Derek Anderson Needs Lesson In NFL Professionalism

There is not one job on this planet that is perfect. From CEO's of multi-billion dollar companies to the guy who takes your trash, every single job has some flaw in it that you just do not appreciate. When you go after the job in the interview process, the last thing you ever think about is the small things that will pester you doing the job. It could be anything from extra paperwork to sitting in the cubicle next to the guy who loves his facebook page more than his TPS report. We all have parts of our jobs that we simply hate, and I am no exception.

Yesterday when Cardinals Quarterback Derek Anderson took the podium after his teams' 27-6 defeat to division rival San Francisco, the aspect of being a member of the media that I hate arose again. Being a member of the media who covers and discusses stories, we all hate being part of them.

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Dear Chicago Bears........

Dear Chicago Bears,

You may or may not know me but I would like to introduce myself. My name is the doubter, the non believer or what some people would call a hater. I am the Bears fan that you have come to grow up and love because no matter what the outcome of the regular season, we are always around demanding the impossible. We expect greatness from mediocre talent and when we expect the least and results are good, we always find a reason to continue our own personal negativity.

I am writing you this letter because yesterday you showed the doubters/non-believers/haters and myself something we have not seen yet this season. You played an outstanding game from start to finish against what most (if not all) of us considered one of the best teams in the NFC. Although the NFC this season does not have that dominant team that all the experts pick each week to win, yesterday you proved yourselves to be in the argument. Here is why.

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Three Things For Chicago Sports Fans To Be Thankful For.....

The holiday season is upon us once again. Sharing good times and good spirits with friends and family reflecting on the year gone past and being thankful for the fruit of our labor and the joys in our lives. We dine on massive amounts of saccharin while drowning ourselves in the cheapest wine known to man all the while being entertained by Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys football games. Some of us get into heated arguments about past troubles or politics and some of us take time out to feed the underprivileged. In the end Thanksgiving is a time where all the troubles of the real world go away and we think about what we are truly thankful for in life.

Since this is a sports blog on ChicagoNow and working in the sports radio business, I feel compelled to express what I am thankful for in our own personal world of sports. In fact The Sporting News this past October named the city of Chicago as the best sports city using factors including each teams' regular-season won-lost records, postseason appearances, bowl appearances and tournament bids, championships, applicable power ratings, attendance and "fan fervor.

So while you tip back that fourth glass of Merlot, here are the top three things Chicago sport fans should be thankful for.

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Michael Vick's Latest Triumphs Still Fall On Deaf Ears......

With the arrival of the Philadelphia Eagles in town this Sunday we also welcome in the most controversial figure of the NFL to the windy city in Michael Vick. Not more than three years since Vick was sentenced to 23 months in federal prison on illegal dog fighting charges, the talk surrounding Vick is less about animal cruelty and more about possibly winning the NFL Most Valuable Player award. This rebirth of a career that was marked by flashes of brilliance at one time has turned into what some would consider the best story going in the NFL. Although Kurt Warner's story line had him transform from supermarket clerk to Super Bowl Champion, Vick's chapters are filled with triumph, tragedy and second chances.

Michael Vick is a true American story.

A college superstar drafted number one overall in 2001. Big money and fame got caught up with the wrong people and made some bad decisions in life. Got caught and paid his dues to society but was allowed a second chance. As we stand right now, Michael Vick has turned his personal shortcomings into Hollywood type of material and yet some people are unwilling to forgive him for his past actions. I cannot understand how some are unwilling to forgive when a man admitted his mistakes and paid his dues all while giving up more than 98% of this country will ever have.

Why cannot some people look past Vick's faults and embrace the next chapter of his life?

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Roger Goodell's Waiting Game With Brett Favre Must End Now....

Yesterday the Green Bay Packers did so much more than keep pace with the Chicago Bears in the race to win the NFC North. Aaron Rodgers had a his first ever four touchdown game and his one time mentor Brett Favre was left in the post game contemplating what his next action should be. In fact Favre went on to say he plans to "re-evaluate" the situation he is in this week, what that means exactly we do not know. What the Packers did yesterday with their 31-3 victory on the road against their biggest rival was allow Roger Goodell to use that "iron fist" he cherishes so much.

With tidbits of the NFL's investigation into what exactly happened between Favre and then Jets' employee (and former host of The Daily Line on Versus) Jenn Sterger coming out little by little, there has never been a more opportune time to lay down the law against the greatest quarterback in NFL history. The question is will Goodell step up and treat the future hall of famer like any other NFL employee?

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Blackhawks And Fans Face New Realities/Challenges Together....

The party is officially over!

Welcome to a new season of Chicago Blackhawks hockey and welcome to being the defending Stanley Cup Champions. While the city may have been spoiled with the Chicago Bulls two three-peats, defending a Stanley Cup could be the hardest trophy to defend in professional sports. It has been 12 years since the last back to back Stanley Cup Champion (Detroit 1997-1998), each of the remaining three major sports have had at least one back to back champion in their respective sport since then. The 82 game schedule of a NHL season is much more difficult than any other sport as far as the physicality of it and the dealing with the mental portion of playing in towns where the home team barely has a home ice advantage with small crowds and little fanfare. Face it, the NHL is still the NHL even with one of the Original Six teams winning Lord Stanley's Cup.

