Well we are in the midst of the craziest personnel week maybe in the history of sports. The NFL is back from their lockout out and trying to find a way to squeeze their entire off season into a 5 day period. Then you have the baseball trading deadline this week. As a Bears and Braves fan I am obviously consumed with the news of the goings on with my teams. The rise of Twitter has made this so much fun, but also that much more stressful as the multitude of rumors that swirl about is impossible to manage and navigate with any success. Here is a tweet from Gabe in the midst of the insanity and just after the Beltran trade was starting to come into clarity.
@thatgabe Gabe Guterres
Who is the best prospect Sabean has ever traded away? Nathan? Accardo? He has weak areas. Trading future all stars isn't one of them.
One of the feelings that continues to resonate with me is the idea of trust. I think my entire off season or trade deadline enjoyment comes down to whether or not I trust the management of my team. Can’t you relate to that feeling? When you see a team trade or sign a guy and you sit there thinking, why didn’t we do that? In baseball you see the prospects offered up for a great player and you are just befuddled at your team’s unwillingness to surrender the same bounty for the high valued returns. Or you see the guys signed by your opponents and you think, what could have possibly possessed them to make a stupid move like that (Uribe)? It is really a matter of how much you trust the management of your favorite team and your GM’s track record of success or failure.
In the case of the Braves, I lean more toward trust in Frank Wren than not. So as the trade deadline approaches in the major leagues I find myself more curious and antsy than annoyed and frustrated. I wouldn’t put Wren on the Rushmore of decision makers, but he certainly has earned a bit of trust. The great Rangers/Braves massacre was not Wren’s doing. He has made good personnel moves and very few moves I actually hate. That really is what it comes down to as a fan, trust. This morning I woke up to the news that the Patriots traded for Albert Haynesworth and Chad Johnson (his momma called him Johnson, so I am going to call him Johnson). All over the media this morning there is massive praise for the great business sense of Belichick and his ability to consistently buy low and bring veterans into a strong locker room and get production out of them. There is no doubt that the city of Boston and the fans of the Patriots trust Bill to overcome Albert’s penchant for trouble and Johnson’s addiction to attention. Bill has won this trust after years and years of quality moves and his ability to control his locker room.
As a Bears fan I have zero trust in the management of the Chicago Bears. Too be honest, zero may be a slight exaggeration of just how much trust I do in fact have in Angelo and Smith. I tell every one that there are three constants in Chicago. Jerry Angelo is a terrible GM, Lovie Smith is completely clueless and Urlacher can tackle. Angelo has repeatedly used the phrase “trust us” when discussing personnel moves. Why? Why should I trust you to make any decisions for the team? Let’s take a look at why we should or shouldn’t trust you Jerry.
Yesterday the Bears traded away their first round pick from the 2007 draft. While I have so much to say about that trade, that is not the point of this article. With the trade of Greg Olsen the Bears now have absolutely nothing to show for the entire 2007 draft. To be clear, that draft was four years ago. The players taken in that draft should be entering the final years of their first contract. The Bears have zero left. Let’s go back a little further. Of the 2005 draft the only player that remains is Chris Harris, and we traded him away once! Take a look at the 2006 draft. One player remains. One! Of the 2009 draftees the Bears still have exactly two on the roster, and to be fair, only one is assured of a spot this year. So I ask again, why should I trust you? Isn’t the proof of your value as a General Manager found in how you manage the draft and build your roster? The Bears have one of the oldest rosters in the NFL because we cannot draft with any effectiveness, which means, that the really bad years are coming and there is no help on the way.
The problem with being a fan is that the only recourse you have in voicing your displeasure is to stop watching games and stop buying memorabilia. Well, very few of us are going to stop doing those things. So we are stuck. The McCaskeys run the Bears much like the McCourts run the Dodgers. The difference is that Bears fans continue to show up because they are some of the most loyal fans in all of sports, so the NFL can claim the Bears as a success and revenue stream and turn their backs on all of the shady dealings going on. Not trusting the management of your team is just draining. But what can we do? The idea of a fan union is great in theory, and would certainly change the landscape of sports, but we know that could never happen because Yankees fans are just fine with how things are going. And as we know, if Yankees fans are happy, ESPN is happy. So we are just stuck eating the rotten and stinky meal we are served by management. I guess I will just sit back, hold my nose, pretend its steak and watch the Bears play this year and do what I always do. Love the Bears, hate the management and pray the defense can shut out the opposition every week.
Jay Cutler?
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