I miss football already.

Football-wise, I came of age in the early 1970s. It was probably 1969 when I started caring about pro football, back in 7th grade. And in the next few years, I became a huge fan.

The first team I really cared about was the Minnesota Vikings, a team that would go on to dash my hopes repeatedly, including this year. I loved the way Fran Tarkenton played.

Right now, there’s a lot of discussion about putting Drew Brees in the “elite quarterback” category, whose rarefied atmosphere also includes Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. Three elite quarterbacks.

Today’s elites toil amongst a whole bunch of forgettable QBs. But I can still remember the quarterback for nearly every NFL team from the early 1970s, and there were a lot of really good ones. Here they are, off the top of my head:

Baltimore: Johnny Unitas
NY Jets: Joe Namath
Minnesota: Fran Tarkenton
Kansas City: Len Dawson
Pittsburgh: Terry Bradshaw
New Orleans: Archie Manning
Detroit: Greg Landry
Dallas: Robert Staubach and Craig Morton
Washington: Bill Kilmer and Sonny Jurgenson
Miami: Bob Griese
Oakland: Daryl Lamonica and George Blanda
LA Rams: Roman Gabriel
San Francisco: John Brodie
Cincinnati: Ken Anderson
New England: Steve Grogan
Buffalo: Joe Ferguson
St. Louis Cardinals: Jim Harte
San Diego: John Hadl
Houston: Charley Johnson and Dan Pastorini
Chicago: Bobby Douglas

That’s a pretty impressive group. They make up one-third of the modern-era QBsin the Hall of Fame. A number of them were amazing scramblers–Tarkenton, Manning, Landry, Grogan, Staubach, Griese, Bradshaw. You don’t see much of that today, because coaches and GMs don’t want QBs to risk getting hurt. Wimps.

The only teams whose QB I can’t recall are: Atlanta, NY Giants, Cleveland, Green Bay, and Philly. I couldn’t come close to naming as many quarterbacks in the 1980s, 1990s, or the 2000s.

The FOX NFL pregame team in Afghanistan: L-r: Curt Menefee, Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long, Michael Strahan, Jimmy Johnson, Jay Glazer.

One of life’s simple pleasures, guy-wise, is watching the three NFL Sunday pregame shows. In order of greatness, they are: FOX, ESPN, and CBS.

Each show has basic roles: “host,” “coach,” “quarterback,” and then miscellaneous players.

My favorite, by far. is the FOX team: host Curt Menefee, Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long, Michael Strahan, and Jimmy Johnson. They got chemistry! Adding Strahan last year was a huge; the gap-toothed one has personality plus. Strahan and Long duplicate the “defensive player” role, but I’ll allow it. Terry Bradshaw is irreplaceable. Then they always throw in a segment with Frank Caliendo, which is Must-See TV. And Jay Glazer adds some great reports from off-screen.

I like the ESPN team, too: host Chris Berman, Mike Ditka, Tom Jackson, Keyshawn Johnson, and Chris Carter. A newcomer is Chris Carter, whom I really like. Keyshawn Johnson–he’s okay, but talks too slow (yes, I’m a petty person). Chris Berman is head-and-shoulders the best host of any of the shows, and Mike Ditka is the best when it comes to the “coach” role. They’re lacking a former quarterback, though Steve Young appears sometimes (he’s so-so). And with both Johnson and Carter, they duplicate the “wide receiver” role. Need some balance.

Then there’s CBS, my least favorite: host James Brown, Dan Marino, Boomer Esiason, Bll Cowher, and Shannon Sharpe. James Brown is a really good host, who until 2005 anchored the FOX pregame show. They duplicate the “quarterback” role with Marino and Esiason; I’d ditch Marino, whom I find bland. Cowher is okay in the “coach” role, but Ditka and Johnson are better.

Looking at all three teams, my MVP goes to Terry Bradshaw. Can be a nut, or quite serious. Shannon Sharpe is my MEP (Most Expendable Person). He’s just way too serious.

Curt Menefee, at FOX, is the worst of the three hosts. The FOX team deserves better. I can’t imagine Berman anywhere but at ESPN. Brown was the FOX host until 2005. They need to get James Brown back. Then replace Jimmy Johnson with Mike Ditka. Now there’s an amazing team.  

Earlier this year, the FOX team spent a Sunday anchoring from Afghanistan. That was an amazing, amazing show.

I went to bed last night disgusted with the Colts. I woke up disgusted. And I’m still disgusted. Disgusted that they sacrificed being a potential history-making team, settling instead for being a team of good-enough.

Coach Jim Caldwell said perfection was never their goal. Well, mission accomplished. Quitter.

The Colts have their eye on becoming the 44th team to win the Super Bowl. Big whup. Winning the Super Bowl is the epitome of the season, but not necessarily something historic. Instead of being 1 of 44, the Colts could have been:

• The 3rd team to end the regular season undefeated.
• The 2nd team to go undefeated and win the Super Bowl.
• The only team to finish with a 19-0 record.

Instead, they settled for being 1 of 44. Nothing special.

