Initiating change in 3.........2......1............
Didn't I tell you guys this was going to be face-breakingly awesome? In commemoration of the 2-year anniversary of my blog, I have completely changed the blog! Well, sort of. In a way.
The content I put out (as scarce as it has been because of the shitload of college work I've had the past couple weeks) will not be any different, however, it was time a change has been made. The reasoning for this? Not just to celebrate my 2-year blog anniversary in style. Actually, I thought of the change beforehand, realized the 2-year blog anniversary was in a week, and decided to do it then. But more importantly, I made this blog as a college freshman, pissed off that the Eagles had just played one of their most pathetic games in recent memory, tying the Bengals 13-13 and taking away 4 hours of my life that I am yet to get back. It was a terrible performance from everyone involved. Do I really want Andy Reid fired? In a way, yes, in a way, no. His play-calling, timeout management, and clock management can be the stuff of nightmares times, but then I look at some of the other things he did, including the Michael Vick rehabilitation project that has turned out better than anyone ever could have imagined, and I wonder just how many coaches could have done to Vick what Reid did. I am willing to venture not many. But again, the Eagles embarrassed themselves in so many ways that November afternoon. And I was merely a freshman.
Now I am a college junior. I have 2 full semesters of class left before I student teach. Pretty soon, I will enter the job market, looking for a career. It's coming sooner than I probably realize. I will have job interviews. People will want to be digging more into my life than I would care to know. What if they discover this? Somehow I do not feel guy who writes a sports blog with the title "Fire Andy Reid Now!" is something that's very professional. Not quite sure how, though.....
So where does the new title come from? The answer may surprise you: Joe Beninati. It's his call as the clock expired in Game 7 to complete the Flyers' 3-0 comebacks. His delivery of the call, as always for Joe B., was terrible. But something about the quote in a vaccum when Beninati is not screaming it, that kind of works and can be used in multiple situations in sports. As incredible as it may seem, I like it. A lot. Yes, even horrid announces like Joe Beninati can have a gem every once in a while.
The blog name change and the design are not the only changes, though. You may also notice that I have changed my username. Again, the reasoning is 2 fold. JFein was my nickname all throughout high school. I made this blog and my Blogger account coming off those years. I have not been called JFein by someone in person in 2.5 years now. Also, "Justin F." looks more professional, does it not? And in a way, I kind of feel it makes me more anonymous. Sure, all of you who are my online friends know what my true last name is from emails and what not, but when I apply for a job, I'd rather people not Google my name and have all this random sports-bloggy shit come up. Another reason for the professionalism? Nothing is done and done yet, so I can't say this with absolute certainty, but I am in the process of being promoted to a writer of SB Nation's The Brotherly Game. As a blog writer for a blog that gets slightly more hits than my Blogspot domain, "Justin F." is more professional than "JFein." Check TBG frequently to see if I have been added yet. While I won't have another post on it here, I will let you know via Twitter when, and if, I've been added. I've already changed my SB Nation username to "Justin F." You may have already noticed if you've read any of the comments sections of any of the Philadelphia SB Nation set of blogs in the past week and stumbled upon one of my comments. If possible, I have added the email address BloggerJustinF@gmail.com to my repertoire of email addresses. Try your best to use it as, though I will still check the other ones periodically.
Lastly, and perhaps most importantly for you, my URL will be changing. The new URL will be http://comeback-complete.blogspot.com/. However, because I do not want to leave everyone in the dark as I do not have everyone's email address (Scott, longley, all of the people who stalk and read my blog without commenting, etc.), this change will not be made until after the live blog on Sunday. From now until then, I will have a reminder at the top of my blog as well as I will post frequent reminders during the live blog, telling you to change your bookmarks or what not. Also, a note will appear at the top of the blog until Sunday. Sorry if it seems like I am going over the top, but I do not want to leave anyone out in the dark on this one. That is not a purpose of this nor an intention of mine.
I hope you enjoy the changes. Sure, it may seem awkward after 2 years of a lot of the same, but for my future, the evolution of my writing skills (seriously, compare the style of posts from 2 years ago to today; they could not be more different), the overall appearance and how I feel now, I felt it was something that needed to do. Enjoy! And as always, thanks for being such awesome readers and wonderful online friends. ;-)
wasn't the score of that Bengals/Eagles game 13-13?
ReplyDeleteYes. Yes it was.
ReplyDelete/Changing now.
Dumbest name for a blog ever? Check
ReplyDeleteAnd what is exactly is your point, Anon?
ReplyDeleteWhat's your new Twitter account? You deleted the other one.
ReplyDelete@ SSR: @BloggerJustinF is the new Twitter handle. Sorry, I forgot to change that sidebar. Thanks for reminding me. ;-)
ReplyDeleteSerious question all. Do you like the all-around midnight green background, or would you prefer white in the background? Thanks!
FIRE ANDY REID! You'll be screaming it at the end of the season. Don't be one of the fools who "changes his thinking" on him only to be deceived later and yelling obscenities. Aren't you tired of this garbage organization and its games?
ReplyDelete@ Anon: Did you read the post you are commenting on?
ReplyDeleteYes...and I get the "professionalism" argument. But I doubt a sports blog will get you in too much trouble. Stop using your name on it and use a better alias. It is just that at times of "great success," those who know the truth about Reid need to shout for his firing louder than ever.
