There is no race discussion. Let's not overreact. I don't have time for people not smart enough to understand the context of the question.

 

Apologies if there was any offense taken with my comments. Didn't think they needed an explanation being as they were quite innocuous.

In other words...in basketball, people compared Larry to Magic and Jordan and who was greater. They didn't compare Larry to some white dude from the 50's.

See thats the problem. I wouldn't compare Brian Urlacher to only other white players. I would actually compare him to other Tampa 2 MLB's.

 

Like Derrick Brooks.

Sure, you could do that. But that wouldn't be my initial thought. People are blowing this whole thing out of epic proportions. I'm not saying you can't compare racial backgrounds between players, but the normal reaction to a question of "who does this guy remind you of" would be to first think of someone that share those same backgrounds.

In other words...in basketball, people compared Larry to Magic and Jordan and who was greater. They didn't compare Larry to some white dude from the 50's.

A lot of people now are drawing comparisons from Dirk Nowitzki to Larry Bird. Why do you think that is?

Because Dan Bazuin is white, why would I associate a black guy to Dan Bazuin?

 

 

 

 

Mercilus lead the FBS in total sacks and forced fumbles in a much tougher conference than the Mountain West. You don't just wake up one day and record 16 sacks and force 9 fumbles because you're lucky.

 

 

 

 

 

Mercilus is a 3 year player, McClellin played 4 years and recorded a grand total of 2 more sacks. Who's to say Mercilus wouldn't have put up another double digit sack total if he had stayed another year?

 

 

 

Hmm Lets compare the two conferences for a second.

 

Big Ten

 

University of Michigan

Northwestern University

University of Minnesota

The Ohio State University

Purdue University

University of Wisconsin

The Pennsylvania State University

University of Illinois

Indiana University

Michigan State University

University of Nebraska

University of Iowa

 

Mountain West Conference

 

United States Air Force Academy

Boise State University

Colorado State University

University of Nevada

University of New Mexico

San Diego State University

Texas Christian University

University of Wyoming

 

Remind me again who plays in the tougher conference? It's not like Whitney only beat up on bad teams, he produced against both. 7 of his 16 sacks came from Ohio State, Penn State, Arizona State, Michigan, and Wisconsin. That's almost half his sack total from the year coming against good competition. 2 were in the BCS.

 

McClellin didn't play but a small handful of quality teams in the past two seasons. Keep in mind how many games ended in blowouts which puts any pass rusher in the most ideal situation possible.

Jarred Allen went to Idaho, so I guess we should rule him out as being able to rush the passer. Hey I am in your corner that I would have prefered a different DE, but he is not a reach, or low viewed 5th round pick as you have stated.

A lot of people now are drawing comparisons from Dirk Nowitzki to Larry Bird. Why do you think that is?

They play an incredibly similar game. Tall long guys who can shoot. Probably two of the best tall shooters in NBA history.

They play an incredibly similar game. Tall long guys who can shoot. Probably two of the best tall shooters in NBA history.

AND......?

 

Come on now, lets not play dumb. If that was the reason, why aren't experts comparing Larry to Kevin Durant? He's a long guy that can shoot and can make plays, plays the same position, shoots FT's at a high %. We are pretending like this sort of thing doesn't happen but it does all the time, in the sport's world.

AND......?

 

Come on now, lets not play dumb. If that was the reason, why aren't experts comparing Larry to Kevin Durant? He's a long guy that can shoot and can make plays, plays the same position, shoots FT's at a high %. We are pretending like this sort of thing doesn't happen but it does all the time, in the sport's world.

You could make that argument. I'd disagree with it. Larry was a significantly better shooter. Durant is the better scorer. Dirk and Larry are the two best shooting bigs in NBA history.

You could make that argument. I'd disagree with it. Larry was a significantly better shooter. Durant is the better scorer. Dirk and Larry are the two best shooting bigs in NBA history.

The fact of the matter is, when comparing against other players, ethnicity is the first thing people take note of, and whether they like it or not it immediately brings to mind other players of similar background. That is just how the brain works with association and that's all I've been trying to say. Now if people want to bring up this nonsense about racism or what have you, I'd tell them to go kick rocks and that they have no idea what the definition of that word means.

The fact of the matter is, when comparing against other players, ethnicity is the first thing people take note of, and whether they like it or not it immediately brings to mind other players of similar background. That is just how the brain works with association and that's all I've been trying to say. Now if people want to bring up this nonsense about racism or what have you, I'd tell them to go kick rocks and that they have no idea what the definition of that word means.

 

 

Disagree. Thats not the first thing all people think of. Maybe you, not me.

 

No one said it was racist. We said that race/color has no validity in the discussion.

The fact of the matter is, when comparing against other players, ethnicity is the first thing people take note of, and whether they like it or not it immediately brings to mind other white players of similar background. That is just how the brain works with association and that's all I've been trying to say. Now if people want to bring up this nonsense about racism or what have you, I'd tell them to go kick rocks and that they have no idea what the definition of that word means.

