Adam Teicher just doesn’t get it. Today, he offered a half-hearted “Sippio peace offering” that, in reality, was him gloating and rubbing salt in the wound. What an intolerable prick.
Obviously, Teicher is nothing more than a journalist hack covering the Chiefs, one who has never been a fan of the Chiefs, or possibly anything for that matter. I doubt he’s even a fan of his own writing–I wouldn’t be. The way he and some Chiefs fans have treated Sippio has disgusted me. I’m not a guy who chastises people, but shame on you all. Bobby Sippio embodied the spirit of the fans, like Vince Papale, another No. 83, did with the Eagles roughly 30 years ago.
In an era when sports fans can’t relate to professional athletes, fans could relate to Sipp. Sippio didn’t have a mega-deal of a contract, or even a mini-deal for that matter. He didn’t become an All-American while playing at a Big 12 or SEC school. He wasn’t drafted by the NFL. Unlike his cousin Dwayne Bowe, he doesn’t have a big mouth. He never seemed to be about the glitz and glam. He seemed to be a lunch-pail player fighting to keep his dream alive. Despite the improbable nature of his journey towards his dream, he never stopped trekking forward.
The richest of Johnson County aside, I still view Kansas City as a lunch-pale Midwestern town. I certainly see Chiefs fans as a hard-working, blue-collar, lunch-pale group who works their asses off all week just to get to Sunday. When Sunday finally arrives, they want to see guys wearing the Red and Gold that they can relate to, that they can say, hey, he’s one of us. Bobby’s not the first of these guys. Not even close.
Marc Boerighter was one of these guys. Like Sippio, he was a longshot from another league (the CFL). Like Sippio, his heart outmeasured all of his measurables. More gutsy than talented, more driven than blessed. Hey, there are a lot of us who can relate to that. Bennie Thompson was another one of these guys. He was also a former CFL player who played for four NFL teams due solely to his fearless, reckless special teams play. While watching Bennie play, one got the feeling that he would have stepped in front of a dump truck on the field in order to stay on it. Chiefs fans dig that, because there are many of us who would at least think about doing the same just to don the Red and Gold one time, for one play. The latest one of these guys was Boomer Grigsby, who’s personality gave him the lunch-pale persona more than his story did. Undrafted fullback Tony Richardson is probably the most popular of these guys, at least to come along recently. Chris Horn is another good example. So is Gary Stills, an NFL Europe castoff who came back and made a Pro Bowl as a special teamer, as Dante Hall’s personal escort to the endzone (he’s got a new team, by the way).
The big question: how could a regular person with a still-beating heart root against these underdogs? But root against Sipp some did.
Sippio was the anti-Ryan Sims. Sims had jaw-dropping talent. All he had to do after being picked sixth and handed millions was work hard and try to live up to the hype. He didn’t work hard (except shopping–ask me about it sometime in a chat), and he certainly didn’t live up to the hype. Sipp was the exact opposite. Undrafted and handed thousands, he was a longshot to make the team at best. But he gave it his all. How many Chiefs can we say that about? I can rattle off about 50-60 guys from this decade who didn’t. Probably even more. No doubt about it.
Chiefs fans are also good-natured folks who want their team to represent them and their values. It’s always been that way, and hopefully always will. While players like Bam Morris and Greg Wesley don’t fit this mold, Sippio absolutely did.
Story is also a huge part of it. Hard Knocks may have introduced Sipp’s story to us, but we didn’t need the slickness of HBO and NFL Films to sell us his story. Any warm-blooded, hard-working American football fan could relate. Most professional athletes were pampered in high school, more pampered in college and even more pampered in the pros. I love Larry Johnson, but is it easier to root for multimillionaire and Roc boy L.J. bitching about blocking when he refuses to get his nose in there and block himself, or a guy basically off the street giving every inch of his being to the cause of sticking with an NFL squad? I don’t need to answer that question for you.
Sippio was one of us. A reject from the AFL chasing his improbable dream. He was a hard-working class act who represented the Red and Gold and its fans extremely well. Watching him reminded all of us dreamers that if we continue to press, no matter how unlikely, we can put ourselves in position to grasp the dreams that seem so very far away from us. He reminded us to get up when we knocked down, even when others think it’s crazy or even foolish. To will yourself to go up and get that ball, even if the guy you’re going up against has more God-given talent. That, my fellow Addicts, is called heart. Chiefs fans have it, but our team could use more of it.
