Tweet Thoughts on the NFL and NHL

Recently, as you've probably all heard by now, the NHL has instituted a policy for social media, and more specifically Twitter. Here is the article in the Toronto Star. The NHL has banned tweeting before and after games due to it's ability to shed a negative light on their sport and brand. Way to hop on the bandwagon. As usual, the North America's 4th professional league is the last to adopt anything, as the NFL, NBA and MLB all have policies instituted.

According to both league and media representatives, Twitter and its 140 character limit of one's thoughts, are completely changing professional sports. Yup. Coaches must be changing how they gameplan and practice alright. In fact, touchdowns and goals aren't allowed if the scorer didn't properly tweet using all 140 characters prior to the score.

ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown ran an article on Sunday Morning that, while being produced well, was full of scare tactics the likes of which is generally reserved for Fox News. Twitter is not a game changer. TO was sounding off long before social media. Joe Namath shared what he thought without his cell phone. It won't affect anything coaches or players do regarding the game. What Twitter does do, is remove the boundary between the athlete and the fan, allowing for accessibility.

Twitter and its access to people's thoughts is blamed for the controversy surrounding Rashard Mendenhall, Jay Cutler and Chad Ochocinco (well, probably not Ochocinco), as well as many other professional athletes. Yes, this can be a concern, as it allows for a direct dialogue between the athlete and fan, and most athletes have not taken classes on public relations and proper communication. The athlete does not only represent his or her own brand, but also that of their team (which includes teammates, coaches, owners, and all other employees) and that of the league. It is the responsibility of the athlete to be professional with their social media, but that still leaves plenty of room for personality.

The Start of a Great Thing

This is the first blog (of what will hopefully be many) I've ever written. Not sure where to start. I guess the first thing I'll talk about is the Bills 2011 season.

Ryan Fitzpatrick has been lighting it up in Chan Gailey's offense (7 TD passes NFL lead). While his yardage is limited (472), his percentage is above average(63.4%) and he's only been sacked once. How good can this Harvard graduate led offense be? We'll see Sunday. My guess? Pretty darn good. Chan Gailey has a history of taking average players and making them good.

Fred Jackson appears to be on a mission to make 2010 1st Round Pick C.J. Spiller obsolete, (35 carries to Spiller's 9, 3 receptions to Spiller's 2). This undrafted product of Coe College (anyone know of another alum?) has been an all-heart player for the Bills since 2007, and has already ran another previous 1st rounder out of town (Marshawn Lynch). While I'm not usually impressed with running backs, Jackson's heart (similar to that of another personal favourite Brown's Peyton Hillis) continues to impress.

The only glaring problem I see right now is their defense. Yes, there could be more problems, but for now, they're 2-0 and the offense is on a roll. The defense, on the other hand, allowed 35 points to the Raiders (a team which was held to 23 points versus the terrible Broncos defense). This week they take on all-everything QB Tom Brady and his league-leader passing offense. Can they hold up? Or will we witness an amazing shootout similar to Sunday's Raiders game?

My prediction? Patriots 35 - Bills 27.