Pro. Jake Delhomme

[NewsCopy]

January 29th Dave Kindred wrote a rather unflattering story on Jake Delhomme LINK HERE

Below is a
rather lame retraction of sorts. If you read both and are not satisfied please email the writer using the link at the bottom of thsi page.

They call 'em Super Bowls and they give 'em Roman numerals to god 'em up even more.

Now we know why.

New England 32, Carolina 29.

And it was closer than that.

A classic. Bottle it, open it a hundred years from now, it'll be $1 million a glass.

Tom Brady may in fact be Joe Montana young. And anyone who dared write that Jake Delhomme could not win for the Panthers--that would be me--must now acknowledge Delhomme's performance in Supe 38 as thrilling, inspiring, even majestic in the face of the pressures brought to bear by a Patriots' team that now has earned a high place in NFL history.

Oh, my, 32-29, and the Patriots won, it says here, not because they were much the better team, but because the Panthers simply ran out of time for yet another miracle by Delhomme, who in every dark moment somehow led his team to the light. As Panthers coach John Fox said, "Jake kept us in the game. Unfortunately, they just got the ball last."

Oh, my, 32-29, on Adam Vinatieri's 41-yard field goal with 4 seconds to play. And who'd have guessed it early on when the Patriots and Panthers reminded everybody that football can send you sleepy-bye? "Longest time ever without a score in a Super Bowl game" was one of the ennui-inducing stats of Supe 38's early going. Also this: Vinatieri had more failed field-goal attempts (two) than Delhomme had completed passes (one).

Yawn.

Yeah, yeah. Run the ball; stop the run. The key to all football.

True. But look: Just because it's true doesn't mean we have to like it.

What we had early on, of course, was that most dreaded of football entertainments, "the defensive struggle." Massive men hurl their bodies into massive piles, the football disappearing into Middle Earth.

As testing of will, strength and character as the defensive struggle is, such massive gatherings comprise the ultimate football examination. Still. It's enough to make all but the most zealous football purist cry out, "When's the Lingerie Bowl start?"

But wait long enough, football's worth it. Wait for the nervous, anxious Jake Delhomme to become the swaggering, defiant Jake. Wait for Tom Brady to remind us again how Montana once did it. Wait for the Patriots and Panthers to remind us that Super Bowl champions are complete teams.

"Everybody said we had no superstars, no this, no that," said Patriots safety Rodney Harrison, the beating heart of a ferocious defense. "That's OK. What we have is a team." "An unbelievable team," is the way Patriots coach Bill Belichick defined his outfit. "It's been a real thrill for me to coach them."

The rest of the retraction

Dave Kindred is a contributing writer for Sporting News.
Email him at kindred@sportingnews.com.

[RaisingCajun08]

Great picture Turbine. Maybe we can meet up tomorrow night during the signing day festivities. I would love to meet more of you guys.

I will be the one with the youngest Cajun fan there (almost postitive). The 8 month old little one (pepper) will be with me and the wife.

[NewsCopy]

Bettor luck as snow cushions bridge jump

A Super Bowl gambler who lost big allegedly took a dive off the Whitestone Bridge - but doctors wager he'll pull through after landing in a pile of snow.

Cops did not say how much Adrian Conde, 25, lost on the game, but it was enough to make him want to cash in his chips. So around 11 p.m., less than an hour after the New England Patriots beat the Carolina Panthers, 32-29, Conde stopped his girlfriend's station wagon in the bridge's far right Bronx-bound lane and leaped, cops said.

Conde, who lives with his parents in Morris Park, landed 100 feet below, in a 10-foot pile of snow in Ferry Points Park in the Bronx. EMTs, called by witnesses, found him writhing in pain just a stone's throw from the edge of the East River.

"He was moaning and groaning, with no comprehensible words," said EMT Jennifer Ferraro of Battalion 20 in the Bronx, who along with her partner, Justin Lim, treated Conde at the scene.

"Everybody was pretty amazed that he survived," she said.

Conde was listed in stable condition yesterday at Jacobi Medical Center, nursing head wounds and some cuts and scratches on his legs, hospital officials said.

Conde's relatives and friends, who gathered in the hospital's lobby yesterday, refused to speak with reporters.

The source of the story


By TAMER EL-GHOBASHYand FERNANDA SANTOS
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

[shof]

From the end of the article.......

''The things I had done in college warranted a little higher draft pick, but everyone chooses you for different reasons,'' Brady said. ''People saw me and maybe they said, 'I really don't think he's very capable, doesn't have the physical skills.' I didn't run fast, and still don't. I think people love arms like Brett Favre and John Elway have, and I don't have one of those. And the quickness of Michael Vick; I certainly don't have that.

"But I think you have your own skill set and you try to fit into your role as quarterback.''

This is the piece so many people fail to see. Neither of these guys are a Farve, Elway, or Vick. They understand their role, their strengths and weaknesses, and put forth "their" best to be a winner. Suffice it to say both were successful, where many with the superior skills have yet to prove they can be as successful on the big stage!

