Tha Locker Room

Sports talk from average Joes with Pro knowledge

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The Last of the Hard Hitting Safeties

The Last of the Hard Hitting Safeties

In the new millennium the NFL has become a passing league. Receivers used to think twice before running a crossing route over the middle. Now with the new concussion rules wide-outs are roaming vicariously under the teeth of the defense (don’t lead with your helmet zone), while fines are being dropped down to opposing defenders (mostly safeties) who appear to make a split second instinctive hit. Regardless of this non sense what’s football without a pulverizing momentum changing hit.

So let’s show praise to the most punishing safeties to roam their territory since 2000.

John Lynch (6’2 ft., 220 lbs.)                  

Shock and awe is the best way to describe this devastating hitter. Every offensive player who geared up against the cover two Tampa Defense had to locate number 47. He wasn’t the fastest but his angle pursuit to the ball carrier and overwhelming force is what made him one the most fearing tacklers of his generation. The gritty Lynch would launch off his feet and drive through with such brutality that the opposing player would just collapse after a cataclysmic tackle.  A true throwback to the school of hard-knocks. 

Sean Taylor (6’3 ft., 220 lb.)  

(April 1, 1983-November 27, 2007)

Let’s recognize those who have fallen and this guy definitely deserves to be on this list. Only playing 3 1/2 seasons, he garnered the nickname “Meast,” which meant “half man, half beast by his Redskin teammates. In his last season he was named the hardest hitter in the NFL by Sports Illustrated. Equipped with the speed of a cornerback and strength of a linebacker he only knew one way to tackle.  Every time he collided with someone it seemed like a ferocious hit stick from the Madden game was being dished out. His tackling power was obsolete but the rare violence he handed down on the gridiron was disheartening to opposing offenses. A Moment of Silence for one of the most punishing safeties the game of football will ever witness. 

Ed Reed (5’11 ft., 205 lbs.)

Heat seeking missiles are meant to precisely destroy a designated target and Reed seems like a human projectile on a collision course with unlucky players he has identified. Reed is perhaps the best all-around safety on this list for his interception prowess along with his tenacious tackling. A prototypical safety for his ball-hawking skills, Reed made up his size with his closing speed to the ball carrier and explosive tackles. The results were a blinding hit that left his target suspended off their feet. His pure side line to side line speed equipped with bone crushing effect made him a predator on the field. 

Brian Dawkins (6’0 ft., 210 lbs.)

The raw intensity of his tunnel exiting ceremony put a rare glimpse into a man blessed by the football gods. One of the most dominating safeties of all-time, Dawkins, is a mild mannered and humble man but come Sundays he is possessed by superhero like powers. His alter ego, Wolverine or Weapon X, is a mutant comic book hero known for his animal instincts, indestructible skeleton, super-healing abilities, and almost uncontrollable intensity. Dawkins nickname, Weapon X, is attributed to his fiery and indomitable will on the gridiron. His acrobatic flying tackles and wrecking human cannonball like hits put fear in TE and WR’s running slants in his perimeter. The combustion and flaming demeanor throughout a game seemed to increase with every bone crushing hit. The lionhearted Dawkins was named to the NFL’s 2000 all-decade team as a strong safety and clawed his way into football immortality. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRqGWiGjnTQ

Is this your top hard hitting safeties? Feel free to share you opinion..

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Was Granderson a good catch for the Mets?

Curtis Granderson was snagged from the Yankees to play for the Mets during the 2014 season.  Was it a good play by the Mets organization?  As of late you could make a case for the outfielder, but in the beginning of the season the outlook was grim at best.  In April Mr. Granderson totaled eight runs with twelve hits.  During the month of May (as of this writing) Mr. Granderson has already twenty hits and eleven runs.  One big difference is the total of home runs between the two months, in April a unsavory one, compared to five aleady in May.

Making a call on whether this is a good pick up or not by the Mets is still too early.  Last year at the end of May Mr. Granderson only had five runs with seven hits, this year he’s already beat that total with nineteen runs and thirty-two hits.  As a Mets fan (with a little bias) I think Granderson was a good call, especially if he keeps his bat swinging and overall health in check.  If you think Curtis Granderson was a good or bad pickup for the Mets, we here at ThaLockerRoom would love to hear from you.

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The Zen Master's quest for a student

The triangle offense, also known as the triple-post offense, is perhaps the most successful system in basketball's illustrious history. Established by Hall of Fame college coach Sam Barry, and later refined by one of his players, a coach in his own right Tex Winter. Phil Jackson, along with Winter's basketball IQ, implemented the triangle offense to great success.  During the 90's and 2000's the dynamic duo amassed a NBA record 11 championships, prompting the nickname Zen Master. Jackson, widely considered the greatest NBA coach of all time, has coached legends such as Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal.  However, today as the president of basketball operations for the New York Knicks he is in search for a head coach. His search has led him to current and former players who at one time operated in the triangle offense. It seemed that Steve Kerr, who won 3 titles with the Zen Master, was his first and only choice for the job. But, 2 weeks ago Kerr accepted a role as both President and head coach for the Golden State Warriors. Shortly after the hire, Kerr expressed his respect for Jackson and his decoded reluctancy to work for James Dolan (Knicks owner): "When Phil Jackson asks you to coach the Knicks, how do you say no? I think they're going to turn it around, but going to be a big undertaking and it's going to take time. The idea of doing that 3,000 miles from home, it just didn't feel right." Without losing a beat Jackson expressed interest in Thunder’s backup point guard Derek Fisher, another former disciple of the triangle offense. Other names that sprung up ranged from Brian Shaw to Tyron Lue.  What all these men have in common is that all played under Jackson and have never been a head coach in the NBA. Knicks loyalists have lobbied for former fan favorites such as Patrick Ewing and Mark Jackson. As the head coach quest continues, who should the Zen Master choose to lead a franchise who hasn’t won a title since 1973?