Tiki Barber

[Guest Felonies!]

Looks like Tiki Barber is pissed at the MNF guys for implying that his retirement announcement will be a distraction. Distraction or not, it's pretty self-involved to say you're retiring with ten weeks plus playoffs left in the season and thrust all this attention to yourself. If anybody on the defenses he faces wants to expedite his retirement, that's fine. Who cares? He already quit on his team.

[Guest Princess Leena]

2 great years, and 2 very good years will not be enough to get Tiki in.

 

Compare him to Thurman Thomas, who had 5 great all-purpose RB years like that, plus 4 SB appearances and a much longer, productive career. He wasn't even 1st ballot.

 

And I concur, Fuck Tiki for doing this. Fuck him even more if he has any desire to return again, also.

[Art Sandusky 0]

He didn't want people to know. The New York Times reported the story long before he wanted to make any kind of announcement. The guy's more than just a football player, and I'm happy to see one of the stars of the league saying that there's a life outside the sport. It sets a great example.

[Guest Felonies!]

Shouldn't he have said "we'll see" rather than "yes! I will retire. Nothing will change my mind. I am about to retire, and then I am done." so as to kind of just deflect the whole thing? He is one of football's good guys, which makes all this whoring kind of puzzling.

[Brett Favre 0]

It's not a surprise really.

[Art Sandusky 0]

Which is more distracting, uncertainty or something that's set in stone?

[naiwf 0]

When a guy who is in the mix for league MVP causes a controversy about retiring while his team is in position to win the division, I'd say that something being set in stone is more distracting in this instance.

[Guest Felonies!]

Which is more distracting, uncertainty or something that's set in stone?

In this case, I'd say set in stone. I think it would've been better to kind of downplay the whole thing than just become a lame duck.

[tominator89 0]

I don't see why anyone is upset with Tiki for announcing a retirement. At least he's not pulling a Brett Farve and keeping everyone hostage.

 

I think some of these people are complaining because Tiki has a future after football and he'll walk away from the game on his terms. Perhaps some of these expert TV personalities are concerned that Tiki will eventually take their job.

[Guest Felonies!]

He should start by taking Michael Irvin's. As for = Favre, not quite, because what would happen is he'd say "I'll wait until the end of the year to make a decision but right now I'm not retiring," then retire at the end of the year, and it's over. No year-to-year bullshit that sabotages the front office.

[KingPK 0]

Which is more distracting, uncertainty or something that's set in stone?

In this case, I'd say set in stone. I think it would've been better to kind of downplay the whole thing than just become a lame duck.

 

And have the media on his back every week trying to make him admit he's retiring? That, in my mind, is MUCH more of a distraction than Barber just letting the cat out of the bag and having to deal with the Michael Irvin's of the world (tell me, isn't getting caught with crack even MORE of a distraction than what Tiki did?).

[Guest Paul]

I'm saddened Tiki will go, and I DO think he will leave at the end of the season.

 

I don't think it's a distraction to the Giants, though. They know they have him NOW and will utilize that.

[Precious Roy 0]

Looks like Tiki Barber is pissed at the MNF guys for implying that his retirement announcement will be a distraction. Distraction or not, it's pretty self-involved to say you're retiring with ten weeks plus playoffs left in the season and thrust all this attention to yourself. If anybody on the defenses he faces wants to expedite his retirement, that's fine. Who cares? He already quit on his team.

 

I don't understand this whole, "he quit on his team" logic AT ALL.

 

Isn't he still out on the field playing hard and producing?

 

What about all the players who announce that they're retiring before their last season? Did Jerome Bettis "quit on his team" last year when he said it was his last year?

 

It's this whole mentality that athletes shouldn't retire in their prime. Why not? They're not slaves to the fucking game. Football takes a huge toll on the body. If someone wants to retire at age 32 more power to them. It's the same shit that Jim Brown got. And of all people, Tiki has been a standup guy and model citizen throughout his career, to accuse him of "quitting on his team" is just assinine.

 

And don't even get me started on Michael Irvin. This is the same guy who defends Terrell Owens to the death.

[Guest Princess Leena]

The quitting on his team stuff is BS. He leads the league in rushing. It's not like he's half-assing it out there.

 

I still think he's wrong to bring this up in the middle of the season, though.

 

And I think it's great if Tiki has a career outside of football. I'd take him anyday over just about every former player doing NFL blabber work.

[Precious Roy 0]

The quitting on his team stuff is BS. He leads the league in rushing. It's not like he's half-assing it out there.

 

I still think he's wrong to bring this up in the middle of the season, though.

 

And I think it's great if Tiki has a career outside of football. I'd take him anyday over just about every former player doing NFL blabber work.