ReplyDeleteYou do realize there are a ton of people with the first name "Justin" and the last initial "F," don't you?
ReplyDeleteHow about giving a guy credit where credit is due? Ever think about that? I still criticize some of his decisions (read the live blogs and my recaps), but what he has done with Michael Vick is nothing short of outstanding.
"Know the truth about Reid?" And "shout for his firing?" How about discussing? What about balancing credit with criticism for a fair analysis? And what truth about Reid? Are you his stalker? Are you the only one who knows everything there is to know about the guy? Take a breath. Take a chill pill. Like I said, as frustrating as Reid can be, how many coaches out there could do what Reid has done with Michael Vick? Honestly, Reid should be an early candidate for Coach Of The Year honors for it.
The Eagles played one of the best games in the history of their franchise a few days ago. Don't be so angry. Enjoy this good team.
Who said you don't give him credit where credit is due? On balance, he should be FIRED if this team wants to give itself a chance to win a superbowl. Tell me, at the end of the day...if you could FIRE ANDY REID right now, would you do it? Your blog site is "Fire Andy Reid." Do you still believe that?
ReplyDeleteThe answer to your question is in the post. Read it.
ReplyDeleteI did read it. "Do I really want Andy Reid fired? In a way, yes, in a way, no." That's a very wishy-washy answer.
ReplyDeleteWhy don't you answer the simple question instead of giving various considerations for and against? AT this point, would you fire Andy Reid...YES or NO? Final answer...no takebacks or fake outrage when they choke and he blows it again like he does every year after a "great November run." Give me your answer please. Would you fire Andy Reid? Lock yourself into an answer....do you stick to your principle that was the foundation of your blog? Would you stick to your principle even at the apex of the Eagles' yearly success (i.e November?)
You seem to think that everything is black and white and that once you lock yourself into a viewpoint you need to stick with it and that changing your mind is unacceptable. That is not the case. There are good things about Reid. There are bad things about Reid. Nothing is cut and dry. You seem to view it as being wishy-washy, but really, there are things I like about Reid and things I don't like about him.
ReplyDeleteAnd you do realize that this blog "principle" came off the heals off an unsuccessful 2007 campaign and midway through a 2008 season that featured one of the worst Eagles I have ever seen?
You do realize that more people were responsible for last year's collapse than Reid, don't you? McNabb was 19/37 for 230 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT. Not exactly sterling.
Like I said, not everything is cut and dry. Would I fire Reid tomorrow? No. What he has done with Vick is worthy of coach of the year honors, not a pink slip. But what I don't understand is how that does not give me a right to be angry at him if he makes a stupid coaching decision that costs the Eagles a spot in the playoffs or the playoff game? And what about that outrage would be fake? A guy can be praised for one thing one day and criticized for another thing another day, no? Or do I have to be angry at him all the time because he MIGHT make a bad decision that costs the Eagles big down the road? Just because something happened in the past, does not guarantee it will happen again. Especially now that things have changed with the QB.
LOL...fair enough. I appreciate you finally answering the question. Unfortunately, you seem to miss the point. Praising/criticizing him after a game is fine based on decisions he makes. Same with McNabb...there was a lot of good and bad. However, your whole premise was FIRE ANDY REID. It is analogous to the debate to keep or trade McNabb...it indicates finality. When you get to the point of firing ANDY REID, that's pretty black and white. It means you reached a point, after (hopefully) evaluating his positives (general successful seasons) and negatives (bad game day coaching/adjustments, etc) and determined that the proper course is to terminate the relationship in order to give your team the best chance for long term success. Termination is FINAL. It means you have concluded that Reid is no longer good for this team and the best course is to fire him. Now, if half a season changes your mind after an 11 year track record(and only you can honestly know how many times you changed your mind...November 2009? January 2009? January 2006?), then maybe your opinion to fire Reid (and start a blog) wasn't well thought out when you made it. And come December, when they choke, it will be interesting if you profess Reid to be the scum of the earth who should be fired. After all, you said the switch to conVick wasn't a success unless they win the Superbowl, right? Do you still hold that position?
ReplyDeleteAt the end of the day, don't feel bad. You might be like a lot of sports fans with short memories. Rants and strong opinions last only as long as the next week, when suddenly the "idiot player/coach" is a hero. A lot of sports talk is irrational, and in part that bothers me because I try to make everything have some logical basis. It bothers me when people flip flop back and forth, week to week, while professing strong opinions and principles. I must learn to accept it in the sports world.
Good luck in the rest of your studies.
You are right, I was an angry freshmen who thought that Reid's time had come and gone. 2007 was a disaster, and the start of 2008 was not great, which is when I made the blog, after things hit rock bottom when the Eagles tied the Bengals. The blog title was not well thought out. It was all spur of the moment.
ReplyDeleteMy stance on Vick has changed only because I never thought he would be as good as he has been. My premise for only starting Vick if Reid thought he could win the Super Bowl was because Kolb was designated as the future as the franchise. A guy who had been labeled as such should be be getting reps and starting games, even if things are not very good at first. Now I think the Eagles should trade Kolb and re-sign Vick. It would not surprise me at all if the Eagles are in agreement with that idea.
I like the midnight green now, but after football season I'd use orange for the flyers, and post-that, id use red for the Phils. You know, a seasonal thing.
ReplyDelete@ Alky: That's exactly what I was thinking about doing.
ReplyDelete