Candyman

What a tragedy. All those people who complain about all the rules changes for player safety in the NFL, I wish they could spend a day going through what Junior Seau likely went through. Physically and emotionally. And the thousands of former players just like him and who are struggling to get through life, with woefully inadequate financial support from NFL. Sometimes it takes a tragedy of this magnitude(no disrespect to other former players who have committed suicide, like Dave Duerson, who also shot himself in the chest so his brain could be examined) to get people's attention. The NFL is trying to change for a reason - to stop stuff like this from happening. (Even if it is just to protect themselves financially.) RIP Junior Seau

It was actually option C: Jim Irsay is an attention whore. He never had any intention of drafting Griffin or trading out of the first spot or getting Luck to take less money. He just wanted people to talk about the Colts...and, more specifically, the Colts owner. This is nitpicking, but Shaun Alexander is in thie Peterson/CJ2K/Foster category, not the Slaton/Ward/McClain one. Alexander put the numbers up for a long time and was the best running back in the league, if not the best player in the league, for more than one season. His downfall was because of injuries and loss of offensive linemen, not because he wasn't special. He was very special. But yeah, most of everything else you said is true. It's worth noting that the Colts were in the AFC Championship Game the year before they got the #1 overall pick and took Peyton Manning. (Ironically, lead by Andrew Luck's college coach, Jim Harbaugh.) So there's a lot of similiarities between the situations the team was in then and the one they're in now. But the thing that people will need to remember as they watch Andrew Luck start his career - and no doubt, they will not, and it'll drive me crazy - is how average Peyton Manning was in his first five seasons. His record was 42-38. He had an even 100 interceptions in those five seasons, which I believe is the record for most interceptions in the first five seasons of a quarterback's career. Of course, he's thrown 98 interceptions in the 8 seasons since, with 7 straight 12-win seasons and 8 straight playoff appearances. But the point is that Peyton struggled, sometimes a lot, as he adjusted to the NFL. There was never much doubt that he would figure it out eventually, but it didn't happen right away, and people shouldn't expect that from Andrew Luck. Also, I don't have the quote here, but you mentioned that the Broncos shouldn't have traded Tebow and instead let him learn behind Manning. Nah. Manning's a great QB, but you couldn't have two more different QBs than Manning and Tebow. Which means Tebow wouldn't be able to just step into the starting spot if Manning got hurt or in a few years when he retires like you implied, because they require two completely different systems. You're better off drafting a pocket passing QB who can learn behind Manning and pick up right where he left off if he gets hurt or, hopefully, in 3+ years when he retires. Which, of course, they did.

One of my favorite random, unprovoked chants of all time. I first noticed it on Smackdown! last week. Hopefully it catches on. I really don't get this line of thinking. I mean, an hour before that they did the exact same thing with Punk/Jericho. On Friday, they did the exact same thing with Sheamus and Mark Henry. It's a standard format - heel dominates, face pulls through in the end. They've been doing it since I started watching wrestling in the 80's, when Hulk Hogan became the biggest superstar in wrestling history by doing the exact same thing. But John Cena's the one face that shouldn't do it? And the dumb move would've been having a part time wrestler squash your biggest star. What are you going to do with Cena? He's no different than the guys Ryback has been eating for lunch if you do that. Don't get me wrong, on another night, under different circumstances, Lesnar can beat Cena - but not after destroying him for 15 minutes. Cena needed to pull out the win to maintain his credibility. They got their point across with Lesnar. That was my thought too. I really don't know how somebody can proclaim they're done with WWE based on that PPV. One of the best wrestling shows I've seen in a long, long time. Orton/Kane, both title matches, and Cena/Lesnar were all excellent matches. I have no idea what was so predictable about any of it, beyond the normal predictability of a wrestling match(there's only two possible outcomes, it's pretty predictable). And given what happened after the match, with Cena talking to the trainer and the little speech he gave, it certainly appears that his arm is legit injured. Definitely didn't look like a work. Although Beth Phoenix's ankle injury didn't look like a work, aside from the referee's nonchalance, so who knows for sure. I guess we'll find out in the next few days.

