19

here is the full doyel article:

Quote :

"Rivers' honesty refreshing, but many don't want to hear it This is what we do. We gripe and we bitch about the way things ought to be, but then when we get what we want, we gripe and we bitch about that. Roger Clemens is one example. For three whole weeks after the Mitchell report came out and accused him of using steroids, Clemens said nothing. And we griped. And we bitched. We said, "Why is Clemens quiet? He must be guilty." So Clemens ended his silence and said he was innocent. And we called him a liar! Which brings me to the topic at hand, a topic that has me so flabbergasted that I've begun this column on Philip Rivers with a couple paragraphs about Roger Clemens. That's ridiculous, but so is the premise that Rivers is a jerk and a reason not to embrace the San Diego Chargers this week as they prepare to take on New England. Look, NFL fans. You can embrace the Chargers or not. I don't care. But to use Philip Rivers as a reason, as an excuse, not to support San Diego? That's asinine. This is one of the more fun guys in the NFL. He's everything we say we want in a professional athlete. He talks to the media and says what's on his mind. He shows unscripted emotion on the field. He pumps his fist and flaps his gums. He's a professional football player, and you can tell how much fun he's having. And so we bitch and we gripe. Why? Because Rivers isn't like everybody else. Never mind that we've already bitched and griped about athletes who are boring and talk in clichés and act aloof and seem to be playing for nothing more than a paycheck. Like Eli Manning. Never mind that we resent those guys for making football look like a miserable burden. Here comes Philip Rivers, and he has some nerve -- he's nothing like those guys! Who does he think he is? This is personal for me. Just a little bit. When Rivers played at North Carolina State from 2000-03, I covered the Wolfpack for The Charlotte Observer. I covered most every game he played. I attended most of his press conferences. I saw him interact with media and coaches and teammates, and let me tell you something: Philip Rivers is no different now than he was in college. And he was awesome in college. Awesome on the field, but awesome off it, too. Some quarterbacks lead because of their position on the field. Rivers led because of his attitude. Here he was, the best player on the team and one of the best players in the country, and he had zero pretense. He was just this goofy, fearless, fiery kid from Alabama. He'd say anything. One day during his true freshman season, after he had thrown for more than 1,000 yards in his first three starts, the media was asking him about being ranked among national passing leaders. Rivers said what an 18-year-old with any sincerity would have said. He said he checked the stats every week because he couldn't believe that was his name -- Philip Rivers! -- listed alongside great quarterbacks like Florida State's Chris Weinke and Purdue's Drew Brees. Rivers is the same way now. He'll say or do stuff that any of us would say or do if we had the guts and the chance. Against Baltimore earlier this season, Rivers and the San Diego offense was booed off the field after a three-and-out. The game was at home. It was the Chargers' first series of the first quarter. And the crowd was booing? Already? Rivers looked into the crowd and could be seen mouthing the words, "Oh, shut up." That made headlines, and not good ones. Because people like to gripe and bitch. People are stupid. At Indianapolis, Rivers left the playing area after the third quarter because of a knee injury. Colts fans could be seen taunting him as he headed for the tunnel. Rivers could be seen smiling and mouthing the words, "Thank you." After the Chargers' victory, when Rivers threw those taunts back into the crowd's face, he was called a jerk. In sum, fans who taunt an injured player are OK. Injured player who taunts back is not. That's not the logic of a rational person. That's the logic of a message board gone haywire. As for that showdown with Denver quarterback Jay Cutler earlier this season, when Rivers was spotted yelling at him after a Cutler incompletion on fourth down late in a Broncos loss, I don't know what to tell you. I wasn't there. I've not talked to Cutler. Rivers admits he was saying stuff to Cutler, but says Cutler had been saying stuff first. Maybe they have a personal rivalry. Maybe Cutler had been talking trash all game to the San Diego defense, and Rivers was sticking up for his teammates. Maybe Rivers let the thrill of victory override good sportsmanship. Whatever happened that day between Rivers and Cutler, I can live with it. The corporate NFL has long been mocked as the No Fun League, but Philip Rivers is fun in a way most of us ought to be able to relate. He's fiery and raw. He comes off as unpolished, and probably will come off as unpolished a decade from now. If you want veneer, look elsewhere. Rivers isn't dating supermodels like Tom Brady or starlets like Tony Romo (Rivers was married and a father in college). He's not running the 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds or killing dogs like Michael Vick. He's not crediting God for his team's victories like Jon Kitna. He's not a boring drone like Carson Palmer. He's not Matt Hasselbeck who seems like Damon Huard who seems like Matt Schaub. Philip Rivers isn't like any of them. You know who he's like? He's kind of like us. Maybe that's the problem. "

[Edited on January 16, 2008 at 1:28 PM. Reason : doyel]

1/16/2008 1:26:23 PM

is this going to be the first doyle article that DOESN'T get wolfpack fans angry?

