The End of an Era

Well, as they say, all good things must come to an end. The times they are a-change-in.' A stitch in time saves nine. Jk I don't really even know what that last one means, but I figured while I was throwin' out random cliches...

Anyways, the transition of the world from the clutches of JoBro love to the onset of Beiber Fever should have been a major harbinger of change to come. I mean, does anybody watch Jonas: LA? Didn't think soooo. But enough about heartthrobs with gender-ambiguous hairdos. What I'm really talking about is the change happening for two of my favorite, shall we say, "stately elders" of the sporting world. They would of course be Brett Favre and Mike Modano. And while this is completely irrelevant to their stories or situations, may I say I think both of these 40 year old men are smokin' hott- the Clooney's of the sporting world! Yeah, I said it.

I'll start with Modano. This man has been the face of Dallas Stars hockey. Literally. He has been a member of the team since before the franchise even moved to Dallas, and has been with the franchise for more than 20 years! He was even in the Mighty Ducks movie! That makes him big time in my book.

Now, I haven't been an avid hockey watcher since the strike (before that hockey was on in my house 3+ nights a week), so I can't speak to Modano's level of play as of late. But how is this team, that he has done so much for, going to go and just kick him to the curb? I would expect some backlash from Stars fans. Not to mention that this was done to him by his former teammate, current GM Joe Nieuwendyk! That's kind of a slap in the face to someone who helped the team win a Stanley Cup there, Joe. I understand you want to rejuvenate the franchise, but if the guy wants another year, you could just give him his due.

Now instead he's going off to the dreaded Red Wings. I mean, good for him. They are THE premiere team of hockey. I mean it's Hockeytown, for gosh sakes! That's a little bit sickening though, to think of Modano in a Red Wings uniform.

And then, there's Favre. The man. The myth. The Wranglers. I have said it before, and I'll say it again. I love Brett Favre! He is such a talent- the pure definition of a gunslinger. High risk, high reward. And he plays with a youthful love of the game despite his many, many years in the league.

It has been strange to see how the past few years have played out for him- from teary retirement (the tears were def. mutual), to a mediocre season with the Jets, to re-retirement, to a magical, MAGICAL season with the Vikings. Had a play or two gone a different way, they could have been in the Super Bowl. So it's hard for me to accept that he's retiring again. Partly because I don't believe he will, but mostly because I don't want to believe that he will. I don't want to see the excitement of what he can do come to an end! It is so special to watch him play the game, and he is truly still one of the greatest.

One has to wonder what he's thinking. Is his ankle not fully rehabbed? Is he biding his time to perhaps wait out training camp? Does he want to go out with his legacy still very much intact and not risk a bad season? Will the quest to win it all one more time with a very viable team eventually outweigh his physical exhaustion? You have to think that if he was 100% he would come back. Why else go through off-season surgery? I'm not sure whether it is truly in his best interest to come back or not. I will just be interested to see whether come game time, Favre trots out onto the field or sits up in a press box somewhere.

So it's a changing of the guard everywhere we look, it would seem. Maybe it's time for Romo to step up and become a new NFL hero. He's going into his fourth starting season- which is supposed to be the Super Bowl season for all the greats, at least according to the Complete Idiot's Guide to Football. A home Super Bowl suuuuuure would be dandy. And by dandy, I mean really, really freakin' awesome.

I'm sure you're also thinking, shouldn't I be touting the newly-anointed $50 million dollar man to become an instant NFL legend? No way, that's too much to ask of a fetus of an NFL qb with a shaky o-line, even if he's making enough money to pay off my OU tuition like a billion times over (hey, I have a PR degree not a math degree, ok?). But the time will come when I hope he will take up that mantle, and usher in a new era of awesomeness. Out with the old, in with the new. Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end. If you liked it than you shoulda put a ring on it (hint hint, Sam Bradford. I'm waiting!). Wa. Ah. Oh!