 

Well it is not the first thing that comes to mind with me. I compare athletes and their skill sets and quite frankly could give a damn about skin color, race, religion, etc... I have no problems comparing Urlacher to Ray Lewis based solely on skill sets and history of production on the field.

 

The fact that this type of stereotyping exists does not make it right. One of the first things another poster said as to why he did not like the selection was a mention of how he was white, as if it mattered? I find it troublesome some people think this way.

Well it is not the first thing that comes to mind with me. I compare athletes and their skill sets and quite frankly could give a damn about skin color, race, religion, etc... I have no problems comparing Urlacher to Ray Lewis based solely on skill sets and history of production on the field.

 

The fact that this type of stereotyping exists does not make it right. One of the first things another poster said as to why he did not like the selection was a mention of how he was white, as if it mattered? I find it troublesome some people think this way.

 

 

 

This!!!!!

I'm not saying you can't compare racial backgrounds between players, but the normal reaction to a question of "who does this guy remind you of" would be to first think of someone that share those same backgrounds.

 

AMAZING that the FIRST thing you;d think of is race.

 

and this too

 

"The fact of the matter is, when comparing against other players, ethnicity is the first thing people take note of, and whether they like it or not it immediately brings to mind other players of similar background. That is just how the brain works with association and that's all I've been trying to say."

 

That's how YOUR brain works. YOU are a racist. And that makes you an ignorant fool.

 

Now back to the draft please.

AMAZING that the FIRST thing you;d think of is race.

 

and this too

 

"The fact of the matter is, when comparing against other players, ethnicity is the first thing people take note of, and whether they like it or not it immediately brings to mind other players of similar background. That is just how the brain works with association and that's all I've been trying to say."

 

That's how YOUR brain works. YOU are a racist. And that makes you an ignorant fool.

 

Now back to the draft please.

 

Oh for the love of god

 

First of all, unless your brain is wired differently than a normal human being, it's physically impossible to avoid noticing the most evident physical trait on the human body. Using race to determine whether or not someone is capable of playing football is dumb and meaningless. If that's what you think I'm doing, then I suggest enrolling to the reading comprehension school for the dumb.

 

Secondly, you clearly have no idea what racism is. The definition of racism comes from carrying out acts of hatred and bigotry due to belief in superiority of one race over another. Clearly that's exactly what I've done.

 

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming..

One of the first things another poster said as to why he did not like the selection was a mention of how he was white, as if it mattered? I find it troublesome some people think this way.

 

But you have to admit, this kid is super duper golly gee wilackers white!

 

He's just a good ol' farm boy from small town America. It'll be interesting to see him grow as a player in the NFL. I just hope the big city doesn't eat him alive.

Oh for the love of god

 

First of all, unless your brain is wired differently than a normal human being, it's physically impossible to avoid noticing the most evident physical trait on the human body. Using race to determine whether or not someone is capable of playing football is dumb and meaningless. If that's what you think I'm doing, then I suggest enrolling to the reading comprehension school for the dumb.

 

Secondly, you clearly have no idea what racism is. The definition of racism comes from carrying out acts of hatred and bigotry due to belief in superiority of one race over another. Clearly that's exactly what I've done.

 

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming..

This is getting out of whack and I understand what you meant when you were comparing him to Bazium(dumb comparison by the way) when you said he was white. but anytime you mention color in any type of comparison you will get flack. Maybe you should give a little more thought to what you say before blogging it, then you wont have to try to defend yourself all the time by telling other people how stupid there are when you were the one that stated it.

Oh for the love of god

 

First of all, unless your brain is wired differently than a normal human being, it's physically impossible to avoid noticing the most evident physical trait on the human body. Using race to determine whether or not someone is capable of playing football is dumb and meaningless. If that's what you think I'm doing, then I suggest enrolling to the reading comprehension school for the dumb.

 

Secondly, you clearly have no idea what racism is. The definition of racism comes from carrying out acts of hatred and bigotry due to belief in superiority of one race over another. Clearly that's exactly what I've done.

 

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming..

 

Throwing in my two cents...

 

I completely understand what you're saying, and it is universally one of the very first things people see (maybe also height, sex, big tits on a chick), and it's an obvious first trait indicator. To ignore the obvious comparisons people make between one white player and another, or one black player and another, is quite ignorant. That may not be everyone, but a vast majority of sports-writers, at the very least- do it. One may not agree with it, and would compare Urlacher with Derrick Brooks first before others, but it's much more common for people to compare white-white, black-black, etc.-etc. Bill Simmons has written about this more than one time for ESPN. Saying someone won't be good, however, because they're a white X or a black Y is very misguided; measurables make much more sense.

What if Emery is smarter than you think?

Indeed, he's shorting millions of shares of Bears' stock as we speak. Crazy like a fox.

Throwing in my two cents...

