{"id":839,"date":"2015-08-21T09:44:31","date_gmt":"2015-08-21T13:44:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sullyonsports.com\/?p=839"},"modified":"2019-06-26T16:52:11","modified_gmt":"2019-06-26T20:52:11","slug":"the-elite-discussion-is-ridiculous-joe-flacco-is-proof-positive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sullyonsports.com\/?p=839","title":{"rendered":"The ‘Elite’ Discussion is Ridiculous; Joe Flacco is Proof Positive"},"content":{"rendered":"

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You’ve probably heard, especially recently, the discussion of NFL quarterbacks, and particularly which ones are “elite” and which ones aren’t. \u00a0This debate has extended to, among others, Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco. \u00a0Flacco led his team to a Super Bowl title in 2013, and his postseason run got him a new six year, $120.6 million contract.<\/p>\n

As you can imagine, pundits have taken their time to debate Flacco’s eliteness. \u00a0But first, we have to understand what elite means. According to dictionary.com, the definition of “elite” is: “representing<\/span> the<\/span> most<\/span> choice<\/span> or<\/span> select;<\/span> best.” \u00a0Okay, so with that out of the way, NFL fans have had hypothetical debates, especially recently, over the eliteness of Flacco and others. \u00a0And you are going to hear the word elite\u00a0a lot<\/em> in this article.<\/span><\/p>\n

But this debate has become utterly ridiculous. \u00a0Why? \u00a0Because it’s gotten so far out of control it can’t be saved. \u00a0It started two years ago, in the midst of the Ravens’ Super Bowl run. \u00a0As transcribed by Rodger Sherman of SBNation, the Ravens’ website has\u00a0fed the elite fire<\/a>. \u00a0Here are a few article titles since then:<\/p>\n

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Jan. 14, 2013:\u00a0“Joe Flacco not elite? ‘You’re crazy.’<\/a>“<\/h4>\n

June 5, 2013: “Pres. Obama to Joe Flacco: ‘You’re elite.’<\/a>“<\/h4>\n

Dec. 12, 2014: “Joe Flacco sending ‘elite’ subliminal message?<\/a>“<\/h4>\n

Jan. 3, 2015: “Joe Flacco ‘The best quarterback in football’<\/a>“<\/h4>\n

(We are counting this as an assertion of eliteness.)<\/p>\n

Jan. 3, 2015: “Joe Flacco leaves elite tip in Pittsburgh<\/a>“<\/h4>\n

(To be fair,\u00a0we had the same headline.<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Jan. 5, 2015: “Why isn’t Flacco considered elite<\/a>?”<\/h4>\n

Jan. 8, 2015: “Is Joe Flacco an elite QB?<\/a>“<\/h4>\n

(The answer was yes.)<\/p>\n

Feb. 18, 2015: “Is Joe Flacco elite? Gary Kubiak’s awesome answer.<\/a>“<\/h4>\n

May 28, 2015: “Why Joe Flacco will break into elite QB club under Marc Trestman<\/a>“<\/h4>\n

WAIT I THOUGHT HE’D BEEN IN THE CLUB THIS WHOLE TIME<\/p>\n

July 24, 2015: “Torrey Smith’s brilliant response to Joe Flacco elite question<\/a>“<\/h4>\n

Aug. 20, 2015: “Eagles head coach Chip Kelly calls Joe Flacco elite<\/a>“<\/h4>\n<\/blockquote>\n

That, in and of itself, is the reason why we shouldn’t be debating this stuff. \u00a0It’s perfectly easy to understand the team promoting its best player, but their borderline obsession with his being “elite” is insane. And this is from the same people that brought you this gem<\/a>\u00a0last summer. \u00a0But they aren’t the only ones.<\/p>\n

On August 6, the Republican Debate was held in Cleveland, Ohio. MSNBC, among other networks, was there to cover it. \u00a0During Chris Matthews’ “Hardball”, a man bearing a sign with a very specific message could easily be seen behind Matthews’ set. \u00a0(Keep in mind, “Hardball” is a political show on a political cable news network.) \u00a0Here’s the image:<\/p>\n

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Meanwhile, behind Chris Matthews … pic.twitter.com\/8tHac2HMeZ<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) August 7, 2015<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Yes, that is someone with a sign asking if Joe Flacco is an elite quarterback. \u00a0While the occurrence was extremely funny when it happened, it was really just a denotation of our infatuation with a completely random debate like this one.<\/p>\n

To show how obsessed we are in America about football, and debate like this one, the guy holding the sign has a known identity. \u00a0While we don’t know his real name, he goes on Twitter by PFTCommenter; PFT stands for NBC Sports’ football blog, Pro Football Talk. \u00a0He’s no joke, either: he has 56.7 thousand followers.<\/p>\n

