On paper at least this was a great matchup. Two big physical very good teams on both sides of the ball. I think under normal conditions this is a one touchdown game and perhaps the New York Giants would've won again, but not in a shutout. Even when the Giants did beat the Redskins in this era, their victories tended to be very close even at Giants Stadium. But this obviously wasn't normal conditions, at least for the Redskins. The Redskins are from Washington, where it doesn't tend to get very cold until January. Winter tends to start in New York/New Jersey in November.
This was a Giants game in Giants weather at Giants Stadium where they were extremely difficult to beat. Very similar to the Green Packers at Lambeau Field when they are good. And now the Seattle Seahawks in Seattle. The Giants got off to a very hot start in this game putting up seventeen points in the first half. With the weather being the way it was and with the Giants defense in 1986, that was more than enough for a shell-shocked Redskins team that weren't prepared or didn't seem to be able to deal with the stadium and the weather.
The 1987 Redskins to me exactly goes to the brilliance of General Manager Bobby Beathard and Head Coach Joe Gibbs. A strike season where the NFL decides to play on with replacement players. That Beathard and his staff had to find for Joe Gibbs and his coaching staff. And Coach Gibbs and his crew having to determine which of these part-time NFL players can even play under these conditions and against NFL players that decided not to strike and how to use those replacements in the best way possible. Because the Redskins still had a job to do, which was to win as many games as possible in 1987.
The 1987 NFL season also goes to the depth of the Redskins with the players they lost to the players strike and the player they lost to injury. They had two starting quarterbacks in 1987, both Pro Bowl caliber quarterbacks that could start for a lot of NFL teams in Jay Schroeder and Doug Williams. They lost their starting tailback in George Rogers, another Pro Bowl running back. They had injuries on the offensive line and had to bring in new starters like Raleigh McKenzie. Gibbs was constantly having to change his lineups around on offense and defense.
The 87 Redskins perfectly exemplify the Joe Gibbs era in Washington. As a club that just had great depth everywhere and perhaps the best depth in the NFL. They didn't have the most talent in the NFL, but they arguably had the best players and the most good players and talent in the NFL. And when the strike was over and had they had all of their key players back, that is when the NFL got to see how really good of a team that they had. I believe especially on defense where they dominated the NFC Playoffs and Super Bowl. And on offense that could pile up points in the air and dominate on the ground.
When I think of great all around tight ends, I think of guys who can block first, which is the most important job of a tight end. Has good hands and catches the ball well and catches the ball well in traffic. And can run with the ball, doesn't have to be fast, but who gets open and can gain yards after the catch. Mark Bavaro had all of those skills and was great in all of those areas and then some perhaps to the point that when he was healthy, you are not only talking about the greatest tight end of the 1980s, but perhaps the greatest tight end of all-time when he was healthy and in his prime.
Today's tight ends are almost thought and only thought of as big receivers who are supposed to catch the ball, especially on third down and in the red zone. "Yeah and if he can block, great, but we are going to throw the ball forty times a game anyway. And we may just run the ball to give our quarterback's arm a little break". But there's a really important reason why the tight end lines up next to the offensive tackle. Because the TE is an extension of the offensive line and his job is to block and help the OT with double teams.
If your tight end doesn't block, you are not going to run the ball very well. Because now the defense will always have a linebacker free on the outside to stuff the run or rush the QB. And the smart defenses will lineup their best blitzing outside linebacker against the weak pass catching TE. To take advantage of that matchup, but if you do that against Mark Bavaro, you are now risking your best blitzer getting stuffed at the line of scrimmage. Because Mark Bavaro was like another offensive tackle with his ability to block.
Mark Bavaro was perfect for New York City and North Jersey and Bill Parcells. Tough blue-collar Italian guy like Bill Parcells who fit in so perfectly with that community. Not just Italian-Americans in that area, but the broader working class of the New York area. And had it not of been for his leg injuries, we are not only talking about a first ballot Hall of Famer who would already be in the Hall of Fame right now, but perhaps the greatest all around tight end of all-time. That is how great Mark Bavaro was.
About being lazy, who hasn’t been lazy unless you are a workaholic, or a drug addict addicted to speed or something. We’ve all woken up in the morning feeling like we shouldn’t of woken up. “Why did I wake up feeling like this” and go back to bed and perhaps are real late for work. I know that has happened to me more times than I care to admit to. Actually I don’t even care to admit to that, so consider that a gift. And don’t bother trying to return that gift, because you’ll probably be charged for returning it, because nobody is going to want it.
Interesting to hear George Carlin say that he’s in good health except for his heart attack. Which is like a football team saying that al they did was lose fifteen games, but they did manage to win one. “Hey we aren’t completely imperfect, just mostly”. You get a heart attack and you’re one step away from death. And if that is not motivation enough to at least perhaps get you to change your lifestyle, nothing will. Maybe a suicidal person who is also an idiot at the same time and perhaps that is why they are suicidal and is so stupid, they even fail at killing themselves, wouldn’t understand that.
I liked Johnny Carson’s dumb question to George asking him ” did your heart attack scare you”? Well again unless you’re suicidal or have balls harder than concrete of course that would scare you! I mean what is the next question, “how did the heart attack make you feel?” Well again not to make this whole post about suicide, but of course you’ll feel scared about that and perhaps think you are going to die. If you’re suicidal you might be thinking “come on God, I’m ready to go!”.
Bad names for kids. Not a problem I have to worry about considering I don’t have kids and perhaps will never have kids (knock on wood). But for all you caring parents out there who care about your kids health and reputation and success in life, do your kids justice and give them a responsible name. Don’t name your son Leslie, unless you are want them to be gay or something. Give your son a real guys kind of name that commands respect. So you don’t have to worry about him getting beat up, or losing his lunch money. Same thing with girls, give them a real feminine, but don’t name them Buffy or something where they have to worry about bimbo jokes.
