There was a time when I was beholden to the New York Jets football team. When I was a kid in Flushing, New York I lived in the shadow of Shea stadium. On Saturday I could be found atttending mass at St. John Vianney but the Sunday mass was in front of the television watching the Jets game. It was not just a television show for me. It was a passionate experience, and I was emotionally behind the Jets. The Jets were the extension of some sort of tribe that I thought belonged to.
The Jets never won a super bowl in those days but the hook was that they played in exciting games. There was that bi-lateral offense assault against the Dolphins in 1986. This game was pure sports excitement as both teams scored touchdown after touchdown and racked up stats that have yet to be surpassed. It was a huge thrill when the Jets went on to win in overtime 51-45. There were other great games like the miracle in the Meadowlands in 2000 which was selected as the greatest Monday night game ever. We could go on and on about the exciting moments following the Jets. If the Jets were anything they were exciting; tons of offense, and thrilling games. Jets fans had character, if you could stay loyal to this hard-luck loser with a multiple Super bowl winner playing in the same venue, you had proved your noble and loyal bent. But then came Chad Pennington.
Chad Pennington seems like a fine person, to his credit he seems like a man worthy of respect. However his one great knock is that he is a total bore to watch as a NFL quarterback. Going from the excitement of Ken O'Brien-he could have been great if he didn't take so many sacks- to the cannon of Testaverde left me accustomed to excitement when watching the Jets. When the ultra-conservative dump pass strategy of Pennington emerged, I yawned. The Jets offensive attack became the equivalent of going to the track and betting $2 show on every favorite. It was sometime during the 2002 season that the NFL lost its hold on me. I began to see it for what it was; a medium to get the male demographic watching television commercials. The games now seemed boring and mindless. The players were faceless mercenaries who changed teams over other year chasing dollars. I was done with it. Chad Pennington freed this slave.
In honor of Pennington freeing the slaves we will play his equine namesake in the Mohawk. The namesake has a nice lone speed inside post set-up.
Belmont Race 9 (pp link under stallion E Dubai)
Win #4 Pennington
Stats
48 16-7-5
strike rate 33%
cumulative return 117.50
$2 ROI $2.45
Power cap- existential handicapping
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1 comment:
How much wronger could one blogger be?
Pennington the horse had a great trip with everything going his way but yielded the lead to the steadfast Banrock sometime after the 1/8 pole. Banrock deserves to be be revered for another great season and especially for his rare brand of racehorse consistency.
The Jets won in a romp 38-0. It may have been worth sitting through the 2 dozen commercials for erectile dysfunction to see that but I have no regrets for spending the day out.
The worst part is that I took a shot at Pennington the man who is a really nice guy. He could be on one of those South American missions helping the proletariat.
Stats
49 16-7-5
strike rate 33%
cumulative return 117.50
$2 ROI $2.40
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