Unless Sippio comes back again, this closes the book on Sipp. But I first want to thank him for inspiring us all, for bringing out our inner-Rocky and -Rudy. A slow former small-college D-back turned AFL receiver who came within centimeters of sticking with the Chiefs. His feet were slow, so he dedicated himself to having character, guts, hands and heart.
Thank you, Bobby. You showed us how far an overachiever can go when he works his ass off. Meanwhile, Teicher and the Sippio Haters just showed us their ass.
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Not a Sippio hater but would you care for an order of french cries to go with that Whaa burger?
Only kidding.
I think somebody needs a hug.
I’ll give you a stack of whapjacks if you keep smarting off like that. Just kidding…
Someone just needed to stand up to Teicher’s bullshit and spell out clearly once and for all why so many Chiefs fans invested in and rooted for Sippio. Obviously, he doesn’t get Chiefs fans at all. At all.
Hey, if it helps any, I wish Sipps all the best and hope he can “catch” on with another team.
Oh, I’m fine with it. Shit happens. What I wasn’t fine was the incendiary attacks on Sippio supporters. He was a guy we should all have been rooting for. There aren’t a ton of those guys out there these days.
Teicher is indeed a douchebag. Good call there.
At least Whitlock is entertaining. To be boring and a jerk? That’s quite the combo.
You know I liked Sippio to, but I think measuring this situation to Papale is a bit of a stretch.
It was a good run Sip’. A good run.
He wasn’t Papale. Papale was one of a kind (or close) What I was saying is that we liked Sipp for the same reasons Philly fans embraced Papale, and that Chiefs fans embraced the other guys I listed.
Teicher is most definitely a giant bag of douche. Why the KC Star still employs him is beyond me. He has to have some serious dirt on his editor or something because he is the single worst writer I’ve ever seen.
As for Sippio, I’m going to miss him as well. I thoroughly enjoyed watching him play the game; something I can’t say about 90% of the other players in the NFL. He didn’t do it for fame, he did it because he loves the game. Any Chiefs fan can respect that. Best of luck to him in his career.
Teicher is one of those guys who simply have no tact. He’s opinionated, rude, and condescending.
As far as Sippio, I guess I was one of the leaders of the “drop Sippio” crowd, so I’ll put in my 2 (or 42) cents. I think the issue some of us had with the Sippio craze was the lack of logic some of his supporters showed in their promotion of him. I got so tired of hearing he was Dwayne Bowe’s cousin – as if being so suddenly made him a future Pro Bowler. Anybody remember Billy Ripken (wrong sport I know)? And he was a brother to a hall of famer.
A knowledgeable fan could see Sippio for what he was. A 4th receiver type, good for blocking and red zone plays, but not fast enough to start. And he seemed like a good guy and I would have been happy for him if he had made the team. But to put him on a pedestal without him having ever done anything in a regular season game is silly.
Meanwhile, the anti-Webb comments seemed to accompany every pro-Sippio comment. especially from my friend Adam. You have a guy in Sippio who has done nothing yet in his NFL career being counted on as a “big improvement” over Webb – a WR who has actually produced. Now being realistic Webb is never going to be a star either. However, he has got some ability and was drafted. In very limited time he produced catches and yards. And when you throw facts back at the Pro-Sippio, Anti-Webb crowd, they react with disbelief.
“You say Webb is only 6 pounds lighter and the same height as Sippio – Well Sippy seems bigger!”
“What Webb only dropped 4 out of 31 balls last year ? Well it seemed like he dropped more”
“Webb only has 2 starts in his career and just 1 year of playing WR- well it just seems likes he’s had too many chances”
The fact is that Webb is just a little better than Sip and that’s why he made the team. There was no conspiracy, no family favorites, etc. The best players make the team. Sippio is a good story and I hope he keeps trying to latch on – I would even love to have him back in KC if we had an injury. But I think the right men made the team.
I’ve gotta step out for a while, but you can bet your bottom dollar I will be back to refute this later. Sippio smack and wetting yourself over Webb in the same comment. That, my friend, I cannot let stand. Like Ah-nold, I will be back.
Anyone else think we should start mailing Douche bags to the KC star?
Just to Teicher and the photo/graphics guy. That would feed into Jabba’s attention craving.
I never had anything against Sippio, I just thought the amount of attention he got for being a very mediocre NFL player was both bizzare and humorous.
