The Streak Is Over

Finally it is over!. This clamoring will he play, will he retire, will he come back and play again. You know Brett Farve's streak of starting 297 straight games at quarterback is not as big a deal as TV has made it out to be. If he really started every game he would have lined up on the kickoff team and either run down the field to make a tackle or block for someone if his team was receiving it.

Starting on the offense means half the time you wait three minutes while the defense goes to work before you do. So all this bunk about starting 297 times did he really? If you get credit for being a starter and the defense goes out on the field before you do then why is the punter not given credit for being a starter?

I did not hear all this bellowing about streaks when Jeff Feagles retired. I bet you didn't even know Jeff Feagles had retired. Even better I bet most of you don't know who Jeff Feagles is? Jeff Feagles punted in the NFL for twenty years. 1988-2007. He holds the record for the most consecutive games played in 352. Yet he is not given credit for being a starter. If you are the only punter on the team and you answer the call when it's time to punt then aren't you a starter?

Jeff Feagles played for almost every team in the NFL over his twenty years. He punted 1,713 times which is the NFL record. The news media will tell us that Brett Farve passed for 71,775 yards that's more than 44 miles of passing yardage. Jeff Feagles punting yardage was 71,211 yards. That's more than 44 miles of punts sailing through the air. The media neglects to tell you that Farve did not throw the ball through the air for all 44 miles but receivers ran real far after they caught his passes most of the time.

Brett Farve's last pass in the NFL was an interception which oh by the way Farve is the NFL leader all time in that department. Jeff Feagles last kick in the NFL was a coffin corner kick which went out of bounds inside the twenty yard line. That was the 497th time he had done that which is the most in NFL history.

Streaks if we think streaks are important then the Iron Man Streak in the NFL is Jim Marshall. The former Minnesota Viking defensive end started 270 straight games. When he line up against the other teams tackles he had several head knocking, power lifting plays on every play while he was on the field. He was where the action is in the NFL, the interior line. Any man that starts in 270 consecutive games has to be famous for something and Jim Marshall holds the record for the shortest play in NFL history.

Yes we all know about this one the famous fumble recovery where Marshall ran the wrong way 66 yards for a saftey. In the NFL record books it is known as the shortest play in NFL history minus 66 yards. I can forgive Marshall's flub since on every play of his career there is helmet to helmet contact. He played a position where a man is a man. Not that glamor spot where you keep your hands warm under the centers butt. Then when the ball is snapped you run away from the real men and when they chase you you throw the ball to someone else.

Despite his record play Marshall was also the hero of the day later in that same game. He was not pining on the bench about his mistake. He had a sack fumble recovered by teammate Carl Eller which he ran the right way for a touchdown and the Vikings won the infamous wrong way game 27-22.

TV has to tell us something every second that we sit in front of it to hold our attention. Let's be real here. Brett Farve played 16 games a year. Lou Gehrig played in as many games in two years as Brett Farve played in twenty in the NFL. It least it is something for the TV to talk about.