Said center Jeff Saturday, when the Indy fans booed: “I don’t blame them a bit, man. I probably would have booed, too. I don’t blame them. They pay to come see us win games, and we didn’t get it done.”

Former NFL great Chris Carter pointed out on ESPN that momentum is tough to recapture. The Saints had momentum, but lost it to the Cowboys. The very next week they lost again to Tampa Bay, of all teams.

The Colts commanded amazing momentum, but voluntarily gave it up. Decided it wasn’t important. The Colts will probably phone it in this week against the Bills, then have a bye week. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they lose in the first round of the playoffs. The momentum is gone. The extra sense of purpose–of being one of the all-time great teams, a team of destiny–was thrown aside frivolously.

The Patriots went undefeated in 2007 until the Super Bowl. But people will talk about them a long time, as one of only two teams–with the Dolphins–to go undefeated in the regular season. Yes, they lost the final game. But they are still 1 of 2, not 1 of 44. They made history, and they never checked their swing. I hate them, but admire that they went for it.

Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi wrote on ESPN:

There aren’t many times in your life when you have a chance to do something that has never been done before. When you are faced with a challenge like that, my feeling is that you embrace it and see if you’ve got what it takes to conquer it.

That’s the way we felt in New England. And yes, we lost the Super Bowl, but let me be clear: We lost the Super Bowl because the New York Giants played better than we did that day. It was not because we were tired and needed more rest….

I always thought the off-season was the time for rest….

Here’s the reality: Some teams don’t just play for championships, they play to be the best there has ever been. Others are just satisfied with doing what’s required. The Colts decided that resting is more important than making a run at history. They are telling us that what they have done up to this point in the season is good enough. They are satisfied with home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. 19-0? No big deal. History? Didn’t want it.

Should the Indianapolis Colts go on to win the Super Bowl, do you celebrate them or wonder: What if they did want it?

Even if the Colts win the Super Bowl, there will be a damper on the season. They could have been one of the all-time great teams. Instead, they settled for being 1 of 44. Way to be. Enjoy your average, nothing special Super Bowl ring.

I also realize that if a starter or two got injured for the rest of the season in what was a non-essential game, I might be writing something different. And yet, I could admire that.

I was really impressed with the New Orleans Saints last night. I do get tired of hearing commentator garbage about what a genius Bill Bellichick is, as if he’s some mystical figure come down from the mountain to scowl at us mere mortals. And I think Tom Brady’s over-rated, too. But what do I know? Except that I’m really really biased against the Patriots.

The Colts remain on a roll, winning most games, it seems, with come-from-behind efforts. Classic Peyton Manning. I could see them ending the regular season unbeaten. And then I could see them losing in the first round of the playoffs. Or going to the Super Bowl. Either one.

The first team I loved as a kid was the Minnesota Vikings. So I’m delighted with the season they are having, though they’ve let me down many times in the past. However, if they made it to the Super Bowl, that would be great, and I’d be cheering for them (unless they were playing the Colts). It would mean, of course, getting past the Saints. That would be one amazing game.

Remember how great Drew Brees was with the Chargers? I’ll bet that if they had kept him, instead of clearing him out to make room for Philip Rivers, San Diego, with all the talent they’ve had, would have won a Super Bowl by now.

I’ve been musing about NFL helmet design for the past few weeks, trying to decide which helmets I liked the best. And the results are in.

1. Rams. I’ve always thought the big-horn-sheep thing gave the Rams the best helmet. Actually, it used to be better, with the horn curling around toward the middle. I don’t like the current design as well, but included it because of my historical fondness.
2. Vikings. The dual wings have been part of the helmet for a long time. No sense changing something that works. I actually like it better than the current Rams helmet.
3. Buffalo Bills. I think this is a real sharp design.
4. Colts. Simple, timeless, easily-identifiable.
5. Steelers. I don’t understand this design, with the three stars or diamonds or whatever they are. What’s it have to do with “steelers”? But I’ve always liked the helmet. Look intimidating, for some reason.
6. Packers. A simple G, green on yellow. Several helmets just use initials from the team. This would be my favorite. Though I don’t know why they stopped with just the G. Why not GB?

7. 49ers. I don’t know how you illustrate “49ers,” so a simple SF works.
8. Raiders. This logo looks mean. The Raiders have a mean reputation. Pussycats for the past several years, but their helmet still works.
9. Giants. Just the initials, but it works for me.
10. Bengals. Great design, using the bengal tiger stripes. I used to like it a lot better than I do now.
11. Dolphins. The dual stripes across the top make this helmet work for me, not just the logo.
12. Saints. Not sure what that symbol is, but it makes for a distinctive helmet.

I’ll give honorable mentions to the Eagles, Chiefs, Seahawks, and Redskins. I could easily put the Chiefs helmet in the second 6, though I’m not sure which one it would displace.

About the Cowboys helmet: What’s with the star? What does that have to do with anything?

And the all-time worst, most boring helmet definitely goes to the Cleveland Browns.

All the other helmets are stupid.

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