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Fantabulous" data-cite="Fantabulous" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>You mean A-Train lied? But that would mean those nasty evil dirtsheets were telling the truth? But that can't be true; they're nasty and evil and only spread lies.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Good point. I mean, they right on the money when they said it'd be an Undertaker/Triple H/Shawn Michaels triple threat at Mania, when they said Cena/Rock would be for the title, when they said Brock Lesnar would be wrestling at Mania, when they said Shaq would be wrestling at Mania, when they said Randy Orton would win the Rumble, when they said Brock Lesnar would be in the Royal Rumble, when they said Triple H and Undertaker would be at the Royal Rumble, when they said John Cena was going to be at TLC, etc etc.</p><p> </p><p> They're right about everything! How dare they be questioned?</p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Fantabulous" data-cite="Fantabulous" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>WWE.com ran an article about this story, and the fact they felt the need to respond at all is pretty telling.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> What, exactly, does it tell? Based on your misguided views of dirtsheets, I'm guessing you're trying to imply that it's somehow telling that there must be some truth to it, which would make no sense of course.</p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Fantabulous" data-cite="Fantabulous" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>In case we've got the usual suspect(s) eager to go all, "LOLZ DIRTSHEETS R RONG!!!", (too late) I'll point out that:</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Why do you seem so surprised that dirtsheets are wrong again? Are you equally surprised when you don't win the lottery?</p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Fantabulous" data-cite="Fantabulous" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>1) Triple H is all, "We're not closing down FCW" but then is all, ""I can't comment as to whether or not we will relocate developmental". So, which is it? You're not closing them down but you can't say whether or not you're moving developmental?</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> If you're going to quote somebody using quotation marks, at least try to attempt to remotely represent what was actually said. Since you were so far off from anything that he actually came out of his mouth, I can only assume that your second quote was meant to represent this:</p><p> </p><p> “There are plans in the works, but nothing definitive I can discuss right now,” he said. “Shortly after WrestleMania, there will be a major announcement about our developmental system.”</p><p> </p><p> Putting the fallacy of your quotes aside, you do realize that "closing down" and "relocate" mean two different things, right? It's not a "which is it" situation. It can easily be both.</p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Fantabulous" data-cite="Fantabulous" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>2) Take out the copy and paste sites who edit and rephrase things, the story from the main news sites was that WWE were moving developmental. Which the WWE.com article all but says is exactly what is going to happen. It was the copy and paste sites, and not the main news sites, that claimed FCW was shutting down.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> And those are the dirt sheets, genius. You can't "take out" the very thing you're talking about.</p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Fantabulous" data-cite="Fantabulous" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>3) But let's presume it's all nasty lies and FCW is not closing down. Why cancel their only TV? Why not keep it until they've moved elsewhere in Florida?</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> That's your argument for the dirtsheets getting it right about FCW closing down? Really? Here's a few possible reasons off the top of my head:</p><p> </p><p> 1.Their contract with Brighthouse Network was up and the station didn't want to renew for just a few weeks.</p><p> 2.They had to notify Brighthouse Network the show was ending by a certain date, like today, or they'd be on the hook for X number of more episodes - a higher total than they were willing to commit to.</p><p> 3.Since it's still going to air on Brighthouse for three more weeks, maybe that's when they plan on announcing whatever changes they're going to make to the developmental system. You know, since Triple H said they'd announce something after WrestleMania. They may well be doing exactly what you said about keeping it until they move. They can easily move in the next three weeks.</p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Fantabulous" data-cite="Fantabulous" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>4) WWE themselves told the station carrying FCW that they were pulling out and moving things to Stamford.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> No they didn't. They told the station that the show was ending. I don't know where the Stamford rumor started, but one thing for certain is that it didn't come from a conversation between WWE and Brighthouse.</p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Fantabulous" data-cite="Fantabulous" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>5) If it is all a giant mix-up, you know what would stop stuff like this happening? Being a bit more open with the main news sites. Not the copy and paste places who turn an innocent comment into "Brock Lesnar is quitting the UFC for WWE" that the gullible believe without taking the time to check the facts on. But the main ones who are, despite what the fingers-in-their-ears crowd desperately want to believe, right more often than they're not.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> ??? Who is this "fingers-in-their-ears crowd" you're ranting about?? The people who take joy in pointing out all the idiotic reports that originate with dirtsheets? Again, the problem with dirtsheets IS the copy and paste places, which make up a vast majority of dirtsheets. I don't even know what the hell you're talking about.</p><p> </p><p> And no, no matter how much you cover your hears and scream "I can't hear you, I can't hear you, la la la," there is no site that gets it right more often than not. That's the nature of the business. Most honest reporters would laugh at a statement like that.</p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Fantabulous" data-cite="Fantabulous" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>But let's not stop the usual people from being all self-congratulatory about being brave souls and disbelieving those nasty 'dirt sheets (Is is 1996? We're still using an archaic term like that?).</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Again, what the hell are you talking about?</p><p> </p><p> You need to accept the fact that dirt sheets - and no, just like most things that are 16 years old, that term is not archaic - are mostly copy and paste places. And most of the ones that aren't copy and paste places are worse than copy and paste places, they're places that make things up own their own without talking to anybody outside of their basement. You can't just "take them out" and act like dirt sheets are reputable, honest sources of information. The "main ones" are few and far between. And, for the life of me, I can't figure out why the hell you think those are the sites people are talking about when they talk about what jokes the dirt sheets are.</p>

