Laughing in the face of a loss or why reporters get a bad rap

Oscaroscaroscar nails it. Somers threw Anderson a life preserver to save him from drowning and he tore it into pieces and drowned just to spite everyone. If Somers doesn't ask him that question, fans are roasting him on talk radio and message boards for three straight days for not giving a shit. Once Coach Hooters Dickface put it out there, it was a thing. Somers gave Anderson a chance to swim and all he did was prove he doesn't posses the maturity (much less the physical or mental tools) to be anyone's franchise quarterback. Whether they're fair or unfair, handling tough questions is part of the job.

 

Yes, it was a lucky playoff run. In fact, luck played such a big part of it that as a Cardinals fan (that's how I know we exist), I would rather say that we've never made the Super Bowl than admit that season happened. As far as I'm concerned, the Cardinals' 2008 season ended at 8-7 with a 47-7 loss to New England in the snow.

That team was not worthy of the playoffs after quitting four times during the regular season and got two undeserved home games to boot. After everything I went through as a Cardinals fan, to win that way was unacceptable.

As poor as Derek Anderson has been this year, I would rather go through a decade of this than ever see another year like 2008. I hated football in 2008 and I was two minutes from renouncing the Cardinals forever. If not for Santonio Holmes, I don't know what I'd be doing on Sundays now.

So yeah, it was a LUCKY run, and they get no credit for that. I'm happier pretending it never happened.

I'm not sure he ever was. I've not been happy with Whisenhunt. At least the Cardinals played hard every week under Dave McGinnis. I knew I would get my team's best effort on Sunday with him coaching, even if we didn't get a lot of wins.

With Whisenhunt, I'm never sure what kind of effort I'm going to get. The Cardinals are now just as likely to play hard as they are to play dead.

 

Your favorite NFL team goes on a magical run to the end the season andyourarethisclose to winning the Super Bowl, and you did not, or refuse to enjoy it?

My God. Just stop rooting for teams.

 

Christ, Nighthawk. You are one miserable sports fan. You got issues, dude.

Super Bowl loss >>>>>> The last 10 years as a Skins fan.

 

They spoofed the incident on Kimmel on Tuesday night. They showed what Anderson and Lutui were laughing at...

The Brett Favre pics.

Freaking hilarious.

 

Yeah, that was one of the most bizarre rants I've seen in a while.

 

But now we're sad,
the fans are mad
and the talkshow guys say the QB's making too much money,
the talkshow guys say the QB's making too much money.

So tell him this may be his last chance
to put on those Arizona Cardinal pants

 

Kindred praises Somers for the line of questioning ...

http://sportsjournalism.org/sports-media-news/score-one-for-a-beat-writer-doing-what-good-reporters-do/

 

It was something I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy. That season was pure torture. I would have gladly traded with any other team except the Lions. For the first time ever, I was humiliated to be a Cardinals fan during that season.

I saw last year as redemption for the sins of 2008. That team that won the division last year was worthy of being a champion, and I'm proud as heck of those Cardinals. That team gave everything it had and made up for the nightmare of the previous year. But I've still never been able to completely forgive Whisenhunt for that 2008 season.

Actually, I'm not. In fact, when my Ottawa Senators won the Eastern Conference in 2007, I was beside myself with joy. When Slovakia upset Italy in this year's World Cup, I think my celebrating woke half of Idaho.

But to me, the journey is more important than the destination. Quitting on four out of 16 games (Jets, Eagles, Vikings, Patriots) is not the mark of a champion. I had been through 10 years of losing repeatedly with the Cardinals. To have success in such a dishonorable manner, I couldn't deal with that after everything I'd been through.

The 2008 Cardinals were dead to me before the playoffs even started. I didn't wear anything that said Cardinals from the New England game until the day after the Super Bowl. I was on break from college working for a paper near my hometown, and I started asking my editor for assignments that I knew conflicted with the Cardinals' playoff games so I couldn't watch them. When it came time to go back to school, I intentionally scheduled my drive back to college to conflict with the NFC title game.

I nearly boycotted the Super Bowl, but I decided I couldn't. Instead, I watched with a group of friends, emotionless and with my phone off because I didn't want to have friends calling expecting me to be thrilled and instead hear me tell them I didn't want to talk about the game. Ironically, all of my friends in the room hated the Steelers, so I think I was the only one who didn't want the Cardinals to win.

When Santonio Holmes caught the game-winning pass, I expressed no emotion. Inside, I wanted to cheer. That moment felt like a thousand-pound weight had come off my shoulders. Once the Steelers' victory was secure, I walked outside and thanked God that the Cardinals had lost. I didn't stop smiling for the rest of the night.

Finally, the nightmare was over and the healing could begin. I could finally love my team again. A year later, the healing was complete with the playoff win over Green Bay, and the 2009 Cardinals did make me love them again. But to this day, if any of my friends or family brings up the 2008 season, I always respond that it never happened. I'm going to continue to deny that the Cardinals have ever played in a Super Bowl until they actually get to one the right way.

I've dealt with people not understanding my feelings for two years, so I'm used to it. I'm like the Patriot League: I want to win a championship, but if I have to sell my soul to do it, I'd rather not win.

 

So if a typo or a misquote or an incorrect fact or stat ever gets into one of Somers' stories and we learn that at some point during his next workday he laughed at a joke with a co-worker, are we to assume he doesn't give a shit about his job or take it seriously?

 

I think Nighthawk is the polar opposite of Bill Simmons.

I'm actually really intrigued because his mentality is so unusual and exacting in its uniqueness.

What blew me away was the aching mention of Dave McGinnis.

I'm not trying to bag on the guy/gal, I just think his/her outlook is fascinating.

 

That's one of the nicest things anyone has ever said about me. Thanks.

I know my mentality is different. I'm okay with that. I want to win, sure, but I want to win the right way. I'd rather lose with honor than win without it. That's just the way I am. I'm a strange guy, I know, but I like it that way.