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Five NFL players we'd like to see get rings
Posted: July 15, 2008
Forget lasting more than three years -- once a modern NFL player gets past that average mark of sticking around in the league, it's most likely he simply endures and ends his on-field career without getting even the chance to play in a Super Bowl.
Unfortunately, some of the game's recent beloved all-time greats have met that fate -- Barry Sanders comes to mind first. A team's winning window closes just as fast as a player's prime, making their special skills all the more fleeting. Here are five guys for whom it would be fitting if they were fitted for Super Bowl rings before their playing time runs out:
1. LaDainian Tomlinson, RB, San Diego Chargers. Tomlinson slowly is creeping up toward hero Emmitt Smith's all-time rushing mark. If the durable L.T. can just put up his personal average season over the next five years, he will pass Smith.
The concerns are that Tomlinson showed considerable wear at the end of his seventh NFL season and that he will turn 30 next summer. So in running back years, that doesn't give him too many seasons to accomplish that ultimate goal of winning a Super Bowl. The Chargers are Sporting News' pick to win it all this season, but the Patriots and Colts remain big hurdles just in the AFC.
Tomlinson has flashed mixed signals about whether he is headed down Sanders' path (retire while still rolling along) or Smith's path (last a long time after winning multiple rings), so it's best if No. 21 gets his ring as soon as possible.
2. Drew Brees, QB, New Orleans Saints. Brees should be seen as much more than the savior of the Saints' franchise -- his consistent excellence in San Diego and New Orleans the past four years puts him just a notch below Tom Brady and Peyton Manning.
Brees wasn't that far from the big game in 2006 when most of his key Saints teammates were healthy and provided great support. With a shorter injury report and an upgraded defense, the Saints have a chance to rebound big in '08. Brees was a prolific producer and winner in college, and his play is worthy of him breaking through now as a seasoned pro.
3. Jason Taylor, DE, Miami Dolphins. It's pretty clear that if Taylor, who turns 34 on Sept. 1, plays only a season or two more in Miami, he won't reach the Super Bowl because of the massive rebuilding project going on in a division currently owned by the Patriots.
If the Dolphins trade Taylor, however, he would make any team that's merely playoff caliber into a Super Bowl contender. He is one of the NFL's classiest and most dominant athletes, but he has little playing time left. That said, he is only two years removed from being named the NFL's defensive player of the year and remains in tremendous shape at 6-6, 255. It would be nice for Taylor, a la Michael Strahan, to ride out of the league as a Super Bowl champ, even if it's with a new team.
4. Steve Smith, WR, Carolina Panthers. Simply put, Smith (5-9, 185) is the best pound-for-pound, inch-by-inch wide receiver in the league. Tough, competitive and without the diva complex of other high-profile wideouts, it's much easier to root for Smith than Randy Moss, Terrell Owens or Chad Johnson. Smith nearly got his ring in 2003, when the Panthers went toe to toe with the Patriots in Super Bowl 38, only to lose, 32-29.
The Panthers have a lot of work to do with their defense and the running game to return to Super Bowl level, but as long Smith gets some good quarterback play -- the healthy return of Jake Delhomme is huge -- Smith will do everything he can to get Carolina there again.
5. DeMarcus Ware, OLB, Dallas Cowboys. The big spotlight in Big D shines on Owens, Tony Romo, Marion Barber, Jason Witten and the rest of the team's high-powered offense. But when the 'Boys eventually end their playoff-win drought and turn the corner toward the Super Bowl, the defense will have much to do with it.
Ware is the Cowboys' most talented player. Period. And the team shouldn't need any off-field antics to make him the face of America's Team. Of all the Cowboys, he played the best in the divisional playoff game against the Giants in January. It would be fun to see Ware dominate an opponent in the Super Bowl -- a la Richard Dent a couple decades ago, or Justin Tuck just a few months ago.
Vinnie Iyer is a staff writer for Sporting News. Email him at viyer@sportingnews.com.