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="soxfan93" data-cite="soxfan93" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Matt Bloom has re-signed with WWE. I like it. He'll come in as Laurinaitis' bodyguard in April.</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Sadly, this was just a false rumor the dirtsheets stirred up. He's staying with NJPW. And as much as I'd selfishly like to see him back in the WWE, he's probably much better off staying in Japan.</p>

<p>From Daniel Bryan's Facebook page. Enjoy:</p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>I wanted to publicly share some things that AJ can do to make herself a better Diva:<p> </p><p> 1.Be taller. Not sure how? How about trading in those Chuck Taylors for a nice pair of heels? </p><p> 2.Adopt a strict vegan lifestyle to stay mentally and physically fit. Maybe if you stop eating eggs, you’ll stop walking on eggshells all the time.</p><p> 3.Highlight your beauty through silence. Be seen but not heard.</p><p> 4.Focus on inspiring others as a role model, exhibiting real beauty on the inside and outside … like me.</p><p> 5.How about trading in those skulls you wear on your clothes for the butterfly of the Divas Title? </p><p> 6.Remember that “gamer” really means “loser couch potato”.</p><p> 7.Only champions have enough discipline to not get fat from eating vegan animal crackers. Please stop asking me to share and buy a second box.</p><p> 8.Just consider that Pokemon is a silly children’s game and will prevent people from taking you seriously.</p><p> 9.To create a constant glow, fill yourself with the blissful reality that you are dating the World Heavyweight Champion!</p></div></blockquote>

Great point. Without knowing him personally, I would say what Rock loves most is entertaining. Performing for people. He probably loves being famous and all that goes with that. I'm sure if he was a better singer(not that he's terrible, but he's obviously not recording studio good), he'd be doing that too. Professional wrestling was just an avenue for him to do something he loves. He found a better way to do what he loves and he moved on. I was just making the point that, if you don't like what he's doing, he's not doing it for lack of talent. That's just the way he's portraying his character. If you don't like the way he's potraying his character, fair enough, but most comments I've seen are implying that he's incapable of anything else and that's just not the case. Personally, I don't have a problem with the way he acted. He was making fun of the Rock before Rock came out, and he continued making fun of him while he was out there. It fit with the tone of his entire promo. I actually thought the serious, empty arena promo seemed more out of place. I would've preferred to see that the week before WrestleMania, or even better at WrestleMania itself.

This is all pure truth right here. Somebody said they liked Rock back in the 90's, because he loved wrestling not the money...did he love wrestling when he was playing football for the Miami Hurricanes? Did he love wrestling when he was in the CFL? Did he "sellout" his football aspirations when he became a pro wrestler? Professional wrestler was his JOB. Just like actor is now his job. Just like it's John Cena's job. Don't get me wrong, I have a ton of respect for Cena and his passion for the WWE. But do you think Cena would be in the WWE if he was good enough to play football professionally? What about if his bodybuilding career took off? Hell, John Cena tried out LIMO DRIVING before he decided to pursue professional wrestling. Every person in the WWE is there because of they money they make. They like wrestling, they might love it, and I don't doubt that most of them are completely dedicated to their job (a lot of people, myself included, are simply wired to give complete dedicatation to their job, regardless of how much they enjoy it) - but that's what it is to each and every one of them. A job. And if a better job came along - and I guarantee everybody there has something they'd consider a better job, just like the vast majority of people on this planet - they'd take it. Cena saying he'd never do what Rock did is completely hollow to me, because he never had the opportunity. He never had a chance to be a full time actor, he never even had a chance to be a full time rapper. Maybe he's right, maybe he wouldn't have, but nobody knows that until you're in that situation. And of course Will Smith is a good actor. How can anybody even say otherwise? Bingo. I've never quite been able to grasp why people think Cena's a bad actor or he's not showing emotion because he acts a certain way...like, you've never seen somebody act that way in that situation in real life? I know I have. It's not like he's out there trying to act serious and completely failing. He's conveying the emotions he's trying to, and doing it well.