Although the memories of the 2009-2010 Chicago Blackhawks are still implanted in our brains from the final goal by Patrick Kane to the parade/party that lasted all summer long, are the expectations we put on this re-worked/re-done Blackhawks roster too high? Do the Chicago Blackhawks themselves need a reality check, or do we?

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Should Allegations Sway Votes For Heisman Hopeful Cam Newton??

Living in Chicago we almost segment ourselves into only being interested in teams that play in the city of Chicago itself. By doing so we ignore the larger stories of the sports that do not come our way by means of the Bears, Bulls, Cubs, Blackhawks and White Sox. If NASCAR has an event in town, it's held in Joliet instead of blocking off streets downtown like they do the Chicago Marathon. If the PGA rolls through, it only matters if Tiger Woods is playing but it's held Medinah.

One thing I've found interesting about this city in the eight years working sports radio is that for some odd reason college football has not caught on with sports fans in town like the Bears have for decades. You would figure the same sport that Walter Payton played would have more interest in a football city like Chicago where each play is likely to be scrutinized. However even with the amount of "college bars" around town it is very hard to get people in town interested in college football. So here is a test Chicago.

What if I told you the biggest name in college football could be ineligible? What if the top Heisman Trophy candidate took money to play there, would you care? If you had a vote for the Heisman Trophy, would you still vote for him?


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Bears Survive In Lackluster Performance Vs. Winless Buffalo.....

Who knew a trip to Canada could be so much fun? Right?

For the announced crowd of 50,746 who packed into the Rogers Centre in downtown Toronto to see the Chicago Bears and Buffalo Bills play the game was so exciting that you have to look ten stories down on the sports section of TorontoSun.com to see what happened. A match up of the for sure worst team in the NFL and one of the worst 4-3 teams in the league is not exactly prime time viewing. Interest was so bad for this game that walk up sales for tickets were reportedly being sold below face value. People in Toronto care more about their Maple Leafs, Argonauts, and how the Raptors will move on from Chris Bosh over any NFL game. In Chicago however the Bears 22-19 victory yesterday trumps the Blackhawks losing their second game to the worst team in the Western Conference, the Edmonton Oilers. By the way if you want to read how the Blackhawks blew a lead in the third period to the Bulin Wall led Oilers, story number seven of the sports page on TorontoSun.com

The Bears did win. The Bears are 5-3 and kept up with the first place Green Bay Packers who destroyed the Dallas Cowboys Sunday night. Even with a Bears win coming off the bye week, there is no way possible that this win over the worst team in the NFL is a win to celebrate by any means.

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Brian Kelly Should Not Take All The Blame For Declan Sullivan Accident...

By now we all know about the extremely devastating passing of 20 year old Notre Dame student Declan Sullivan. It has been over two weeks now since this tragedy and still the investigation continues to find out exact details of what happened on that day and who did/said what and so on. So far no one has been disciplined, no one has been fired, no one has been awarded any settlement (that we know of) and yet it seems like this truly unique incident has faded away in the scope of sports in this country.

Chicago is not a college football town by any means, but this story has made its way around the country and it seems everyone wants to put blame on someone for this tragic incident. I will say that I cannot remember another incident like this in any sport where a someone is killed filming a practice in a scissor lift during a truly unique weather pattern. Meteorologists stated that this storm was the biggest storm to blast over the Chicagoland area with winds exceeding 60+ MPH and record low barometric pressures, definitely an uncommon weather pattern for the midwest and surely a red flag for anyone who works outside.

For the past two weeks I have noticed people feel the need to put blame on someone for Sullivan's untimely passing, but without all the facts how can you blame anyone? I truly believe we will never know the real story about what happened on that day, but if you feel the need to put blame on someone for this you have to include Sullivan himself.

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POLL: I Need A New Baseball Team To Root For....Choose My Team!

The word change has been used almost ad nauseam in the past five years. From political parties using the word as a basis of a campaign to self help books marketing the word as new beginnings. Change is defined as to become altered, modified or different....and I feel I have come to an impasse where I believe change is not only necessary but needed.

I need a new baseball team to root for.

Ok! So it is not the most serious change in someone's life, but for me it is somewhat important since I have grown up following/supporting one baseball team my entire lifetime. If you have been a frequent visitor to The Rock Report on ChicagoNow.com (thank you first of all), you know that I have been critical of the Chicago White Sox organization over the past year and a half. I do not support the direction of the organization and some people close to the organization feel I am a little too critical without knowing the whole story.

Whatever you may feel, this morning I had an epiphany. After almost two years of bring frustrated with my baseball team, I have come to the decision that I will change my allegiances to another baseball team until the day where Guillen Inc. is no longer managing the White Sox clubhouse. I do not feel I need to list the reasons why because for far too long the same issues have been present and are magnified even further with each passing baseball season.

However I do have on problem.....

Which team should I choose?

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