What happened to teamwork?

Prior to the 2007-2008 NFL season Sport Illustrated rated Peyton Manning the #1 player in the NFL. While it is next to impossible to compare players in the league because of the dramatic differences in their roles on the field, I found it interesting that Sports Illustrated would rank Peyton #1 when it was clear to anyone paying attention to the league that Brady was the QB most likely to win a ring that year. Ironically, it was Peyton's little brother that ultimately won that ring.

While virtually every Patriots fan would argue the Giants should not have won that Superbowl many would merely point out the Pats undefeated record prior to the Super Bowl including a prior win over the Giants. The Giants' comeback would be that those wins were by a small margin: 38-35 in the regular season.

However, a seriously analytical look at the Patriots vs. Giants reveals a much different picture. The Pats's QB was the leader in pass efficiency, completing 68.9% of his passes for a total of 4,806 yards. In fact, of the top 5 games for passing yards, Tom Brady held 4 of the 5 top spots. Eli, on the other hand, held not a single top 5 game for passing yards and completed only 56.1% with a total of 3,336 yards. New England became the home of some of the most renowned receivers in the league during their "spending spree" during the free-agency period as well as acquiring some key defensive players. The Pats acquired Washington, Stalworth, Moss, and a variety of others including luring Junior Seau out of retirement for the first time in hopes he'd finally win that ring his career earned but his team never did.

The GIants played decent football. They finished the regular season 10-6, behind the Cowboys and the Packers in their conference. Shockingly for a QB that he never won a playoff game prior to this season, Manning was able to beat the Packers and Brett Favre to earn their place in the Super Bowl. The win by Manning was so dramatic because of the frighteningly frigid temps on game day in Green Bay as well his inexperience compared to the veteran Favre. Let's face it, Eli Manning isn't that good and the Patriots should have won that Super Bowl. In fact, the Giants shouldn't have been there, all things considered.

Regardless, what matters at the end of the day is that ring. Both Manning brothers have achieved this - back-to-back - with Peyton winning in 2007 and Eli in 2008. But what does a ring really say about a QB? Absolutely nothing in my mind. After all, football is a team sport and while having a good QB is essential, they are worthless without receivers to pass to. LIkewise, without a good defense, an offensive line's efforts are in vain. To me, the failure to recognize the "team" collectively explains the shortfalls of Kobe Bryant and the Yankees. Fielding a team, as the Pats did in their 2007-2008 undefeated season, is the only true way to win.

You look at the salaries of players like A-Rod and wonder what the hell the Yankees are thinking agreeing to a $250 million contract (after refusing Scott Boras' demands for $350 million, forcing A-Rod to negotiate his own contract because Boras is such an ass hole he won't admit he's way too full of himself) when they don't even make the playoffs! On the other hand, the Red Sox get criticized for "not being able to afford" players like A-Rod. The truth is the Red Sox are the only other team in baseball that could consider fielding a decent team and paying such a ridiculous salary. The key is that Theo Epstein is unwilling to pay more for a player than the benefits that player can actually contribute to the team. If A-Rod were worth his asking price, I can assure you the Red Sox would have signed a deal with him, as would even less well-off teams in MLB. The fact is that the Yankees have lost sight of the concept of a team, much like the Lakers who worship Bryant and only tentatively consider adding another player with talent because of the tension that would ensure with Kobe's insane ego. This mentality is why the Celtics - fielding a team with KG, Pierce, and Allen - beat Kobe to win the Championship two years ago.

All of this is getting a somewhat far removed point, I am curious to see how Jake Cutler does in Chicago. Obviously, there is a lot of hype of this trade. Undoubtedly, Chicago is excited for a winning season. But, ultimately a QB means nothing without a team to back him. While all the pressure in the world is put on the QB, fans expectations can be too high based merely on the QB, ignoring the obvious that without good defense and offensive linemen, a QB can be the best in the league and still lose.