1/16/2008 1:48:01 PM

that was a damn good article. everyone just got pwnt.

1/16/2008 2:58:49 PM

yeah, for once, i don't want to take a claw hammer to the back of doyel's domepiece.

1/16/2008 3:01:20 PM

For once, Doyel writes a good article. What's the world coming to? On the other hand, the "counterpoint" article by Freeman is just absolute trash. Philip Rivers == Terrell Owens? Give me a fucking break. Wait until Rivers starts talking shit about his coaches, throwing his teammates under the bus, and holding press conferences in his driveway while working out, and then we can revisit that comparison. For now, it's one of the most utterly stupid things I've seen in print.

1/16/2008 3:10:51 PM

for those who havent read the counterpoint article yet:

http://www.sportsline.com/columns/story/10580654

Quote :

" Philip Rivers = Terrell Owens. They're the same person; trash talking twins. Absolute doppelgangers. They're both showboats. They both let their emotions get the best of them. Most of all, they're both impossible to root for. In fact Rivers, Owens, Chad Johnson and Joey Porter's version of hell is a place that doesn't include a camera, microphone or mirror. Punks, all of them. The San Diego Chargers are normally the kind of team fans would embrace. The disparaged head coach turned hero; the underdog that shocked the Indianapolis Colts; the team taking on the Evil Empire. The Chargers should be America's Team. Indeed, I have always respected the Chargers organization. Some of the assistants on Norv Turner's staff I have known for years. Qualcomm Stadium is the best place in the country to watch a football game. The problem is the personality of this team has changed and not for the better. The Chargers are becoming the Oakland Raiders -- silver and yak. They talk and talk and talk. The Chargers are the biggest trash talkers in all of sports. They make Chad Johnson blush. And they've earned this reputation mostly because of Rivers. Oh, he's not the lone trash talker or on-field disco dancer. There are Shawne Merriman's steroid-soaked sack celebrations and the sometimes obnoxious actions of the mostly gentlemanly and Teflon-coated LaDainian Tomlinson. San Diego defensive lineman Igor Olshansky, following the Chargers' divisional game against the Colts, opened his extra large yapper and, unprovoked, mocked the Patriots. He actually said the Patriots were more afraid of the Chargers than the Chargers were of the Patriots. What's the word for stupid in the Ukraine? (And wasn't Igor Olshansky in a James Bond film?) Yet no one has done more damage to the recent image of the Chargers than Rivers. Rivers is Trent Dilfer with a bigger mouth, shorter attention span and worse haircut. My good friend and colleague Gregg Doyel loves Rivers. Figures. Punks beget punks. I have never seen a player commit such egregious taunts and acts of trash talking while simultaneously being defended vigorously by coaching and teammate apologists. Even Philadelphia Eagles management and some players took on Owens and told him to shut up. The Chargers not only say very little to Rivers about his childish acts, they seem to embrace them. "We're going to let Philip be Philip," Tomlinson told the media this week. "No one has talked to him about it, because that's the way he's always been. He's his own man, and at this point I don't think you can try to sit him down like a high school player and say, 'You shouldn't be talking like that.'" Sorry LaDainian, but that's exactly what someone should do. Rivers looks like a man slowly and utterly losing his mind. In December, Rivers was caught by television cameras jawing at Denver quarterback Jay Cutler for no good reason. That led to this quote from Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey: "And I don't really care for the guy, first of all. He's not a respectable guy right now, because you talk too much trash and do this and that, but you're really not a great player in this league right now. You're surrounded by great players, but you're not a great player. I think he needs to understand where he stands in this league -- where he stands on his team first and foremost." When the classy Bailey speaks that way about a player, it means that player really is a punk. Minnesota safety Darren Sharper said when the Vikings and Chargers met earlier this season, Rivers was blabbing even as the Chargers were getting bulldozed by Adrian Peterson. "Rivers is that kind of guy," Sharper said at the time. "He likes to run his mouth. He's going to learn he is going to have to stop doing that, too." Rivers this season was also caught again by cameras telling the fans at Qualcomm to shut up. He has told Raiders fans to shut up, too. Then came the Indianapolis game and Rivers popping off to Colts fans. Talk, talk, talk. "Even I'm embarrassed for him," Ryan Leaf might say. I want to root for the Chargers. If only they would shut up. "

the part i put in bold is one of the laziest things i've ever seen a columnist do

[Edited on January 16, 2008 at 3:49 PM. Reason : linkage]

1/16/2008 3:27:43 PM

Get a r_pe

1/16/2008 3:33:24 PM

mouthing off to fans booing you as you're being escorted off the field injured isn't exactly an egregious act. it sounds like everyone they interviewed for that (^^) article is bitter. you'll note that he also didn't bother to ever even quote rivers' terrible quotes. it's because they're not terrible.

[Edited on January 16, 2008 at 3:39 PM. Reason : s']

1/16/2008 3:39:26 PM

^^^who wrote that?

1/16/2008 3:40:56 PM

not to mention his "mouthing off" in that instance was saying "thank you" sarcastically. FOR SHAME!!!

1/16/2008 3:41:55 PM

Quote :

""Even I'm embarrassed for him," Ryan Leaf might say."

Yeah pretty fuckin stupid remark here

1/16/2008 4:04:57 PM

Unreal. If I were rivers I would wear a mic just so people can hear what he's actually saying. Just because he looks like he's being a dick doesnt mean he is. He's not a bad guy, and thats where these people are getting things twisted. Mother Fuck.

1/16/2008 4:30:27 PM

i saw a clip of him screaming "Did you think it was over?!" to the crowd before all these shenanigans started

i'm sure he was saying something like that to the colts fans

1/16/2008 4:56:12 PM

^Hey I liked your prediction about the Colts winning the Superbowl.

1/16/2008 5:02:15 PM

Quoted twice for emphases

Quote :

"People are stupid. At Indianapolis, Rivers left the playing area after the third quarter because of a knee injury. Colts fans could be seen taunting him as he headed for the tunnel. Rivers could be seen smiling and mouthing the words, "Thank you." After the Chargers' victory, when Rivers threw those taunts back into the crowd's face, he was called a jerk. In sum, fans who taunt an injured player are OK. Injured player who taunts back is not. That's not the logic of a rational person. That's the logic of a message board gone haywire."

Quote :

"People are stupid. At Indianapolis, Rivers left the playing area after the third quarter because of a knee injury. Colts fans could be seen taunting him as he headed for the tunnel. Rivers could be seen smiling and mouthing the words, "Thank you." After the Chargers' victory, when Rivers threw those taunts back into the crowd's face, he was called a jerk. In sum, fans who taunt an injured player are OK. Injured player who taunts back is not. That's not the logic of a rational person. That's the logic of a message board gone haywire."

1/16/2008 5:03:17 PM

ps just to show how awesome I am at predictions:

Quote :

"Prawn Star No way the Colts put up 35 on that Charger D. Manning sucks against the Chargers pressure 3-4 defense. In his last 2 starts against the Chargers, he has 8 interceptions and the Colts lost both. LT will break loose and run for 150 yards, he's due for a dominating game and the artificial turf is perfect for his style of running. Chargers 28 Colts 24 [Edited on January 7, 2008 at 3:36 AM. Reason : 2] 1/7/2008 3:29:00 AM "

... just ignore the stuff about LT

1/16/2008 5:05:35 PM

i thought the colts were so under the radar they would surprise everyone

now that the chargers beat the colts i think they actually have a chance this sunday(if the injuries don't kill them)

maybe i'm delusional

1/16/2008 5:09:46 PM

DAMN

I thought the Chargers might have a chance until you posted that

1/16/2008 6:00:20 PM

you're right i jinxed them

ok ok mark my words - the chargers are gonna lose this weekend!

1/16/2008 6:05:07 PM

This football blog is actually pretty funny, but it's devoted mostly to bashing Rivers nowadays:

Quote :

"As you know, we are not a news site. We don’t even try to be one. Trying to break news in the blogosphere is like trying to be first in line at the DMV. Our job is to crack cheap dick jokes and concoct phony dialogues about how big of a tool Philip Rivers is. And Good Lord, is he ever a fucking tool."

http://kissmesuzy.blogspot.com/

I like his newest piece about how big of a tool Bill Simmons is.

1/16/2008 6:18:04 PM

Quote :

"He's not Matt Hasselbeck who seems like Damon Huard who seems like Matt Schaub. "

ouch...cheap shot on Matt Schaub

1/16/2008 8:48:52 PM

Hahaha. This is so funny! The one player I like more than any other and the one player I think is the classiest is getting ripped by everyone hahahah. Screw'em all. And yes, for once, I love a Doyle article.

1/16/2008 10:58:06 PM

i will say one thing, if the chargers want to win on sunday, philip will need to keep his mouth shut and talk with his game

1/16/2008 11:31:50 PM

that makes no sense

1/16/2008 11:33:37 PM

^^Seems like Rivers has been playing better the more he's talked. It gets him hyped up and playing better because of it.

Hopefully he talks shit to the Patriots, opposing fans, the refs, his teammates, whatever, as long as he keeps playing the way he's playing.

[Edited on January 16, 2008 at 11:57 PM. Reason : 2]

1/16/2008 11:57:00 PM

i'm gonna have to dedicate 15 or 20 minutes sometime in the next few days to find "classy" athletes who have done the exact same shit, or worse

1/16/2008 11:57:51 PM

Pretty good article in the N&O this morning about him...

http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/story/886100.html

Quote :

"Rivers compared his talking to ribbing a buddy while playing in the backyard. "That's all it is. If we can't do that, I don't know. I really don't," he said. "Anybody can be critical and criticize, but nobody knows what's being said. Other than what's caught on camera, and as far as I know, everything that's been caught on camera is clean, and that's all that it'll ever be.""

