Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Ndamukong Nation

Being someone's good friend entails a few things. First, it entails that you are probably going to go through a lot of bad things, as well as a lot of good things. You may not always agree with your good friend. You may disagree with them a lot more than you agree with them, in some instances. But mostly, it entails that you are going to stick up for them whether they are right or wrong, cause that's what you do for your good friends. It sort of comes with the job title.

The Lions are 4-7 this year. They are in last place in their division. Their chances of making the playoffs rival the chances that you are going to win that $550 million dollar lottery jackpot when the lucky number is drawn. Those (for the most part) are facts. What's NOT a fact is that Ndamukong Suh intentionally kicked Matt Schaub in the powerball(s). I don't know. You don't know. You can think he did, and you may be right. But the beauty of it is you will never know unless he comes out and admits it. And since it took him quite a while to admit he stomped on someone, something that seemed a little more blatant, it's doubtful he's going to admit to this, so you might as well live with it.

Since Ndamukong Suh joined the Lions, a number of things have happened. Amazingly, the NHL has proven it's leadership to be worse than the NFL. The Lions still have not won a playoff game. And Suh has dominated the Thanksgiving headlines, more so than his team. So much so that now people would love to see Suh traded for some draft picks, so the Lions can pick up Manti Te'o. That is just one of the many different scenarios I have heard while screening calls for 97.1 "The Ticket." Believe it or not, that makes more sense than most. I've heard everything from "drop his ass," to "he should go back to playing soccer with that kick." Or here's an idea. Maybe he could just stay with the Lions and get back to playing?

I'm not sure Detroit has ever seen as controversial a player as Suh, in any sport. The only comparisons I can come up with are Gary Sheffield (wasn't here long enough), and everyone's favorite, Rasheed Wallace. Sheffield is a hall of fame caliber player who likely won't make it to Cooperstown because of the era in which he played. Rasheed is still screaming "ball don't lie," and still getting technical fouls for it. Suh has a chance to be better than both of them, something that everyone in Detroit seems to forget.

Let's set the stage. December 5, 2009; Texas and Nebraska in the Big 12 Championship game. In an offensive shootout, the Longhorns, led by Colt McCoy, clipped the Huskers, led by Ndamukong Suh, by a final score of 13-12. Very rarely is a college football team led by a defensive player. Many teams have great players on defense, but it's rare when a good team's number one association is with a defensive player. The last two examples (other than Suh) I can think of are Michigan's 1997 National Championship team, led by Charles Woodson, and this years Notre Dame team, led by Te'o. The point is the ability that Ndamukong possesses is off the charts.

Ndamukong Suh brings down Colt McCoy for one of his four sacks. photo credit: trepanddoc.wordpress.com


In that Big 12 championship game, Suh had a game (not team) high 12 tackles...for a defensive tackle. 12 tackles? Are you freaking kidding me, for a defensive tackle? He made the Texas offensive line look like they were emulating Billy Bob from "Varsity Blues" (Mack Brown does kind of remind you of Jon Voight, doesn't he). You know what, that's not even accurate, cause Billy Bob actually blocked someone. The dude had four sacks...in one game. And you want to drop him cause he's a bad influence? Stop.

If you haven't seen it, I encourage you to watch Billy Corben's 30 for 30 documentary titled "The U." In short, it tells the story of a culture of football created by a coach. Jimmie Johnson led the Hurricanes, and they flat out stomped opponents. Just ask Brian Bosworth. Not only did they stomp you (um, no pun intended, sorry Evan Dietrich-Smith), but they told you about it after. And then they told you again, and again, and again. Their trash talk would make Rasheed proud. Nuns are still rolling in their graves thinking of those teams. But you know what, they won...a lot.

It seems everyone thinks Ndamukong Suh is too dirty to play for the Lions. He's not the kind of "character" guy that we want when building a franchise. The problem with that is simple. You build your franchise with players of Suh's caliber. "Nice" defensive tackles are as prevalent as mean kickers. Accept it, embrace it, do whatever you have to do to live with it, but just know that if you let this guy go, it's going to be one of those moves that you look back on and compare to trading Andrew Miller and Cameron Maybin for Miguel Cabrera, except you would be a Marlins' fan. Man, that would suck.

Am I advocating Suh's behavior? Yes and no. I don't think it's right to stomp on someone's arm. But if he kicked someone in the groin that may or may not have been intentional? Who cares? It's football, do you know what goes on at the bottom of those piles? It's not players asking each other how their wives are doing. It's a game where grown men push each other around. The harder you hit someone the more money you make (or lose, according to Commissioner Rog). There are bigger issues with this football team than Ndamukong Suh. He needs to play better, yes, absolutely. He needs to find that magic that he had his rookie year. But the D-Line is not losing the Lions games. That would be the secondary, when late in the game, it seems that Charles Barkley could get open, and not for a jump ball.

The ball is in the Lions court. Their coach seems to be accepting it and defending his players, and I applaud him for that. Suh's antics are not causing distress in the locker room, otherwise he'd be Titus Young-ed right home. He doesn't have a plethora of personal fouls this year. And the most aggressive suspender ever to call the Commissioner's office home didn't even care about his kick. So give the guy a break. He gets a bad reputation for doing dumb things, and maybe he's earned it. But if you're going to be a Lions' fan who lives in the past, well you might as well get ready to lose.

Ndamukong Suh makes contact with Matt Schaub's groin area. photo credit: thenewsportsguru.com


The Lions need Suh just like you need the Lions. You've watched them for years. I know, so have I. You've stuck with them when everyone else hasn't and you'd like to see a little return on your investment. You can even call the Lions one of your good friends. You hang out with them every Sunday it feels like. So be a good friend, and support them, whether they are right or wrong, whether Suh is right or wrong. That's what good friends do.

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