Nobody Wants To Say Bad Things About Brian Dawkins

On his blog yesterday, Daily News columnist Rich Hoffman summed up the conventional wisdom on Brian Dawkins: He might be getting too slow. But look at all the recriminations beforehand:

I have to admit, up front, that my heart is not in this one. But you know, after the Dallas game, that people are now going to be asking the question if Brian Dawkins is done. I don’t think he is — but I honestly can’t decide if my judgment is being clouded by the fact that this is a conversation I just don’t want to be having. But here we are. Again, I don’t think he is done. But the conversation is a fair one at this point.

This is kind of the conventional wisdom on Brian Dawkins, too, incredibly: Eagles fans just don’t really want to complain about Brian Dawkins. Iggles Blog wonders if this is a Philadelphia first: “I’ve been racking my brain to come up with another time when Philly fans — as a whole — have been so loathe to complain about such an obvious slippage in on-field performance.”

Hmm, not sure, though one of those good-guy hockey types could have gotten away with it. But, hey, let it be known: If you say all the right things, play a little dirty and be one of the stalwarts of the defensive secondary for about a decade, Philadelphia fans will like you.

Has this ever happened before? [Iggles Blog]
The Dawkins Question [The Idle Rich]

A Philly Fan Of The Game If There Ever Was One

A loyal reader and Eagles fan (natch) writes in with the following anecdote from last night’s Eagles game:

I was at last night’s game (my uncle’s got season tix and he gave me this game as a graduation present). Anyway, we happened to be in the row with the LINCOLN FINANCIAL FAN OF THE GAME, which, as you know, gets selected at random somehow and receives a prize. Everyone in the row (Section 102 on the 40 yard line, row 17) got little Eagles fan of the game hand towels to wave around and wipe our sweaty brows with. This was midway through the fourth quarter, if memory serves.

Read on for the thrilling concludion.

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Giants Fan Can’t Take A Little Punch To The Face

In yesterday’s New York Times, a group of Giants fans whined to the paper about this dude being punched in the face after the Eagles’ loss to the Giants last month.

Also noted in the article were a reporter and cameraman for SNY, the Mets network, who had bagels thrown at them before the game, which is pretty effing awesome. (Okay, the tire-slashing after the game wasn’t so much. This is why Citizens Bank Park’s media parking is in fenced off-areas.)

Anyway: Wah wah wah. As we all know, Giants fans are virtual saints in the stands, never cursing, never fighting and certainly never throwing an ice ball that knocks out a San Diego Chargers trainer. (Hey, if you’re allowed to bring up old stuff, so am I. It’s fair play.)

And we all know that the fan punched in the face was not doing anything to provoke it. Of course, even if he was, it’s not okay to punch someone at a football game, especially when they’re wearing a suit and tie, as all Giants fans wear to games. And, of course, Eagles Communications Director Bonnie Grant said no security report had been filed, and nobody from that travel group had contacted the Eagles.

So not only are they Giants fans, they’re stupid Giants fans. Hey, you get punched at the game, you contact the Eagles nonstop until they give you some money to make you shut up!

It’s not all bad, though:

“It’s sad,” [one of the attacked fans] said, “because it takes the whole enjoyment out of going to a game.”

Sweet. He’s not going to go next year. More seats for us.

Editor’s Note: A little anecdotal evidence of my own. The dude in the ramp in front of us the entire game had a shirt on that said “DIE SHOCKEY DIE” on one side and “Kill Manning” on the other. If he didn’t punch anyone the entire game — a girl did slap him — well… let’s just say I am glad I wasn’t near rowdier fans. (Although he was pretty awesome.)

They’d Rather Not Be In Philadelphia [NYT]
Sept. 25: Giants Fans Continue To Prove They’re Stupidest In Nation

A real Philadelphia sports fan story

And now, the first great Philadelphia sports story of 2006: At yesterday’s Eagles-Redskins game, some poor Philadelphia woman, fed up with the Eagles shitty performance all season, got up and poured beer all over Redskins’ running back Clinton Portis’ mom, Rhonnel Hearn, who was sitting in the stands. (That’s Portis at left. And, no, I’m not kidding.)

And how did Hearn respond? Oh, nothing but a swift punch right back at the unidentified woman. Portis’ mom watched the rest of the game from the sideline. Says the Washington Post:

“She busted some lady in the nose, but that’ll just teach you about messing with her,” Portis said. “I think fans take that too serious. People come to the game to have a good time, that’s what you should do. If you decide your team is losing and you want to cause trouble, then you’re going to get what you’re looking for. And yesterday, whoever that fan was, they got what they were looking for.”

Of course I should, as a native Philadelphian, jump all over Portis’ mom. But, hey, she got beer poured on her — the only good Philadelphia thing to do would be to punch the person who did it right in the face. Plus, eh, as much as I love Philadelphia sports, sometimes Philadelphia sports fans are a little annoying at games. Oh, no, not you, dear reader. I mean the guy you don’t like.

In Philly, Mama Said Knock You Out [Washington Post]
Ma Sweets Will Punch You In The Mouth [Deadspin]