Steroids and Congress: Cheating in America
| Sports & Recreation | January 11 | No Comments
Today Marion Jones was sentenced to six months in prison for steroid use. Marion Jones, for those of you who do not know, was one of America’s most prominent and talented track and field competitors, winning five gold medals at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. She was uncovered for her steroid use after the BALCO steroid investigation, stripped of her medals, and now must report to the slammer by March 11th. Roger Clemens, one of the greatest pitchers in the history of Baseball, has been linked to steroids via the now infamous Mitchell Report and his former trainer, Brian McNamee. He has been summoned to give a sworn disposition to Congress and his own testimony to the House Oversight Committee. After all is said and done, it will likely end up that both men will back up their cases and it will be clear that either Roger Clemens, who stands to lose his entire reputation and the Hall of Fame, or Brian McNamee, who stands to go to jail, lied to Congress. Steroids have clearly become a contentious point of American culture and debate. Athletes continue to find ways to pass screening tests and use steroids because, let’s admit it, they work. They make you stronger, faster, and more powerful than your opponents. They may also shrink your testicles and turn you into a rage-induced monstrosity, but let’s set that one aside for now. What’s important is that America’s athletes do act as role models to the children of this country, regardless of how shallow of role models they may actually be. The steroid use of athletes probably has encouraged some children, especially those with pro athlete aspirations, to use them. More importantly, it sends a message about cheating. And here’s that message: Cheat your way to the top, and you can become a legend.
Ah, the New England Patriots. They are currently 12-0 after escaping Baltimore with a win on Monday Night Football. They have already clinched their division and with a win next week they can clinch homefield advantage throughout the playoffs. Personally, I don’t love the Patriots, but it is enjoyable watching them play. Brady’s cockiness and Belichick’s stern face and hoodie throughout every game is always entertaining. I remember the press conference after the Colts game, Brady was like “Yeah it was nice having a team actually compete with us for awhile there”, after he threw for 153 of his 255 yards in the fourth quarter. Belichick is a genius of a coach, using Mike Vrabel (a linebacker) on the goal line to catch touchdown passes, and using Junior Seau (another linebacker), to block for Laurence Maroney and Kevin Faulk as they run it in. Love them or hate them, you can’t deny that they are the best team in football.
Three of the last four of their wins have been by less than 4 points. Does this mean they are slipping and headed for a loss soon? Not necessarily. The Colts are the Colts, and even with their injuries that game should have been as close as it was. The Ravens have a solid defense, and if it weren’t for penalties and a few more yards on the last second hail mary, they may have won that game. The Eagles game was just a sloppy game for them, and with a game sealing interception by Asante Samuel, they did not have the chance for a final drive down the field. If the Patriots can beat the Steelers, I see no reason for them not to go undefeated, although it is my personal hope that they are 15-0 and then lose to the Giants in Week 16.There has been talk of the Patriots record being “tarnished” or “asterisked” such as Barry Bonds’ home run record because of the cheating incident in the first game of the season. Honestly, from what I’ve heard, the tapings happen a lot around the league, and if the Jets weren’t smart enough to change their signs at halftime, it’s their fault. And come on, do you really think the Jets would have won that game? Belichick running up the score every game after that was just a signal that they were not effected at all by that incident, and watching the Patriots able to just march down the field in the no huddle offense is hilarious. They are winning by an average of 22 points, and that’s including the previous games where the scores have been close. They average 39 points a game, and that is just unheard of. Their offense is so explosive and they have a ton of receivers to spread the ball around to. Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Dante Stallworth, even Jabar Gaffney, who caught the game winning touchdown last week against the Ravens. Watching them on third down, running a dump pass over the middle to Welker who just plows through the defense for the first down, or watching Moss catch the ball over 2 or 3 defenders is entertaining. They can score points in a hurry. Brady is playing as well as anyone has ever seen one quarterback play in a season. The defensive unit is solid, and personally, I think there is a very good possibility that the Patriots will go undefeated and go on to win the Super Bowl.