biting the hand that feeds me

i love sports.

what's not to love? it really is reality television - or at least the closest thing that passes for reality on television. watch it daily and you never know how it ends and there's a good chance you'll see something you've never seen before.

i'm sure you can say the same for rock of love - bus tour, but i mean in a good way.

what i don't love is sports media.

probably not the best thing to say if a 24-hour sports talk radio network is paying your bills. in which case, i should probably be a little more specific. it's not the media that's the problem, it's the 24-hour news cycle and the need to constantly fill it with noise.

in the meantime, we are slowly lurching toward the high holy day on the american sports media calendar.

super bowl sunday.

for the next 10 days we'll be subject to all sorts of stories about all sorts of people even slightly connected to this game. few of which will have an impact on the game itself. all sorts of former athletes and pseudo-celebrities will use the next week and a half to promote products of all kinds. and even the stories that are germane to the actual game will be discussed ad nauseum.

hines ward's knee is pretty much the same now as it was 10 minutes ago!

i know that there are plenty of people who live for this. who lap up every story, anecdote and injury report as though it were mother's milk. not me.

the problem is that we have all sorts of time to fill, but really nothing of substance to fill it with. sure, the coaches and players talk all the time, but the fans, media and leagues themselves have made everyone afraid to actually say something.

how many times can you listen to a player take it one game at a time? don't we already know that you have to limit turnovers and get stops on third down? we've already figured out that Team X is a good football team...they got to the super bowl, didn't they?

post game shows are no better. we could plainly see that you failed to make big plays in key situations. yes, we all marveled at your efficiency in the red zone. we pretty much figured that you were proud of your guys and excited to bring the trophy home to _____________.

but say what you really think and chances are you'll be making a donation to the commissioner's fund. if not, then prepare for ridicule and public scorn by the talking heads and bleacher creatures.

say what you want about terrell owens and chad johnson *ahem* ocho cinco, but we could use more like him. as a sports fan, you should pray for the continued well-being of charles barkley. there aren't athletes willing to watch the games and call 'em as they are.

so i'll continue to watch the games. i'll continue to love the games. but if you want me to be excited about hearing another sermon from the Book of LaLoosh, well...count me out.