You tell 'em, Phil. IMO the way he's handling it really makes it look like the media is blowing it way out of proportion (which they are).

Another quote from him a bit further in the article, about how he's doing the same things as always:

Quote :

""Since the Denver week, when things, to me, got blown out of proportion, I haven't changed since then. If you followed me around since I was 5 years old, you'd see the same thing every Saturday afternoon in the backyard, you saw it for 51 games at N.C. State and you'll probably catch something this weekend. Do I mean any harm about it? No. Again, I'm just going to have fun.""

1/17/2008 9:18:39 AM

good video here....
http://www.latimes.com/sports/printedition/la-sp-nfl17jan17,0,1128128.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-sports

1/17/2008 11:19:57 AM

1/17/2008 11:25:01 AM

Rivers is classless.

1/17/2008 11:35:29 AM

Rivers is classless

1/17/2008 11:37:55 AM

Rivers is classless

1/17/2008 11:40:46 AM

Oh No!! Not a legit photo of a the former golden boy favorite flipping off the crowd!

shenanigans!

1/17/2008 11:44:41 AM

ahaha

1/17/2008 11:48:22 AM

Bionic rivers?

1/17/2008 3:18:26 PM

can't wait til Rodney Harrison pokes him in the eye in the first quarter, and then medical tests at halftime reveal Rivers' new vision is 20/5

1/17/2008 3:19:43 PM

more like 20/LASERS


amirite?

1/17/2008 3:23:14 PM

that would be pretty sweet if the chargers were on defense this weekend, and rivers is on the sideline preparing for his next drive and whatnot...and all of a sudden his bionic instincts tell him to look at a certain seat in the crowd...to talk shit to the fans? nope...to see somebody in the pats organization videotaping merriman and the rest of the SD defense to learn their signals...then rivers shoots lasers from his eyes and the camera explodes

1/17/2008 3:28:47 PM

^^^he'd have to drill through his face shield.

Refs probably still wouldn't throw a flag

[Edited on January 17, 2008 at 3:29 PM. Reason : .]

1/17/2008 3:29:03 PM

some journalist from SD was on ESPN talking about how it would be NEW if rivers was NOT talkin. said it's nothing new, but there's not a more polite guy, or more upstanding man. how he doesn't cuss and they sometimes call him Opie. basically everything we knew but what flies in the face of the media's new portrait of rivers as a thug.

[Edited on January 17, 2008 at 3:41 PM. Reason : ]

1/17/2008 3:41:09 PM

yeah somebody was on Colin Cowherd today defending him pretty well...course Herd just wanted to make jokes like "do you and Rivers hang out?" cause Herd is a pussy

1/17/2008 3:46:34 PM

LURLLURLLURLLURLLURLLURLLURL

1/17/2008 3:50:58 PM

Rivers is more of a nerd than a thug.

1/17/2008 3:58:54 PM

it's funny...there's starting to be some backlash on talk radio over the trashing of rivers

and some twat from boston who teaches kids in san diego...she says he needs to shut it, but then admits she talks trash to her grade school kids because they don't talk back

i want to punch her in the vag

1/17/2008 4:19:42 PM

Yeah, the problem they're getting into is that no one really knows what he's saying except for the fans he's talking to...everything anyone has ever heard or seen with him is that he's a stand up guy and everything. This is just one of his quirks.

1/17/2008 4:29:29 PM

1/17/2008 6:40:27 PM

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

1/17/2008 6:41:13 PM

Quote :

"I can handle this situation on my own. That's it. Time to pull out the sideline eyes. You and me, Colts. Staredown city. You ready for the laserface? Here comes the laserface! No time to back down. Aaaaaaaaaaaand GO!"

lol at laserface

1/17/2008 6:49:19 PM

He has the excited southerner thing that the media loves about Favre so much. I sick of the NFC being portrayed in positive feel good stories and the AFC being the big bad empire or the trash talking punks.

1/18/2008 9:35:38 AM

http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/chargers/20080118-1156-bn18rivers3.html

Quote :

"Philip Rivers' knee injury is more severe than what has been described by the Chargers, and the quarterback has been listed as doubtful for Sunday's AFC Championship Game. Sources told The San Diego Union-Tribune today the quarterback also has a partially torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in addition to the sprained medial collateral ligament the team has made known. "

Not even fleeing to the either side of country was enough for Rivers to escape from the NC State ACL curse

[Edited on January 18, 2008 at 3:47 PM. Reason : :]

1/18/2008 3:47:02 PM