterback Who Ever Lived,” helped lead the Lions to three league championships from 1950 to 1958 before their rudderless brass traded their brave signal-caller to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
In response to being jettisoned from Motown, Layne, who was ranked number 52 on The Sporting News list of Football’s 100 Greatest Players, allegedly predicted that the Lions “would not win for 50 years.”
Curiously, Detroit has recorded one measly playoff victory since Layne’s proclamation and the Lions have accumulated the worst winning percentage of any team in the NFL during this ominous 50 year span.
On the 50th anniversary of Layne's curse, the 2008 Lions established a benchmark for futility by becoming the only team in NFL history to lose all 16 regular-season games and finish with a disgraceful mark of 0-16.
Most pigskin analysts project that the Lions will select Stafford first overall this Saturday afternoon and even Detroit's new Head Coach, Jim Schwartz, admitted his team likely needs to address their precarious quarterback situation.
"It's probably time to find a replacement for Bobby Layne," said Schwartz, who was officially hired in The Motor City this past January.
Stafford, 21, the MVP of the 2009 Capital One Bowl who ironically graduated from the same Highland Park High School in Dallas as Layne did in 1944, is aware of Layne's legacy and he is undaunted at the prospect of expelling the curse.
"I know about the curse," said Stafford, a player renowned football analyst Mel Kiper, Jr. projected as an eventual top pick in the draft before he ever took a snap for the Bulldogs. "I know he went to my high school. It's crazy. It really is weird to think about. It's kind of cool irony, I guess, that it could happen."
Detroit will always have their Hockeytown moniker. But, perhaps Stafford can generate an excitement at Ford Field not felt since Barry Sanders stopped running in the crime-laden city after he retired in 1999.
"I don't know if it's destiny, but I'd love to have the opportunity to be a Lion, for sure."
Residents of Detroit should forget about The Eminem Show. It’s time for the long-overdue premiere of Matthew Stafford in Motown.
Chien-Ming Wang's Arm Will Be Fine. Johnny Damon's Mouth Had Better Be!
New York Yankees Manager Joe Girardi announced Wednesday that Chien-Ming Wang (0-3, 34.50 ERA) will have his scheduled start Friday against the Red Sox in Boston skipped because of his anemic start to the 2009 season.
"I understand," Wang, 29, simply stated when informed by Girardi that Joba Chamberlain (0-0, 5.06 ERA) would replace him in the opener at Fenway Park.
Wang, who is 54-21 with a 3.87 ERA since debuting in the Bronx in 2005, has struggled mightily with his command and his famous sinker hasn't sunk to date and it is imperative for the Yankees (9-6) that he recaptures the form that once made him their ace.
"It is extremely important," Girardi said about mending Wang's mechanics. "He's a guy we've counted on to win his 18-20 games. We need to get back to that."
The Taiwanese idol, who last spring became the fastest Major Leaguer to notch 50 wins as a starter since Dwight Gooden in 1986, suffered a torn Lisfranc ligament of the right foot and a partial tear of the peroneus longus of the right foot last June while rounding the bases against the Astros in Houston and it is evident that he has not entirely recovered from the severe injury.
"It's hard to tell anything with Chien-Ming Wang, because he's so even-keeled," Girardi noted of the powerful finesse pitcher that won 19 games in both the 2006 and 2007 seasons.
Wang is flatly a tremendous hurler and, despite his horrid stretch out of the gate, there is little doubt that he will ultimately have a successful campaign on the hill this year.
Unfortunately, Boston's answer to Judas, average Yankees left-fielder Johnny Damon, doesn't seem willing to have patience with Wang while he refines his craft.
"We have six losses on the year right now and he's got three of them," said, Damon, 35, a reformed reefer addict that speaks and looks like a retarded version of Alvin from the Chipmunks. "And in all three of those games, we've been blown out and we've had to go to our bullpen. So maybe our bullpen's not sharp the following days. So I don't know what more to say, but hopefully he can figure it out because it'd be tough to keep on going like this."
Chien Ming Wang has unquestionably been one of the Yankees most productive players over the past five seasons and it is pathetically comedic that a glorified utility man like Damon would have the audacity to voice his unimportant thoughts regarding Wang to the public.
Wang is rightfully anticipated to return to the Yankees starting rotation next week versus the Tigers in Detroit.
Chien-Ming Wang's arm has always been a vital asset to the Bombers recent successes and he will rebound from his brief tribulations on the mound.
Johnny Damon's .286 batting average in the Bronx has been mediocre and his arm has always been a grave liability in the outfield.
Wang will inevitably fix his arm.
Hopefully, Damon can fix his irrelevant and nonsensical mouth.
Keywords: Boston Red Sox, Detroit Lions, New York Yankees, University of Georgia