Agree 100%. It's too coincidental that it's just now coming up, now that Rock's back and the road to WrestleMania is in full force. If it was legit, we would've heard about it a year ago, or at Survivor Series at the latest. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, it's fun to see. His promos are great to watch and it's nice knowing all of his haters are out there left with nothing bad to say about him. (I mean, the best they can come up with is he "no sells what people say to him." Really?) But on the other hand...it can't help but make you think how entertaining he could be year round if he wasn't handicapped by the PG Era whenever he's not talking about The Rock. I don't remember hearing any boos before he started talking, either. But I can't say I would be stunned if he did get some. Remember that the fans forcefully turned him heel after the first couple times he left to make movies and came back, viewing him as a sellout and whatnot. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a portion of the crowd that felt that way, a portion of the crowd upset abou him saying he was home and never leaving...and then leaving, again. (He definitely got booed when he brought up that comment and tried to justify it. "That didn't mean I would be on every Raw" etc.) Really? That'd be a hell of an acting job. I don't buy it. He may have been trying to act flustered, but he was definitely legitimately thrown off at the same time. As for Cena "no selling" Rock's promo, I'm not entirely sure what he was supposed to sell. Rock's promo was heavy on crowd interaction, crowd chants, twitter trends, and all that fun stuff, but it was pretty light on Cena insults. He was in the ring for 15 minutes and all he did was call him a kung pow bitch and make fun of his camo shorts, which was a great line, but it's still only one line. It should be noted that Cena's planned promo was probably rather different than what was presented given how long The Rock went. Cena should've had more time to work and The Rock probably had more to say for Cena to respond to.

That's awesome for Santino. And I couldn't help but feel that something was wrong with Orton in his match with the Big Show...he seemed a little woozy from the point where Big Show tried to palm his head and pull him into the ring. I don't know if that's where he got his concussion(WWE says it was from Bryan's title shot to the head, but that seems highly unlikely), but he definitely didn't look the same after that. Check it out on Youtube. He definitely, DEFINITELY said funky chicken. It was on Smackdown!, so it would've been editted out if he said otherwise. Unless there's a Raw segment between them I'm unaware of... Yeah, I definitely don't buy that one at all. Like I said above, there was no F-bomb, but I think he's just been off TV because they don't have enough time for him. This is a horrible time of year for a guy to debut, during the build to WrestleMania. That's why people who are getting super pushed (like Lesnar and Kharma) often debut right after WrestleMania. His in ring work may be a small factor, but I'd say it's probably not the primary reason. Yeah, no. He actually literally didn't move one inch the entire time. But that was the problem. He could've easily leaned a little to his left and caught Truth. I had the same reaction. On April 7th, the average high there is 58 degrees...and since the sun sets at 7:30, it's likely going to be considerably colder than that during the show. Especially by the time the main events roll around. I can only assume they plan on doing something to keep the ring and ringside area warm.

So Sting doesn't count when Bully Ray or Jeff Hardy have a legimate clean pin, and instead tries to revive the ref...but when Robert Roode is making the pin, and Sting doesn't want to count, he does? Huh. EDIT: And didn't we already see that finish at SummerSlam 1997?

That's Edge. Shawn Michaels is perfectly healthy. Edge is the one who won't be cleared to wrestle. Randy Orton is very out of place on that list. If you're going to include him, you have to include guys like Cena, Sheamus, Alberto Del Rio, The Miz, etc. who are just as good as Orton. I think the list stops at CM Punk and Daniel Bryan when you're talking about guys who would be better than Shawn Michaels if he returned on a full time basis. Maybe Jericho too, but we haven't seen enough of him since his return to make a judgment on that, IMO. That's true, but you're comparing him to the best in ring performer of all time - which is what he had been. That's not fair to him. A guy like that can lose a step or two and still be one of the best in the world. Well, it'd be 12 since there were already 4 in the ring when he got there. And really, you could say he "outlasted" 27 since he was in the ring longer than anybody but Miz and Rhodes. But I get what you're saying.

You beat me to it. There's just not enough time on TV for that stuff. Most of these guys have to go out there, get all their moves in, and get to the back. That's why, when you do see it, it's main eventers doing it...they have more time out there. Go to house shows. It happens much more often there...I've seen many wrestlers say that crowd interaction is one of the reasons they like doing house shows.

Sure was. Can't help but wonder if Big Show was supposed to pull DBry back in and one of them lost their grip. Might be why Ryder was down in the ring for so along and/or why we got those strange Cena/Rock bio things. Me too. I was terrified that Jericho or Orton would win and we'd have to deal with everybody crying about how predictable it was. 'Course, now that an unpredictable guy won, we have to deal with everybody crying about how stupid it was...and, undoubtedly, some people still calling it predictable. I'm guessing Sheamus will go after Daniel Bryan. Not exactly a marquee title match, but they don't really need one with Rock/Cena, the WWE title match, and Undertaker's match (presumably) already on the card. Plus Randy Orton against somebody, maybe Mick Foley against somebody, maybe Triple H against somebody(if he doesn't fight Taker). I'm just really curious about where this whole "end of the world" thing with Jericho is going...

Apparently Primo and Epico just beat Air Broom for the tag team titles at a house show. Seems kind of weird they didn't just make the switch at TLC...