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\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "When The Music's \n" ); document.write( "Over, Turn Out The Lights
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document.write( " Jerry Rice | \n" );
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![](\"http://www.sportznutz.com/columns/rantin'_ravin'/images/Rice.jpg\")
Shortly before Memorial Day \n" ); document.write( "there was a slight murmur if not necessarily a buzz in the Mile High City and \n" ); document.write( "across the nation as the GOAT (Greatest of All-Time) at his position, Jerry \n" ); document.write( "Rice, agreed to a one-year contract with the Broncos. Reaction across the \n" ); document.write( "country has been one of basic shock and dismay. The general feeling among fans \n" ); document.write( "seems to range from a bit of sadness and disbelief to hand-wringing from those \n" ); document.write( "who don't want to see Rice end his illustrious career with mediocre statistics \n" ); document.write( "amid a flurry of uniform changes. In other words, nobody wants to see Rice go \n" ); document.write( "through what Unitas, Namath, and Simpson endured. All of these players ended \n" ); document.write( "their careers in foreign cities and as shells of their former selves. Baltimore \n" ); document.write( "Colts legendary quarterback John Unitas finished his career in Chargers powder \n" ); document.write( "blue while Jets great Joe Namath finished his in the Rams blue and gold. O.J. \n" ); document.write( "Simpson ultimately faded away (from his playing days anyway) in Rice's former \n" ); document.write( "trademark, the 49ers Red and Gold.
\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Meanwhile, far removed \n" ); document.write( "from the Rocky Mountains just north of the Chesapeake Bay in Baltimore, only two \n" ); document.write( "weeks later GOAT cover cornerback and Rice’s former teammate Deion Sanders \n" ); document.write( "agreed to a second consecutive one-year contract tender from the Baltimore \n" ); document.write( "Ravens. This was perhaps less criticized than Rice's travels because \n" ); document.write( "“Primetime” had already logged several different uniforms in his hey day prior \n" ); document.write( "to retiring after the 2001 season as a member of the Washington Redskins. \n" ); document.write( "Critics were quick to come out and roundly dismiss Sanders' return as a money \n" ); document.write( "grab and someone who could simply not let go of the spotlight.
\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "In both of the cases of \n" ); document.write( "Rice and Sanders, without a doubt the two greatest players at their positions in \n" ); document.write( "the modern era, critics expressed concern over the legacy these players would \n" ); document.write( "leave behind. Why, they argued, would Rice come back and be forced to compete \n" ); document.write( "for a third or fourth receiver position when exactly ten years ago he was close \n" ); document.write( "to having two thousand yards receiving in a season? Why subject the fans to \n" ); document.write( "such mediocrity? Why, they questioned, would Sanders elect to come back when \n" ); document.write( "he, like Rice, had already accomplished the personal goals, accumulated many \n" ); document.write( "personal accolades, along with accomplishing the ultimate team goals of winning \n" ); document.write( "Super Bowl championships? Are these living legends returning based on \n" ); document.write( "motivation to end their careers searching for that elusive world championship a \n" ); document.write( "la Cam Neely? Clearly the answer is no, they are not.
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document.write( " \n" ); document.write( " Deion Sanders | \n" );
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![](\"http://www.sportznutz.com/columns/rantin'_ravin'/images/deion.jpg\")
\n" ); document.write( "While Sanders has \n" ); document.write( "expressed that he does want to go out on top, which in his case means winning a \n" ); document.write( "championship with Baltimore as the third cornerback on their depth chart. His \n" ); document.write( "role on the Ravens last year and this year will be that of the nickel back who \n" ); document.write( "comes on the field, usually on third downs, or in otherwise obvious passing \n" ); document.write( "situations. Sanders contributed three interceptions last season and even took \n" ); document.write( "one back the distance for a touchdown while playing in only five games. Rice \n" ); document.write( "and Sanders are continuing to play, not to tarnish their perfect track record as \n" ); document.write( "some fans feel, but for the love of the game, the competition, and the \n" ); document.write( "camaraderie. Besides, if Jim Brown and Barry Sanders can “quit” at the height \n" ); document.write( "of their Olympian careers then maybe we should stand up and applaud Jerry Rice \n" ); document.write( "for even participating in this discussion at age forty-three. I have not heard \n" ); document.write( "any talk about how we as fans should enjoy Rice's drive and determination and \n" ); document.write( "support him in his battle to win a roster spot in Denver. Sure it may seem \n" ); document.write( "beneath him to be forced to battle Darius Watts for a position; however, Rice \n" ); document.write( "does not see it as such. To Rice, it is all in the competition and if you at \n" ); document.write( "age forty-three can compete with literally men half your age then you should be \n" ); document.write( "applauded for your efforts.
\n" ); document.write( "While \n" ); document.write( "many will continue to deride and mock Deion and Jerry for their dedication to \n" ); document.write( "the game, Rantin’ and Ravin’ will not get caught up in such blasphemy. For we \n" ); document.write( "know and appreciate the fact that at any given moment these two old timers are \n" ); document.write( "better than players half their age and while they may not dominate as they did \n" ); document.write( "in the prime, they can still go out on the field and make game-changing plays to \n" ); document.write( "help their teams win. We would also argue that it would stand to reason that if \n" ); document.write( "you can appreciate a Freddy Adu and a Michelle Wie then surely you could enjoy \n" ); document.write( "this generation’s Satchel Paige (with apologies to Julio Franco). To that end \n" ); document.write( "we are most importantly marking down December 11th on our calendars \n" ); document.write( "because on that day in Mile High we just may get to see Deion Sanders lined up \n" ); document.write( "on Jerry Rice once again. While others may bemoan their declining skills and \n" ); document.write( "alleged tainting of their greatness of yesterday, I will be on the edge of my \n" ); document.write( "seat admiring possibly the greatest wide receiver-cornerback battle in NFL \n" ); document.write( "history for what would seem to be one final time.
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| \n" ); document.write( " Selected Past \n" ); document.write( " Rantin' and Ravin' Columns | \n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( " |
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document.write( " Coming Out Of The Large \n" );
document.write( "Muscle-Bound Shadows Of The Juiced-Up Era \n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Sizing Up This Year’s \n" ); document.write( "Field – The 2005 American League Pennant Chase \n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Sizing Up This Year’s \n" ); document.write( "Field – The 2005 National League Pennant Chase \n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Birds Eye View: Memorial \n" ); document.write( "Day Showdown In Beantown | \n" );
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