And he also has a Wikipedia profile. \u00a0Here it is:<\/p>\n

PFT Commenter<\/b> (alternatively spelled PFTCommenter<\/b> or Pro Football Talk Commenter<\/b>) is a pseudonymous and satirical sportswriter who covers the National Football League<\/a> for online publications including Kissing Suzy Kolber<\/a>, SBNation<\/a>, Football Savages, and his own site, StrongTakes.com, as well as on Twitter<\/a>. PFT Commenter, whose name references Profootballtalk.com<\/a>, mimics the “macho posturing and racism”,[1]<\/a><\/sup> or “hot takes<\/a>“,[2]<\/a><\/sup> in the website’s comment sections.<\/p>\n

His writing style is characterized by “didactic misspelling, erratic punctuation, barely veiled racism, not-quite-latent homophobia, conspiratorial anxiety, and arrogant disdain for critical thought” and the character is “dumb on purpose”,[3]<\/a><\/sup> earning a comparison to the Stephen Colbert character<\/a> on The Colbert Report<\/a><\/i>[1]<\/a><\/sup> with his ability to “undermine the league\u2019s resident apologists and party-liners.”[3]<\/a><\/sup> PFT Commenter often overpraises white players for their blue-collar attitudes, criticizes black players for being selfish and overrated, and \u201ceagerly takes the truth-y NFL party line on every possible issue\u201d.[1]<\/a><\/sup> In response to criticisms of his poor spelling, he wrote, “Im on record that I dont care about spelling, I care about TELLING.”[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n

PFT Commenter began as a commenter on ProFootballTalk.com[4]<\/a><\/sup> before starting the @PFTCommenter Twitter account in 2012 and eventually becoming a contributor for SBNation, Kissing Suzy Kolber and Football Savages.[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n

PFT Commenter has also written a self-published[2]<\/a><\/sup>e-book<\/a>, Goodell vs. Obama: The Battle for the Future of the NFL<\/i>, which imagines a dystopian<\/a> future in which PresidentBarack Obama<\/a> attempts to turn the Dallas Cowboys<\/a> into a soccer team in Kenya, and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell<\/a> fights him in a boxing match to stop him.[5]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n

PFT Commenter<\/b> (alternatively spelled PFTCommenter<\/b> or Pro Football Talk Commenter<\/b>) is a pseudonymous and satirical sportswriter who covers the National Football League<\/a> for online publications including Kissing Suzy Kolber<\/a>, SBNation<\/a>, Football Savages, and his own site, StrongTakes.com, as well as on Twitter<\/a>. PFT Commenter, whose name references Profootballtalk.com<\/a>, mimics the “macho posturing and racism”,[1]<\/a><\/sup> or “hot takes<\/a>“,[2]<\/a><\/sup> in the website’s comment sections.<\/p>\n

His writing style is characterized by “didactic misspelling, erratic punctuation, barely veiled racism, not-quite-latent homophobia, conspiratorial anxiety, and arrogant disdain for critical thought” and the character is “dumb on purpose”,[3]<\/a><\/sup> earning a comparison to the Stephen Colbert character<\/a> on The Colbert Report<\/a><\/i>[1]<\/a><\/sup> with his ability to “undermine the league\u2019s resident apologists and party-liners.”[3]<\/a><\/sup> PFT Commenter often overpraises white players for their blue-collar attitudes, criticizes black players for being selfish and overrated, and \u201ceagerly takes the truth-y NFL party line on every possible issue\u201d.[1]<\/a><\/sup> In response to criticisms of his poor spelling, he wrote, “Im on record that I dont care about spelling, I care about TELLING.”[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n

PFT Commenter began as a commenter on ProFootballTalk.com[4]<\/a><\/sup> before starting the @PFTCommenter Twitter account in 2012 and eventually becoming a contributor for SBNation, Kissing Suzy Kolber and Football Savages.[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n

PFT Commenter has also written a self-published[2]<\/a><\/sup>e-book<\/a>, Goodell vs. Obama: The Battle for the Future of the NFL<\/i>, which imagines a dystopian<\/a> future in which PresidentBarack Obama<\/a> attempts to turn the Dallas Cowboys<\/a> into a soccer team in Kenya, and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell<\/a> fights him in a boxing match to stop him.[5]<\/a><\/sup><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

To be honest, good for him. \u00a0He has built a cult following out of giving hot takes on the game’s most talked about players and made a living off of it. \u00a0He is popular mainly because of our football-obsessed culture in America and our constant need to talk about\u00a0something<\/em> related to the sport. \u00a0But as they say, don’t hate\u00a0the player. \u00a0Hate the game.<\/p>\n

That game is the Flacco debate. \u00a0But here is why we shouldn’t be doing this: it won’t help the Ravens win or lose any games. \u00a0It’s a futile discussion to have. \u00a0Most of all? \u00a0Joe Flacco has one more ring than anyone debating whether he is elite or not. \u00a0That says it all.<\/p>\n

There’s no reason to debate this; it’s not important. \u00a0It fills the time until the NFL season starts and gives sports pundits something to talk about related to football. \u00a0And, do you know the best part? \u00a0People will probably try to determine his “eliteness” by quantifying his value to their fantasy teams. \u00a0That is the culture of NFL fandom, ladies and gentlemen.<\/p>\n

So this debate is stupid and ridiculous. \u00a0But here’s the problem:<\/p>\n

It’s not going away anytime soon.<\/p>\n