[Cajunman]

I HATE reading such creative writing in a sports NEWS magazine. I always rated SN far above SI for that reason. This guy sounds like someone who never made the team as a kid.

[Pirogue]

Originally posted by oldman
YES!

I took that picture in Lubbock in 1993... freshman season for Jake

[Pirogue]

1993 season finale against LaTech....
8th win of the season... the first of 4 against the Bulldogs... an accomplishment that most people don't appreciate nearly enough IMHAO.

[NewsCopy]

Tuesday, January 27 2004

HOUSTON -- Jake Delhomme, like Kurt Warner, has come from the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe. He has gone from backup to starter and from serviceable player to Super Bowl quarterback.

Now the question is, can the 29-year-old turn an unlikely Super Bowl run into $1 million in endorsement and marketing deals like Warner was able to do?

Jake Delhomme could have a million more reasons to smile if his team wins the Lombardi Trophy on Sunday.
"I won't do anything for a buck," insists Delhomme, who will make $2.53 million for his play on the field this year. "If it's right for me, something I believe in, then I'll do it, but I'm not one to travel all around."

Although the $1 million mark is not hard to achieve for a high-profile NBA player -- where shoe endorsement deals alone have made marketing millionaires of at least 10 players this year -- athletes excelling in America's most popular sport have a harder time.

With more players on the field, the stress on individual player marketing is less than that of the NBA, and the NFL's parity makes it a bit harder for marketers to gauge if a player they are considering for an endorsement deal will play on a winning team.

"Companies can't market a guy on a team that goes 3-13," said Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb, one of a handful of NFL players in the league who earned more than $1 million in endorsements this season. "Individual success comes from team success, and that's the only way (endorsement deals) come about. With the success that we've had through my career at Philadelphia, individual players receive attention in an environment like that."

But for those who want to enter the elite club, the Super Bowl is the biggest stage, the largest launching pad for players to break through.

The rest of the story

By Darren Rovell
ESPN.com

[NewsCopy]

HOUSTON — Not that he’s in any hurry, but Carolina Panthers wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad revealed Tuesday that he hopes his football career will continue in the television booth after his playing days are over.

Muhammad, who studied broadcasting at Michigan State, has done color commentary before for the FOX network on a few NFL Europe games.

So how did he grade out?

“C’mon, baby, flying colors,” Muhammad said.

But was he better than Kevin Greene, who also tried the same career path but failed?

“I didn’t hear how Kevin did,” Muhammad said with a laugh. “But I feel pretty natural with that. I interned when I was in college and every aspect in the booth and with the director I’m comfortable with.”

Where’s my booth?

Cornerback Ricky Manning has been arguably Carolina’s MVP in the postseason with four interceptions, but he wasn’t one of 11 players given a podium during Media Day. Manning didn’t seem to mind.

“I’m still a rookie, don’t forget,” Manning said. “It doesn’t matter if I make those plays, I still have to get breakfast on Saturday morning for the DBs. I’ve had to feed (the veterans) three days a week all season.”

Manning said the meals include Buffalo wings during the week, sandwiches on Saturday and Bojangles chicken for away games on Saturday.

His Kentucky Derby

When horse owner/quarterback Jake Delhomme was asked if the Super Bowl is “his” Kentucky Derby, he replied, “Yes it is. This is the Kentucky Derby. But I know they aren’t going to play Old Kentucky Home when we come out the tunnel.”

The rest of the story

Panther Notes

[NewsCopy]

Rewards of rebound are felt by franchise's newest sponsors

Bank of America Corp. drew big headlines for its recent deal to become naming-rights partner for the home of the Carolina Panthers, but the NFL franchise's smaller sponsors can also expect a big return on their investment.

Sponsors ranging from Bojangles' Inc. to Pepsi to McAlister's Deli are eyeing opportunities to take advantage of the unanticipated championship run -- this year and beyond.

"The thing you want to do is activate the relationship between the company and the team," says William Chipps, senior editor at IEG Sponsorship Report, an industry newsletter. "More advertising, consumer promotions, hospitality for customers -- these are all areas where you can benefit from something like this."

Chipps says big companies such as BofA will get a boost from working with a Super Bowl team, but adds that smaller firms can sometimes benefit more. Sponsoring an NFL franchise affords local and regional companies a chance to reach an audience far beyond their traditional advertising -- especially when a team becomes a championship contender.

Sponsors aren't winging it
A survey of Panthers sponsors reveals a range of plans. Some corporate partners have created instant sweepstakes and campaigns tied to the Super Bowl, while others will wait and broaden their approach next football season.

At Bojangles', the locally based fast-food chain, the restaurant pounced on the Panthers' playoff run by signing quarterback Jake Delhomme to an endorsement deal. "Starting next season, we'll have him in our commercials," says Joe Drury, Bojangles' chief executive. "The success of the team helps everyone in Charlotte."

The rest of the story

charlotte.bizjournals.com
Erik Spanberg
Senior staff writer