Back in the day, yours truly watched Braylon Edwards in action several times while sitting in the cramped, not so comfortable seating accommodations at the "Big House" in Ann Arbor. And I never did get it.
Why was this guy so highly touted as a wide receiver? Other guys seemed faster, ran crisper routes, and blocked better for their fellow players to help them out, but it was always about Braylon. Yes, occasionally he would make a spectacular catch. Evidently, one great catch cancelled out a lot of dropped balls, and even more lack of hustle. The University of Michigan hype machine was in overdrive promoting him, and obviously it worked, because he was not only named the top college receiver in the nation, amongst other awards, but was taken as the third overall draft pick in 2005 by the Cleveland Browns. Call it a silver spoon, a sense of entitlement, or whatever you want, but it was like this guy was anointed to be the next "great one". The boy that would be king. And I still didn't get it.
A couple years later, he even made the Pro Bowl, which amazes me to this day. Then again, SOMEBODY from Cleveland had to go.
He wasn't satisfied there -- after all, Cleveland is no place for royalty, much less publicity. Too big a fish in too small a pond, but I was still thinking carp -- Edwards went to the Big Apple to play for the New York Jets. It took him all of two years to wear out his welcome there, and those pesky scrapes with the law along the way probably didn't help out his cause either.
Off to San Francisco, where Edwards somehow got a $3.5 million one year deal from the 49ers. Since shortly after the start of the season, Edwards blamed his lack of production on nagging injuries. New head coach Jim Harbaugh attributed it to not only his performance in games, but how he practiced. Believe who you will.
The 49ers receiving corps has been decimated. One guy's nursing a bum ankle, another has an unknown head injury, one recently had his jaw broken, and still another had surgery on a broken leg suffered in October, that put him out for the year. It appears they're desperate for receivers. ANY receivers. Maybe undrafted free agents. Maybe guys off the street. SOMEBODY.
But evidently not desperate enough to keep Braylon Edwards around. Harbaugh, a former Michigan Wolverine himself, of all things, unceremoniously dumped him.
That should tell you something.
I dunno. Maybe I'm reading this all wrong. Then again, maybe I had it right in the first place, all those years ago in Ann Arbor.
On a related note -- you've heard about how they keep increasing seating capacity at Michigan Stadium to maintain their status as being able to accommodate the most fans? I don't believe that either. My theory is they repainted the same metal pews, and merely moved the seat numbers closer together. Presto, larger capacity. If you don't believe that -- go there, and good luck if you have a large person on both sides of you. Though you will be counted as being in attendance, poof, your seat just disappeared. Using a laptop can be a good thing. BEING a laptop isn't so much fun.
Yes. 107,000 seats which generate hundreds of millions of dollars every year, but customers still have to walk outside to get food, drink, or use the restrooms. Something is wrong with that.
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