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Denver Native (Carol)
12-23-2009, 09:52 PM
http://blog.denverbroncos.com/jsaccomano/you-cant-force-love/

That headline is not really the title of a country song or a preview to a book on philosophy.

It is just an old saying of mine and others regarding the fact that there are at least two things you cannot command or direct from people, those being love and respect.

You can own a company, run a firm, have a relationship, or whatever, but it does not work if you demand love and/or respect.

When these come our way, they are given voluntarily, and all we can do is accept them and be humble about being loved.

That brings us to Denver broncos safety Brian Dawkins.

Playing for the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC East perhaps made Dawkins less well-known to some Denver fans than he might have been, but anything we say or write downplays how he is regarded in Philadelphia.

In the City of Brotherly Love, Brian Dawkins is revered as no other athlete has been in Eagles history. That is not my statement to make, but I am roughly paraphrasing what has been said and written about him numerous times by Philadelphians since Dawk’s arrival here in Denver.

Just today in the Philadelphia Daily News sports columnist Rich Hofmann wrote a wonderful piece about Dawkins and Philadelphians’ emotional attachment to him, quoting at length no less a figure than Eagles’ owner Jeffrey Lurie.

Jeffrey Lurie said, and again these are quotes from Rich Hofmann’s piece, “I miss Brian. My attitude is, he’s going to be with us probably longer than I live, the next 40, 50 years. He’s going to be one of those great Eagles you see come back. There will never be anybody more of a favorite. That’s not possible.”

Lurie went on to say that “I would have loved to have had him forever.”

There is no question that Dawk’s impact on this Denver team was immediate and absolute.

No one questions his role as the squad’s emotional leader, and his play is still of such a quality that he is frequently referred to as anywhere from a “potential” to a “likely” Hall of Famer.

He has two pass interceptions and three fumble recoveries for the Broncos this year, and that fumble recovery total is tied for the lead in the NFL this year. The combined takeaway total of five is tied for the Denver team high, and his hits are the kinds of jarring collisions that you remember no matter the outcome of the game in question.

Only three safeties in the history of the game have more Pro Bowl selections than Brian Dawkins.

It is going to be a very emotional day in Philadelphia on Sunday, certainly for Brian Dawkins — even more so given that his “normal” amp meter is off the charts — and of course for his wife Connie and family.

It’s going to be emotional as well for the passionate Eagles fans who will be rooting for a Philly win, but no doubt enjoying and appreciating the return of the city’s favorite son.

And Bronco fans should know and appreciate this as well.

This is one of those rare and special moments when the most popular player on the football field is possibly lining up for the visiting team.

You can’t force love. It only comes voluntarily.

Philadelphia fans are known for their toughness, especially directed toward the opposition. But this Sunday Bronco fans will watch the toughest fans in football spill their love onto a player in orange and blue.

Denver Native (Carol)
12-23-2009, 09:54 PM
http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/columnists/20091223_Rich_Hofmann__Eagles_owner_Lurie_on_Dawki ns__The_most_favorite_of_all.htm

JEFFREY LURIE says he can't wait to induct Brian Dawkins into the Eagles' honor roll, and that nobody will ever wear the No. 20 for as long as he has anything to say about it.

You can tell that the Eagles owner is sincere when he says, "I miss Brian. My attitude is, he's going to be with us probably longer than I live, the next 40, 50 years. He's going to be one of those great Eagles you see around the team, you see come back. There will never be anybody more of a favorite. That's not possible."

The "however" remains unspoken. It just lays there, though, like a persistent December snowbank.

Sunday is the day that wasn't supposed to happen, not to the people who love Dawkins. Because there is a football sense of things and there is a cosmic sense of things - and while it is hard to make a football argument that the Eagles would have won even one more game if Dawkins had been here this year, it is just as hard to argue that it is somehow right and proper and normal to see Dawkins' last Philadelphia game play out like this.

The arguments were made and remade over the summer, when the Eagles watched Dawkins take a big bag of money from the Denver Broncos, and the purpose is not to remake them here. But it shouldn't have happened.

Months later, Lurie was asked if he was confident that everything had been done to avoid it happening. The expectation was for a simple, declarative "yes" in reply. And, well, you be the judge.

"You know, I don't have an answer to that except that I trust the guys that were involved in it, and Andy [Reid]," Lurie said. "I remember in the end, my last conversation with them was encouraging them to . . . "

Then Lurie changed directions in midsentence.

"That's an unbelievable arrangement he had with Denver for this year, just great," Lurie said. "At some point, you've got to sort of let go, and he has to do what is best for his family there."

But did Lurie ever tell his negotiators just to pay Dawkins whatever it took to keep him?

"It never works that way," he said. "It just doesn't work that way. I mean, listen: I would have loved to have had him forever. But I have great respect for Andy and the guys, and they know. They usually deal with things very well. It's hard. You see it in the league with almost every great player. It's rare for that player to do his last 12 or 24 months with that team because of the free-agency system . . .

"Go through the list," Lurie said. "Hundreds. Hundreds."

He is not wrong. And it is true that Dawkins could have taken less money to stay in Philadelphia, if it meant that much to him. It is also true that as his speed diminished, the team spent more and more time essentially changing his position without telling anybody, playing Dawkins near the line of scrimmage more and more, lessening his pass coverage responsibilities whenever it could.

At the same time, the Eagles have run three different players through Dawkins' spot in the lineup this season, trying to fill it. So Lurie is asked if they have been successful there.

"That's not even the right question," he said, "because you've got to ask the question of, 'Was the utilization of whatever the salary-cap number for Denver was - $7 million this year - was it better used on Jason Peters? Is it better on a combination of [Leonard] Weaver and x, some player? It doesn't work, position by position."

Again, he is not wrong. It is just that, somewhere, you hoped that money wouldn't be how this thing went down in the end. Maybe that isn't realistic; I don't know. But you hoped.

hotcarl
12-23-2009, 11:22 PM
yay carol! :welcome: