Steve Johnson: 10 Sports Figures Who Have More Legitimate Beefs With God
Steve Johnson has a bone to pick with the almighty. Don't we all? You might know Steve Johnson from such highlights as the dropped pass that would have beaten the Steelers on Sunday.
Johnson had the game winner in his hands and then just like that it was on the ground, and Johnson was left to wonder why. He tweeted that night, "I PRAISE YOU 24/7!!!!!! AND THIS HOW YOU DO ME!!!!! YOU EXPECT ME TO LEARN FROM THIS??? HOW???!!! ILL NEVER FORGET THIS!! EVER!!! THX THO..."
Horrible grammar aside, Johnson has a point. Well, not in his case. In his case, it is a marvel that he even made a name for himself in the league. No, Johnson is on track about having grievances with god. I myself would like to know what look he was going for when he decided to make me look like the Mexican George Costanza.
But I digress.
Here are 10 individuals who have more to gripe about than any of us.
10. Yao Ming
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Yao Ming was supposed to usher in the era of the Chinese basketball player. I am still waiting patiently for the influx. Ming was going to be the star center of the league. What he turned out to be was a player that yearly pilfers All-Star votes from more worthy centers.
But the real reason Yao should be up in arms is his latest rash of injuries. The 30-year-old should have many more season in front of him, but lingering leg and foot injuries have not only sidelined him, they have reduced his minutes when he is healthy.
Literally one more injury could end his career. Rockets fans better get themselves to church then.
9. Brad Childress
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Life was pretty good last season for Brad Childress. He finally got his Vikings within one game of the coveted Super Bowl. Then god done smote him. He smote him real good.
Not only was he forced to take his least favorite player back in Brett Favre, but the taking of Favre slowly and painfully unwrapped the career of Brad Childress.
It was as if Childress created this nice painting to share with the world, and this bully from Southern Mississippi comes along and slowly tears it up in front of you. To make matters worse, he gets fired, and his sworn enemy gets to stay on the team as the starting quarterback.
8. Shaun Livingston
3 of 10Shaun Livingston was an upcoming point guard for the Clippers. Well, as up and coming as you can be while playing for the Clippers. On February 26, 2007, Livingston suffered a horrible knee injury.
I refuse to watch the posted clip anymore because I plan to eat at some point and it will deter me from accomplishing that. The injury nearly decimated his career. But after hard arduous work, Livingston has made his way back into the graces of the NBA as a member of the Charlotte Bobcats.
So he gets into a freak injury as a member of the Clippers only to catch on with the Clippers of the East. You are a cruel master indeed, God.
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7. Mark Prior
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There was an immense level of expectation that followed Mark Prior as he entered the Major Leagues. He was going to be the second coming of Jesus, Michael Jordan, and Gandhi all rolled into one tall hurler.
It didn't exactly happen that way. Prior had nagging injuries every year that he pitched. He retired from the game much sooner than he was supposed to. For this one, I have to blame the Cubs and their diabolical curse.
6. Erik Spoelstra
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Erik Spoelstra is a good coach. I know because Pat Riley whispered it one time. Sometimes god gives you a tasty little treat. That treat is meant to entice you into a whole new set of problems just to test your mettle. Well, stop testing me god, I want to dive into this bag of Doritos, but it won't open. Just another tribulation to get past I guess; back to that Spoelstra guy.
He was given a team of superstars and told to coach it. Little did he know that you can't coach a team of superstars; you merely sit back and watch them have a good time at practice. Also, he should refrain from calling out James at practice. The King does not like that.
So the Heat players now agree that they have had enough of Spoelstra. Well, he might be doing a better job coaching if he didn't have to work with little bench depth and humongous egos on a daily basis.
5. Greg Oden
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God giveth and then he taketh away, just a little at a time.
Greg Oden was going to be a star. There used to be a running debate in the sports world as to who would be a better NBA player, Kevin Durant or Greg Oden. That has now been relegated to who looks older, Bill Russell or Greg Oden. That's a race that is surprisingly too close for comfort.
Oden has been beset by injury after injury. Just when you see a flash of brilliance, the dude collapses in a heap on the court.
And don't get me started on his nude pictures that made their rounds a couple of seasons ago. As if we all wanted to see what a 40-year old's penis looked like. Yikes.
4. Steve Bartman
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I have always had a soft spot in my heart for Steve Bartman. The man was an uber Cubs nerd. You could tell in pictures. He had his Cubs hat on and he was rocking the headphones so he could listen to the game while he watched. You know, everything I do as well.
Then came a moment for him that will remain in Cubs lore infamy. In the 2003 playoffs, he accidentally knocked a foul ball out of Moises Alou's glove. It would have gone a long way to ending the inning and possibly getting the Cubs to the series.
Bartman, a Cubs die hard, was completely annihilated in the Chicago media. You would have thought he took a sharpie to Michael Jordan's statue and then poo poo-ed on a Ditka jersey. But it was an accident. Now one of the team's biggest fans can never set foot inside the city limits, let alone Wrigley Field. Way to go, God.
3. Jim Joyce
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Earlier this season, Armando Galarraga of the Detroit Tigers had himself a perfect game in the works. No big deal, just a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Then came the final out. Jason Donald hits a grounder to Miguel Cabrera, who flips the ball to Galarraga as he runs to cover first. But before the celebration could begin, umpire Jim Joyce had to throw his two pennies into the mix and call Donald safe.
It was the worst instance of officiating ever. The whole of the world watching could see that the man was wrong. We are all wrong several times a day. That is a fact, and some more than others. But imagine if the biggest mistake you ever made was on national television as the whole world tuned in to watch the closing moments of a perfecto, just brutal.
2. Chris Webber
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All this talk of ill timed blunders and feats of god has me thinking of the best that I ever saw. Chris Webber famously called timeout when Michigan had none.
The mental blunder caused his team, the Michigan Wolverines, the title. The infraction gave the North Carolina Tar Heels a technical shot and the ball. That sealed the game and Webber's fate. This one is high on the list because Webber had a great NBA career after this, yet he still cannot shake the stigma of that one mistake.
Even as he is waxing smart about the NBA on TNT, I still can't help but look at him with my head tilted and mutter, you're the man that did not know how many time outs he had; what utter shame.
1. Bill Buckner
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Do you remember how you used to pray the ball never came to you when you played Little League? It would be the end of the game, and all you could think was, I hope Bobby's mom brought after game treats and don't hit the ball to me.
Well, that sentiment happened to Bill Buckner, during the World Series, with millions watching, playing for a city that lives and breathes baseball.
Suffice it to say, but life was not the same for Buckner after his game losing error in the ninth inning. He is the poster child for sports gaffes.
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