Where to begin on Stevie Johnson…
It is probably overkill on my part when you consider that this is the site's 11th Stevie Johnson piece since 2011. Just when you think you can't write anything else about him, this shit happens. I gotta admit, I'm really tired of sticking up for Stevie. In fact, I'm sick of the whole scene.
I'm sick of lamestream media always trying to turn players we like into a controversial lightning rod. I read Paul Hamilton's piece yesterday and some of his talking points include being sick of Stevie spinning the ball after a catch and sulking when he doesn't get the ball. Really? This is what qualifies as controversial? These are reasons for cutting a guy? I'd be happy to show you a montage of about 200 WRs who have done this. Oh, and Hamilton said he'd leave Chandler alone because he's humble. Yeah, stay fucken old, white, and uncool forever, buddy.
On top of this, some people are making a big deal about Stevie not making a big deal about the fumble after the game. Are you serious? You assholes are probably the same people who thought the tears after his drop in Pittsburgh were over the top and if you remember, he ASKED to speak to the press at the podium after that game and people still killed him for his reaction. Then I was dumb enough to listen to WGR where callers were complaining about Stevie Johnson eating tacos the day before the game. Oh, and he has tattoos.
Um, what?! Can we go back to caring about Mario Williams' guns and mini-fridges?
Trust me, I was ready to throw Stevie Johnson into the sun Sunday night. But after I read and listened to this sort of bullshit for a while, I wanted to stick up for Stevie and throw old, white guys and WGR callers into the sun instead. That's why I have to stop being the Good Samaritan for Stevie. All the noise around him is clouding my vision about him and what kind of player he is.
Take away the lamestream talking points, the #billsmafia love, and the coolness of Stevie, and we have a bit of an overrated player with a silly dichotomy on our hands. Someone tweeted to me the other night night that the worst thing Stevie Johnson did was write a line from a movie on a t-shirt and show it to the world. That's a very astute observation. As much as that stunt really endeared him to us, I don't think we have been able to handle it well on all facets.
The media in this town continues to troll their audience because they know most fans are starfuckers and the press corp. are in love with getting a reaction. The happy fans can't separate production with popularity. The pissed off, irrational whiner line fans can't handle that he's a black man with a personality and has a life outside of football. And then you get Stevie, who probably shouldn't be counted on as being the guy/face of the franchise because he's good, but not great, and greatness is what should be attached to your franchise, not popularity.
Stevie wants to entertain and we want to be loved and when you mix those two elements together, you get a recipe for a sad, overcompensating relationship.
Stevie isn't a star. He's just a good player in a small town that has a serious football problem. We're the guy in our late 40s, a little worse for wear, a little washed up who knows he isn't a great catch but really wants to settle down. Stevie's the person we are settling with. He isn't the greatest, but hey, he's not terrible to look at either. I don't think Stevie would get this much attention in any other city if the team was the same, but desperate times call for desperate measures. The football fishbowl we live in can be unbearable.
The buck always seems to stop with the faces of the franchise and when you are a part of a losing culture, those heroes become villains as losing tends to outweigh the player's production with some of the fan base. When that shit happens, some of those fans want to strike down any athlete who they think is overpaid or has a personality. "Stevie Johnson is a hotdog and only cares about endorsements! He fumbled the ball because he's worried about entertaining!" or some bullshit.
Then you get the reaction to the reaction which has become a little over the top as well. Seriously, enough about the 3 straight years of going over 1,000 yards, especially since our franchise, for the most part, has been a laughing stock in terms of player history. 20 WRs went over the 1,000 yard mark last year alone. He's always wide open!! Just chill.
We just have to argue about something and I can't participate in this social experiment anymore. I don't even know why any "Star" player worth a damn would want to play here with the way we fuss over them.
I'm just over it.
Why the fuck do I even care anymore? I just want to punch everyone at this juncture because we can't handle this. We can't handle any sort of star in this town because the losing overwhelms everything else.
I think we have to strip away the outside stuff and the talking heads POVs to really decipher what we have here. No one seems to try and express an opinion about Stevie by just going off his stats. Instead, it becomes a debate about new school vs. old school. I've always said I don't give a crap what a player does off the field as long as he shows up on Sunday. But Stevie always draws me into that argument anyway.
Well, I'm done with that.
Stevie is kind of like Lee Evans in his prime here, except he has a personality. We argued that the team around him, especially the QB and offense, wasn't very good and maybe overrated him a bit because of that.
Stevie's not a #1 WR or an AJ Green/Calvin Johnson type. The numbers this season have him ranked 60th in receiving yards, 55th in yards per game, and 45th in catches. And although his drops and fumbles don't happen as much as some people would like to believe, they tend to come in crunch time moments. Also, Stevie hasn't exactly gotten better since 2010, has he? In fact, I think that was his best year and he didn't start until week 4 of that season. In the end, he's a good #2 guy and there's nothing wrong with that.
I'm sure if EJ got really good, Stevie would get to another level, but he can't dictate games like a #1 guy. Of course, you can't find those guys on trees. In a perfect world, I think you draft a guy high and keep Stevie in a transition year, giving him another shot at getting at least 90 catches. Hell, maybe go after a FA tight end. (Note: Scott Chandler sucks.).
It doesn't have to be one or the other with Stevie. He's well liked in the locker room and he's not a cancer by any stretch it would seem. He's only a cancer when it comes to unbearable radio topics or written drivel by everyone.
The best NFL teams seem to have 2 guys who can get you at least 70 catches. Hell, just go through the list of offensive teams that have won the SB since 1989. A good number of them had 1A and 1B types who were catching the ball.
Of course, perfect worlds don't exist when you are a Bills fan. Stevie's cap number next year is 8.5 million and even though the Bills wouldn't get much cap relief by cutting him, they would still be able to say adios when it comes to paying him. Hate to say it, but from a football standpoint, he may be expendable at that salary.
Forget the popularity contest. Forget the white noise from lamestreamers. Forget the finding the goodness in a bad football team. It is about production and the Bills have to feel he's worth it two years after signing his extension.
In the end, their opinion is the one that counts most, not ours.
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