 

I can go either way on the middle of the season thing, but with Tiki there's been rumblings for a couple years that he would retire early, it's not like it should be a surprise to his teammates, the organization, or the fans.

 

Plus, it's basically come out that he wasn't planning on making a formal announcement, but rather he made what he thought was an off the record comment and a reporter ran with it.

 

I'm just really sick of everyone, media and fans, doing everything they can to turn sports into a soap opera. Focus on the fucking game. I don't fucking care about the Tiki Barber CONTROVERSY~! All these fans and talking heads saying he's causing a distraction to his team, look in the mirror, YA'LL are the ones blowing it out of proportion and putting it out there 24/7. Y'ALL are the ones causing the distraction! It's the same deal that happened with A-Rod, everyone bitched about how he couldn't handle playing in New York, or booed him during games, fucking self fufilling prophecy. It infuriates me.

[Guest Felonies!]

Y'ALL AINT NOTHIN

[hyperchord24 0]

The quitting on his team stuff is BS. He leads the league in rushing. It's not like he's half-assing it out there.

 

I still think he's wrong to bring this up in the middle of the season, though.

 

And I think it's great if Tiki has a career outside of football. I'd take him anyday over just about every former player doing NFL blabber work.

I think the thing that gets lost in all of this is that Michael Irvin is an idiot.

[Krankor 0]

I can go either way on the middle of the season thing, but with Tiki there's been rumblings for a couple years that he would retire early, it's not like it should be a surprise to his teammates, the organization, or the fans.

 

Exactly. Tiki Barber was a guest on PTI before the season started. He basically said that if the Giants were able to win the Super Bowl this year it would make it pretty easy for him to walk away from the game because he would have accomplished everything he wanted to in the NFL. He then said that if they didn't win he'd have a harder time walking away. He never said 'I'm definitely going to retire after this season is over.' He said that it was a strong possibility but he never said that he was 100% done after this season. His future career as a broadcaster can easily be put on hold for one more year.

 

If the Giants do play well and advance pretty far in the playoffs but come up only 1 or 2 games short of the title and he still doesn't have any massive injuries he will come back to play again next year. No athlete that wants to win a title can come that close and just retire. Especially with an offense that is improving as Eli matures and a defense that has found a new life after their bye week this year.

 

I don't see why his possible retirement just now made big news just recently when he made these comments before the season.

 

The man clearly wouldn’t be retiring out of being selfish. If he wants to actually be able to play with his kids and not have to be in a wheel chair when he is older is that being selfish? Fuck no.

 

Even if he does retire after this season, people need to start understanding that most RB's bodies can't handle playing past the age of 32. They've had too many years of abuse to their body. It should be shocking that he is looking at what he’s going to do when he’s done with the game.

 

Just look at Curtis Martin. He has had an incredible career until his body hit its limit, when he turned 32 last season. Priest Holmes has had an amazing 3 ½ years, until he turned 30 and was destroyed by injuries. Corey Dillon turned 32 this past week. His production has steadily dropped last year. It was enough that the Pats new they should go out and draft his replacement. I fully expect Laurence Maroney to start at RB next year for the Pats.

 

Tiki is 31. If Tiki does stick around after this season he only has 1 or 2 more years left before his body will hit it's limit and he will be done. Tiki is smart he knows that he can only play at this level for a short while longer. If he has to pull a Bettis and try and get the team to win the Super Bowl for him just because he's retiring than he is smart by playing that card.

 

As for the HOF argument, if he retires after this year he isn’t going to be a first ballot HOF. He will get in eventually but not on the first try. If he plays next season and gets the same kind of stats he has throughout his career he will start to look better as a first ballot guy.

[The Niggardly King 0]

I think most of you would be better off not watching so much ESPN... really guys.

 

As far as this whole situation... I do think Tiki will retire after this year, unless if the Giants make it to the Super Bowl, and lose in a blowout... or if they make it to the NFC Championship game, and lose a close game. I do like Tiki and I think he's a Hall Of Famer later on down the road, how many years does he have, until he cannot be voted in? I say he gets it about 3 or 4 years before that deadline. He'll more than likely end up being a great guy in the booth... since he's a gracious and humble individual, who doesn't sound like a moron whenever he opens his mouth.

[randomguy 0]

I don't see the problem. If I am team-mate or exec I want to know who is leaving as soon as possible. As soon as they decide I want to know.

 

I'm not sure exactly how it came out but if he told his teammates and the execs it obviously would have come out anyway.

 

I don't have any problem with it unless he announced it to the media without tellin anyone around him first, and I don't think that is what happened.

 

As far as quitting on the team goes. Retiring is not quitting.