It’s one thing to love the little guy, but the little guy has got to have enough talent to have a chance, otherwise theres no point.
Sippio had some good qualities (primarily I think he was kept around to help teach the young guys), if he didn’t Herm wouldn’t have kept him around as long as he did. But really Sippio never had a chance. Not because of some secret conspiracy amongst all the scouts in the NFL to keep him out. Not because of some RIDICULOUS favoritism thing. Quite simply, Sippio does not have the traits that matter of a succesful NFL WR, and no amount of TD catches against 3rd or 4th string defenses are going to change that.
By the way, agree with you on Teicher. Complete idiot that makes up half his stories. Anyone remember when he reported that Paul Hackett was going to be our new offensive coordinator? How about moving Donnie Edwards to MLB that he talked about for months as though it were a foregone conclusion?
Yeah. Total hack.
incredibly well writen post……and again I feel you captured the soul of the issue. However I do see the other side of this and while i disagree with some of your points, I see the soul side of your arguement as a total winner!!! We all secretly hope to see someone fight to get to the top and most certainly he deserves some recognition. I think your post did credit to him and his dream….and all of our dreams!!! Great job…
Bobby is at least an inch taller than Webb. Seeing them stand next to each other at the Tennessee game, I would say Sipp is closer to 6′4″, while Webb is closer to 6′2″. There is something to how you carry weight to, as those of us who watch Boxing and MMA know very well. Just like fighting big, there is playing big. Like in basketball, Barkley was only 6′5″ and Rodman was probably only 6′7″. But they played much bigger. Sippio is like that, Webb is not.
Webb may have had 28 catches last year, but none of them came during crunch time. Too me, he’s had chances and hasn’t impressed me. Franklin, Price, Sipp, etc…all impressed me more despite having less of a shot. I’m telling you guys, Jeff Webb will never amount to anything in the NFL. That I guaran-damn-tee.
Anyone who doesn’t think that coaches are biased towards some players–especially when draft picks and big salaries are involved–needs a wake up call. Head coaches have huge egos, and never like to admit that they are wrong. That means sticking with their guys sometimes, even if it hurts.
I’m sorry that I’m not able to exercise the blind faith in Herm and Co. that you gentleman have shown. I just can’t instantly catalog every decision they make under the “right” category and forget about it. After what I’ve seen from the Herm term so far, I think I’m right to criticize and scrutinize the regime. After all, what in the hell have they shown me that should make me such an enthusiastic believer in this rebuilding project? Most of these rebuilds flop. In some ways, they are off to a pretty good start, but they have a lot of work left and a lot to prove. A lot to prove.
This story was more about Bobby and why we root for underdogs, but, yes, part of my frustration about Bobby and other things is definitely an indictment of Herm. I’m not going to be on a permanent honeymoon with this guy. He’s got to deliver at some point.
Thanks, writer!
And at least we all agree that Teicher is worthless.
I’ll tell you the reason I’m not too keen on Webb, right after I throw out some stats..
Webb’s been activated for 26 games, in 2 years, as a Chief. He had 14 games where he had ZERO, NADA, ZILCH catches. That’s over half, and that’s not good, but moving on. 4 games he played in, he had ONE catch. In 3 games, he had 2 catches apiece. And in only 5 games has he been ‘productive’, with 3+ catches.
That sucks. But hey, at least it’s still better than Devard Darling’s numbers, which are horrendous, so I will give Webb his props. But still..
Webb has one touchdown. One. And that came in the waning minutes of our season-ending loss to the Jets last year. You may remember it.. We threw to Webb practically the WHOLE second half. He had 4 catches in that game. Dwayne Bowe needed 5 more yards to get 1,000 yards, as a ROOK. He never got the chance, even a chance, to catch the ball. Webb got 95% of the throws. And he got a trash touchdown in the last moments of the game. Props to him, but still, you can’t tell me that makes sense. They threw to Tony G. in that second half. He already had 1,000 yards. He’s established. He was double covered. Brodie can try to hit him, in double coverage, but DBowe is off limits? Go back and look at the game film if you can, and see why I’m frustrated. I thought something was fishy then, and after learning that Herm’s son is friends with Jeffrey Leon ‘the Cowardly Lion’ Webb, I’d have to say yeap, yes indeedy; Hermie is playing favorites.