 

I completely understand what you're saying, and it is universally one of the very first things people see (maybe also height, sex, big tits on a chick), and it's an obvious first trait indicator. To ignore the obvious comparisons people make between one white player and another, or one black player and another, is quite ignorant. That may not be everyone, but a vast majority of sports-writers, at the very least- do it. One may not agree with it, and would compare Urlacher with Derrick Brooks first before others, but it's much more common for people to compare white-white, black-black, etc.-etc. Bill Simmons has written about this more than one time for ESPN. Saying someone won't be good, however, because they're a white X or a black Y is very misguided; measurables make much more sense.

Appreciate the thoughts. At least there's one person that understands. I was beginning to feel like I was living in an alternate reality for a moment where people lived under rocks and the simple concepts about human life never existed or couldn't be grasped.. The Twilight music started up and everything, I swear.

Personally I believe this subject has gone all to long. Get off it please and lets get back to football. Being a Minority myself I totally believe this is the most irrelevant posting on this forum in longtime.

Big Ten

 

University of Michigan

Northwestern University

University of Minnesota

The Ohio State University

Purdue University

University of Wisconsin

The Pennsylvania State University

University of Illinois

Indiana University

Michigan State University

University of Nebraska

University of Iowa

 

Mountain West Conference

 

United States Air Force Academy

Boise State University

Colorado State University

University of Nevada

University of New Mexico

San Diego State University

Texas Christian University

University of Wyoming

 

Remind me again who plays in the tougher conference? It's not like Whitney only beat up on bad teams, he produced against both. 7 of his 16 sacks came from Ohio State, Penn State, Arizona State, Michigan, and Wisconsin. That's almost half his sack total from the year coming against good competition. 2 were in the BCS.

 

McClellin didn't play but a small handful of quality teams in the past two seasons. Keep in mind how many games ended in blowouts which puts any pass rusher in the most ideal situation possible.

 

 

Didn't Urlacher play at New Mexico?

Didn't Urlacher play at New Mexico?

 

Do you really think you can compare this guy to Urlacher????? A 6'4 safety who has a neck bigger than your thigh that runs like a deer.

 

Urlacher was a one in a million.

Do you really think you can compare this guy to Urlacher????? A 6'4 safety who has a neck bigger than your thigh that runs like a deer.

 

Urlacher was a one in a million.

 

Uhm, actually I was making the comparison to the opinion of schools that were regarded as stronger (Big 10) vs those that weren't (MWC?). Of those in the "weaker" conference, New Mexico was listed (as was Boise State). Urlacher played at New Mexico and regardless of how "inferior" that conference was/is, he has had a pretty good career.

 

As far as comparing McClellin to Urlacher specifically. I'll reserve judgement for now. Just like in 2000 if I would have compared Urlacher to either Singletary or Butkus, I would have been considered crazy.

 

Do you really think you can compare this guy to Urlacher????? A 6'4 safety who has a neck bigger than your thigh that runs like a deer.

 

Urlacher was a one in a million.

Yes you can. When Urlacher came out no one knew what position he would play at this level because he too played all over the field as New Mexico's Rover. The 40 time is about a tenth of a second different at 10 pounds heavier I'll take that as similar.That idiot Blache insisted on playing Urlacher at SLB when he basically played mostly in space in college.

2 of Emery's drafts in KC were rated by PFW as the best drafts in the league (this is after seeing guys play). In fact, when you look at what Emery has drafted in the secondary, one thing he clearly appears to know is corners. He's also drafted some other very good defensive players and some quality offensive guys. He's clearly been an incredibly successful scout so I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt.

 

I'd like to knock the Bears for taking another safety but you can't blame Emery for the fact that the past umpteen safeties the Bears drafted busted or did't pan out (hopefully Wright and Conte do).

Uhm, actually I was making the comparison to the opinion of schools that were regarded as stronger (Big 10) vs those that weren't (MWC?). Of those in the "weaker" conference, New Mexico was listed (as was Boise State). Urlacher played at New Mexico and regardless of how "inferior" that conference was/is, he has had a pretty good career.

 

As far as comparing McClellin to Urlacher specifically. I'll reserve judgement for now. Just like in 2000 if I would have compared Urlacher to either Singletary or Butkus, I would have been considered crazy.

 

What i am saying is using Urlacher to disregard playing in a weaker conf really is not a good comparison. Urlacher was a freak of nature at safety with his size and speed. Is Shea a freak of nature??? No he is not and he played in a weaker conf.

 

The amount of guys that become stars out of weaker conf in the NFL is no where near the amount of stars coming out of the tougher ones. It is a fact. Jerry Rice and Walter Payton both came out of smaller schools so does it happen yes but i will say that playing DE is a whole lot different going up against Big Ten, SEC, BIG 12 and Pac 12 type OT's than Mountain West or Big East.

 

Personal Experience I started out at CMU in the MAC conference and ended up playing in Division IAA at ISU and the difference between the OT's that I went up against at ISU from CMU was insane. Im sure the same goes for the MAC and Big ten.

 

If you are a freak like Urlacher I dont care where you played.