As far as dumb people, who would we have to make fun of if America was a country that mostly produced perfect people and other genius’? That is where humor comes from, from watching people screw up and a big part of being human is screwing up and experiencing things before we know what they mean, or how to react to them. That is how we learn in life. So eliminate the stupid people and you’ll see unemployment sore in America especially in Los Angeles with all the out-of-work comedians and other entertainers. Just a little look at life from a human-being.
I’m going to try to write this post without sounding like too much of an asshole, but no promises. Because I truly love, admire and have the utmost respect for The Great Elizabeth Taylor and that is exactly what she was. At least when she was healthy and sober and not starving poor countries because she couldn’t control her appetite. Or denying the rest of the world alcohol because she would drink anything with a smell of alcohol in it. Like I said, no promises.
But again when she was on her game, you were talking about a beautiful baby-face adorable brunette, no matter how old she was, who was funny enough to go toe-to-toe with the great comedian, The King of Late Night Johnny Carson. As you see in this video and when you lived the life that she did, which was exactly what she did, lived her life and didn’t just be alive trying to please others with how she lived, but she lived her life with many ups and downs because she took a lot of risks that came though for her and also backfired. And when you live like that, you leave yourself open for satire.
The only way Liz Taylor was the stereotypical actress, was with her personal life. That being such a great beautiful, adorable and funny actress I guess didn’t bring enough fame for her and how she lived her personal life if anything made her just as famous. Marrying so many men, that there were lonely women in Los Angeles, gorgeous sexy lonely women in Los Angles. And in a lot of cases married and why was that, because all of those men were with Liz at least at one time or the other.
Sober healthy Liz, I don’t think there is a better actress as far as delivery, personality, intelligence, sense of humor, wit, the woman had it all and is better than anyone else. And then you add the facts that she was again a beautiful sexy baby-face brunette who was about as sexy as any great biker or rocker chick you may ever see, as you see in this video in her late fifties and she was the definition of total package when it came to actress’s. But when she wasn’t sober and unhealthy, meaning overweight if not obese, you’re talking about a punching bag for comedians. What a life. Source:The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson
This is going to sound like an obvious statement to anyone lets say under thirty-five or so, but Joan Rivers is right. Wisdom does come with age and for people to get wisdom they simply have to be around and experience things and learn from those experiences to achieve it. Which is why I get so tired of hearing Y Generation people always putting down things simply because they have been around for a while or as old as yesterday. They are the everything is now generation and to hell with anything that happened when they were kids or hadn’t been born yet.
Now that’s it, I’m tired of being serious and if I go down that road too much longer, I’m going to fall asleep at the computer, but I just wanted to get that off my chest. As far as skinny women vs. curvy women. For you football fans out there, that would be like asking me which team would I rather have, the 17-0 1972 Miami Dolphins, or the 0-14 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Do you want to win, or lose, you want a women with a body or someone who gets knocked to the ground every time there’s a light breeze in the air.
As far as bimbos. I believe bimbos actually serve as a useful purpose. Not that I would want a whole football team of bimbos. Not even the cheerleading squad, because you would still need cheerleaders who are smart enough to do the cheers. Cheerleading is not just sexy curvy women swinging their legs in the air. It requires some degree of intelligence like being able to follow instructions. But what bimbos do, is give smart people, people to make fun of. And parents to tell their kids, “hey Sally, that is not what you want to be in life. Get your education and everything else”.
As far as guys checking out women. There’s a way to do it like a man and the way to do it like you’ve been locked up solitary confinement for twenty-years straight and never saw a women in person, or on TV, or heard one on the radio, or saw one in the magazine, no females came to visit you in the joint, even your mother. All of the prison staff are men and they are all straight by the way. The guy just getting out of long-term isolation drops the quarter in front of the sexy women to get her to lean over and pick it up. The man enjoys the view and what it in front of him and doesn’t do anything obvious at least before they exchange eye-contact and then they take it from there.
Joan Rivers was great on Johnny Carson and one thing I loved about her routine, was that she was real and didn’t do anything that wasn’t Joan. She knew who she was and where she came from and was damn proud of that and the fact that she also had a great sense of humor and the ability to communicate in a hysterical way about what she saw in life and learned from it and express the weakness’ of others in a humorous constructive way, just makes her that much better. She wasn’t a bitch, but some who critiqued in a way that could make people better and teach others.
"Johnny Carson teaches card tricks to Angie Dickinson and tells her he gives lessons in the home, on the Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. Airdate Oct 29, 1981. Watch the full episode at:The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson."
Angie Dickinson still as cute as a baby in her late forties talking to Johnny Carson in 1981 on The Tonight Show. Talking about cards and stunts. Cards is obviously a very popular activity in Los Angeles and that just didn’t start with poker revolution or whatever from 10-15 years ago in Hollywood. But that has been around probably as long as Los Angeles has been the entertainment capital of America. Going back to the 1930s or even longer. Which is one reason why entertainers love going to Las Vegas.
And Johnny Carson of course was well-known for doing card tricks. Which he did quite frequently on The Tonight Show that was one his most popular skits on the show. So they obviously had some things to talk about besides: “Hey Angie, how have you been able to stay so adorable and gorgeous as the same time all of these years?” With Angie answering: “Well, I eat right, work out, get my sleep. And besides, I’m filthy rich, even after the divorces. And I can afford plastic surgery whenever I feel I need it”. Actually, she was naturally, baby-face, adorable and gorgeous. But the card routine saved them from some cheesy dialogue.