Posted: July 15, 2008
Forget lasting more than three years -- once a modern NFL player gets past that average mark of sticking around in the league, it's most likely he simply endures and ends his on-field career without getting even the chance to play in a Super Bowl.
Unfortunately, some of the game's recent beloved all-time greats have met that fate -- Barry Sanders comes to mind first. A team's winning window closes just as fast as a player's prime, making their special skills all the more fleeting. Here are five guys for whom it would be fitting if they were fitted for Super Bowl rings before their playing time runs out:
1. LaDainian Tomlinson, RB, San Diego Chargers. Tomlinson slowly is creeping up toward hero Emmitt Smith's all-time rushing mark. If the durable L.T. can just put up his personal average season over the next five years, he will pass Smith.
The concerns are that Tomlinson showed considerable wear at the end of his seventh NFL season and that he will turn 30 next summer. So in running back years, that doesn't give him too many seasons to accomplish that ultimate goal of winning a Super Bowl. The Chargers are Sporting News' pick to win it all this season, but the Patriots and Colts remain big hurdles just in the AFC.
Tomlinson has flashed mixed signals about whether he is headed down Sanders' path (retire while still rolling along) or Smith's path (last a long time after winning multiple rings), so it's best if No. 21 gets his ring as soon as possible.
2. Drew Brees, QB, New Orleans Saints. Brees should be seen as much more than the savior of the Saints' franchise -- his consistent excellence in San Diego and New Orleans the past four years puts him just a notch below Tom Brady and Peyton Manning.
Brees wasn't that far from the big game in 2006 when most of his key Saints teammates were healthy and provided great support. With a shorter injury report and an upgraded defense, the Saints have a chance to rebound big in '08. Brees was a prolific producer and winner in college, and his play is worthy of him breaking through now as a seasoned pro.
3. Jason Taylor, DE, Miami Dolphins. It's pretty clear that if Taylor, who turns 34 on Sept. 1, plays only a season or two more in Miami, he won't reach the Super Bowl because of the massive rebuilding project going on in a division currently owned by the Patriots.
If the Dolphins trade Taylor, however, he would make any team that's merely playoff caliber into a Super Bowl contender. He is one of the NFL's classiest and most dominant athletes, but he has little playing time left. That said, he is only two years removed from being named the NFL's defensive player of the year and remains in tremendous shape at 6-6, 255. It would be nice for Taylor, a la Michael Strahan, to ride out of the league as a Super Bowl champ, even if it's with a new team.
4. Steve Smith, WR, Carolina Panthers. Simply put, Smith (5-9, 185) is the best pound-for-pound, inch-by-inch wide receiver in the league. Tough, competitive and without the diva complex of other high-profile wideouts, it's much easier to root for Smith than Randy Moss, Terrell Owens or Chad Johnson. Smith nearly got his ring in 2003, when the Panthers went toe to toe with the Patriots in Super Bowl 38, only to lose, 32-29.
The Panthers have a lot of work to do with their defense and the running game to return to Super Bowl level, but as long Smith gets some good quarterback play -- the healthy return of Jake Delhomme is huge -- Smith will do everything he can to get Carolina there again.
5. DeMarcus Ware, OLB, Dallas Cowboys. The big spotlight in Big D shines on Owens, Tony Romo, Marion Barber, Jason Witten and the rest of the team's high-powered offense. But when the 'Boys eventually end their playoff-win drought and turn the corner toward the Super Bowl, the defense will have much to do with it.
Ware is the Cowboys' most talented player. Period. And the team shouldn't need any off-field antics to make him the face of America's Team. Of all the Cowboys, he played the best in the divisional playoff game against the Giants in January. It would be fun to see Ware dominate an opponent in the Super Bowl -- a la Richard Dent a couple decades ago, or Justin Tuck just a few months ago.
Vinnie Iyer is a staff writer for Sporting News. Email him at viyer@sportingnews.com.
:starspin