That’s why I dislike Webb. Not because he’s garbage, although his stats aren’t exactly awe-inspiring, but because he got the special treatment in the 2nd half of the last game, when DBowe needed a measely 5 frakin’ yards. Seriously. Seriously? Seriously.
The first year Webb played he did not line up as a WR at all except for the 4th quarter at Pittsburgh. He had 3 catches for 23 yards. The rest of the time he was a kick returner and special teams player.
Last year, he started 2 games. He had 7 catches for 68 yards in this 2 games. Projected out, that is about accurate for his ability level. In 16 games he would have 56 catches for 544 Yards. That’s realistic.
Another key Webb stat is this: In just 12 games last year, 10 of them as a backup, he had 10 3rd down catches. DBowe, starting 15 games and basically playing every snap had 20. That’s what I like about Webb. I think he can be the Bobby Engram-lite type and get those tough 3rd down catches as the 3rd or 4th receiver. I don’t think the Chiefs see him as starter material and I agree. But the boy can play and be an asset to his team.
Oh and what the hell does the DBowe 995 situation have to do with Webb? Obviously in the last game of the year they wanted to see what Webb could do as a starter before the offseason rolled around and they had to figure out how many WRs they needed. For reasons we will never find out, they wouldn’t throw to Bowe to get his yards over a 1000. Keeping his ego in check, some sort of contract bonus, or something else? No one but Herm knows, but given that they weren’t throwing to him they could have thrown it to anyone else. They threw to Webb to see what he had. That doesn’t make Webb a bum.
Well said Main!
oh my god i can relate to this article so much…i yhink im bout to cry…god i wish he would have made the team.
Thanks, spyke and JohnNdallas.
Long Post Warning (I guess you could say xxxlp stands for eXtra eXtra eXtra Long Post.)
Maine, they specifically threw to him well more than 4 times in that second half. He only had 4 catches in the game, total. If he had caught more balls, well, that’s a different story. They didn’t throw to Bowe, but tossed it to Webb what seemed like thousands of times in that game, and he had 4 catches. That’s why.
As for the D-Bowe contract bonus evasion; if that was indeed the case, then it solidifies our status as the ‘Cheaps’. We have cap space, I don’t think a 200-300k bonus or whatever it would have been would have killed us, or severely hurt us in any shape or form. When it comes down to D-Bowe staying here or going somewhere else and making more money, it’s going to be the little things like this that could sway the decision.
And projected stats are nice; but they are that. Projected. If Webb HAD been consistent, he would have ‘realistically good’ numbers. However, he wasn’t. Only 5 games with 3+ catches, realstically project that out. Saying he gets 3 catches a game, and assuming we won’t get to the playoffs, which is.. a pretty safe assumption, then he’s going to have 48 catches, and that’s being generous. Real generous.
LJ was projected for well over 1,000 yards last year. Nice how that worked out, wasn’t it?
Less than one third down grab a game, and you say he’s Bobby Engram-lite? =/. Seriously, he better make a catch. On third downs, Tony G. was being manhandled by AT LEAST two guys, gauranteed. D-Bowe, after the start of the season, and especially after LJ went down, was also being double covered. If Webb or anyone else couldn’t grab a third down ball with very loose zone coverage, or being otherwise wide-open due to help going elsewhere, then they should look into playing the other football, aka futbol, aka soccer; as you don’t need your hands to play that sport.
Then again, with our predictable offense last year, I’m surprised ANYONE grabbed a first down pass, on third down.
And thanks for making my point: ‘The first year Webb played he did not line up as a WR at all except for the 4th quarter at Pittsburgh. He had 3 catches for 23 yards. The rest of the time he was a kick returner and special teams player.’
The same people that have said Sippio didn’t earn his chance to play, can’t understand that Webb hasn’t merited much time either.
People can’t see why we were high on Sippio, but you can go gah-gah over Webb, whose play and stats haven’t warranted anything nice? You’re the one who brings logic into the equation. Where’s the logic behind being a Webb fanboy?
I’m going to question him, and continue to do so, until he consistently shows he can perform up to par, that goes for every Chief. I questioned D-Bowe when he first came out, and he came into his own, especially as the season progressed. I’m doing the same thing with DVD and Webb, who both combined don’t have the stats D-Bowe has produced in one year, and they’ve had a combined 6 years to get it. Like Adam says, when they earn their Arrowhead, well then; I’ll give them their due.
Earn your Arrowhead! You got it, xxxlp