NFL Quickies

-So, Reggie Bush announced today that he will give back his Heisman Trophy after it was discovered during an investigation that he took improper benefits while in college and therefore was ineligible when he won. He says he just wants to put this behind him, but the reality is that Bush returning the Heisman just to beat the NCAA to the punch of taking it back. While it's all well and good that the NCAA is cracking down on improper contact between agents and students, I feel like pointing out that O.J. Simpson was never asked to give back his Heisman. Priorities, people.

-After one weekend of football, there have already been six players that have suffered season-ending injuries. I just wanted to bring that up because there are people out there who still insist the NFL should go to an 18-game schedule, forgetting football is a violent game. These guys are doing terrible harm to themselves as it is, so adding two more games is only going to raise the risk of serious injury. If the owners are determined to expand the schedule (and it appears they are) I hope they are ready to expand rosters. At the rate these players are dropping you're going to need closer to 70 players per team, not the 53 it is now.

-During last night's Chiefs/Chargers game, Phillip Rivers was continually getting frustrated during the game. Consequently, there was a lot of screaming at teammates (even when he was the one who short-armed the throw) and at one point he threw the ball down and kicked it at his center after a delay of game penalty, in a move that looked an awful lot like a temper tantrum my niece would pull. The announcers calling the game kept talking about Rivers' incredible competitiveness and his will to win every game. Funny, from where I sat he just looked like a douche.

-I don't get all the people who are mad at Randy Moss for his post-game press conference, during which he mentioned that he didn't want to leave New England, but expected that this was his last year as a Patriot. A lot of media though this was a bad time to bring it up, but I don't see the big deal, considering he said almost the exact same thing over the summer. It's not like this was out of the blue. He wants a new deal, but admitted the team isn't about to give a 34 year-old wideout a long-term deal. If anything it was a very mature response. Frankly, the timing couldn't have been much better, because at least it was after a win. If he did that after a loss I think Shaughnessy's head would have exploded.

-Speaking of the Patriots and their contact squabbles, I thought the report over the weekend concerning Logan Mankins was very interesting. For those of you that didn't see it, apparently a couple weeks back the Pro Bowl guard, in the middle of a lengthy hold-out while waiting for a new contract, arrived in Foxboro determined to hammer out a deal to stay in New England. But during his hold-out Mankins had said some less-than-flattering things about the Patriots and specifically Bob Kraft, so he was asked to call Bob and apologize, which he did. Mankins was then asked to issue a public apology to Kraft, which he balked at and that not only ended negotiations, but likely Mankins' career with the Patriots as well. I feel like the Patriots shouldn't have pressed their luck with Mankins by asking him to apologize in public. A guy like Mankins got to where he was by being ultra-competitive, stubborn and full of pride, so asking him swallow his pride twice was too much. The worst part was the Patriots would have gotten their wish anyway because you know someone would have asked him about his comments at the press conference, at which point he would have had to essentially repeat his apology publicly. Now you just hope they can get a high draft pick for him.