Rational Thought Has No Place Here

The monkey has one up on me.

Some of you have taken issue with the fact that I have expressed my deep dislike of Eric Mangini, Chad Pennington and the Jets, claiming that I have no concrete reasons to back it up. You're right. You're completely right.

But here's my question: Do I need a reason? Is it not okay for me not to like them just because...I don't like them?

Aside from the fact that the Jets are playing the Pats on Sunday and we know where my loyalties lie, don't we do this before most big games? Don't we villanize the opposition and come up with all sorts of reasons - concrete or not - to root against them? I don't know about you, but half the fun of watching sports for me is coming up with ridiculous scenarios involving players, coaches and the like. So maybe Chad Pennington's father didn't really buy him a yacht he christened "Quattro." The fact that I want to believe he did makes it true for me. I'm pretty sure that aside from the obnoxious tendency to blame his offensive line, Peyton Manning is probably not a horrible guy either. But I like to pretend he wears that helmet in "defeat position" on a daily basis. Much the way I choose to believe that Alex Rodriguez kicks puppies in his spare time.

We're sports fans, we don't always make sense. I shall leave the "respecting" of everyone to Rodney Harrison.

Likewise, I'm fully aware of Belichick's history with the Jets and Parcells and all that business. But that doesn't mean that I'm not going to defend Old Bill because he's MY coach now and I think he's brilliant. If I were on the other side of the story, I'd likely think differently. But I'm not. Again, it might not be rational, but there it is. I have Steelers fan friends who will go blue in the face defending Ben Roethlisberger, even when they know they sound insane. But that's part of being a fan. You stick up for your guys.

There are exceptions, of course. I will never cheer for Julio Lugo, for instance. But for the most part, my guys are my guys.

Obviously, it does not make you a better or worse fan to feel one way or the other about things. If you can look at Chad Pennington and respect what he's gone through and appreciate him as a player and not want to flick his ears, well, good for you. I mostly just want to ask him where he got his snappy turtleneck.

But that's me. And that's how I watch sports. The primary reason this blog exists is because I found a place where I can come and spout off about my completely insane reactions to things that happen on the field. And to speculate about things that happen off it. I mean, I address players directly. I yell at them, often in capital letters. Italics if they really have it coming, Matt Clement. My friends and I invented Imaginary Baseball World. Clearly, we are not dealing with a full deck here.

But isn't that the fun of it?