Post by GeorgiaEagle on Feb 15, 2005 1:10:55 GMT -5
FredEx Delivers More Discourse
by Andy Schwartz
ComcastSportsNet.com
Freddie Mitchell might very well talk his way out of town. {Umm, he was gone anyway, even before all this. Just my humble opinion. GeorgiaEagle}
The Eagles’ outspoken receiver was at it again, this time on ESPN radio.
In an interview on ESPN days before Super Bowl XXXIX, Mitchell could not name the members of the Patriots’ secondary and instead identified (wrongly) their numbers. Mitchell did point out safety Rodney Harrison – but then offered a challenge by saying “I’ve got something for you, Harrison.”<br>
Although Mitchell appeared to be joking, the Patriots didn’t take too kindly to his comments, thus begetting one of the pre-Super Bowl storylines.
In the Eagles’ 24-21 loss, Mitchell made only one catch for 11 yards, while Harrison recorded two interceptions. Three days later, on ESPN Radio, Mitchell once again addressed his remarks.
"It was kind of like me being facetious and kidding around. They blew it way out of proportion," Mitchell said. "[Their reactions] reminded me of little girls. They're sensitive. Real, real sensitive.”<br>
Wednesday on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Patriots coach Bill Belichick took a shot at Mitchell.
“He said he was bringing something for Rodney Harrison,” Belichick said. “I don’t know, maybe it was the two dropped passes.”
Belichick had more disparaging remarks in this week's Sports Illustrated.
"All he does is talk," Belichick told SI. "He's terrible, and you can print that. I was glad when he was in the game."
Said Mitchell: "Now the thing that bothers me the most is you've got everybody talking now. ... I've got Belichick even throwing remarks about me. It's like, 'Man, did I hurt you that bad that you have to go out and shout my name?’ Troy Brown saying something, Mr. Belichick saying a little something. It's funny how I got under their skin."
Meanwhile, Mitchell attributed his quiet night to the return of receiver Terrell Owens, who had nine catches for 122 yards in his first game since undergoing lower-leg surgery in December.
"T.O., he came and did an excellent job ... but that really took away from my play time and my opportunities," Mitchell said. "I couldn't shut a lot of people up that I wanted to shut up. That really hurt the situation."
He then pointed out that the Eagles won their first two playoff games without Owens.
"[The analysts] think they know it all. ... T.O. is just on a pedestal, and everybody else is pretty much peasants,” Mitchell said.
"I think when they get to the realization that one player cannot beat a whole team and we won without T.O. We got to the Super Bowl without T.O. We can win without T.O. I think that they'll educate themselves more and they'll know that could happen."
Mitchell still wasn’t finished. On Monday, center Hank Fraley touched off another firestorm of sorts by admitting that Mitchell helped quarterback Donovan McNabb call a play late in the fourth quarter.
"Donovan, he dry heaves a lot when he gets under certain situations,” Mitchell explained. “It's happened before. It's happened in the NFC Championship game.
"He was dry heaving and he couldn't get the words out in the play, so he gave me hand signals. ... I basically called the play and knew what the coaches were thinking in that situation. I called the play out and went on from there."
Mitchell also addressed how Jacksonville, which has taken its share of criticism over the last few weeks, fared as the host city for the Super Bowl.
"Jacksonville had five years to prepare for this, and even with the preparing is it was a bad situation, and I can't believe the NFL handled it like that,” he said.
"What really annoyed me was Jacksonville, the city, taking advantage of it. The Comfort Inn suites were $500 a night for a regular room. Just the players' families – everybody really got taken advantage of."
E-mail Andy Schwartz
philadelphia.comcastsportsnet.com/view_content_0p.asp?ID=4113
by Andy Schwartz
ComcastSportsNet.com
Freddie Mitchell might very well talk his way out of town. {Umm, he was gone anyway, even before all this. Just my humble opinion. GeorgiaEagle}
The Eagles’ outspoken receiver was at it again, this time on ESPN radio.
In an interview on ESPN days before Super Bowl XXXIX, Mitchell could not name the members of the Patriots’ secondary and instead identified (wrongly) their numbers. Mitchell did point out safety Rodney Harrison – but then offered a challenge by saying “I’ve got something for you, Harrison.”<br>
Although Mitchell appeared to be joking, the Patriots didn’t take too kindly to his comments, thus begetting one of the pre-Super Bowl storylines.
In the Eagles’ 24-21 loss, Mitchell made only one catch for 11 yards, while Harrison recorded two interceptions. Three days later, on ESPN Radio, Mitchell once again addressed his remarks.
"It was kind of like me being facetious and kidding around. They blew it way out of proportion," Mitchell said. "[Their reactions] reminded me of little girls. They're sensitive. Real, real sensitive.”<br>
Wednesday on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Patriots coach Bill Belichick took a shot at Mitchell.
“He said he was bringing something for Rodney Harrison,” Belichick said. “I don’t know, maybe it was the two dropped passes.”
Belichick had more disparaging remarks in this week's Sports Illustrated.
"All he does is talk," Belichick told SI. "He's terrible, and you can print that. I was glad when he was in the game."
Said Mitchell: "Now the thing that bothers me the most is you've got everybody talking now. ... I've got Belichick even throwing remarks about me. It's like, 'Man, did I hurt you that bad that you have to go out and shout my name?’ Troy Brown saying something, Mr. Belichick saying a little something. It's funny how I got under their skin."
Meanwhile, Mitchell attributed his quiet night to the return of receiver Terrell Owens, who had nine catches for 122 yards in his first game since undergoing lower-leg surgery in December.
"T.O., he came and did an excellent job ... but that really took away from my play time and my opportunities," Mitchell said. "I couldn't shut a lot of people up that I wanted to shut up. That really hurt the situation."
He then pointed out that the Eagles won their first two playoff games without Owens.
"[The analysts] think they know it all. ... T.O. is just on a pedestal, and everybody else is pretty much peasants,” Mitchell said.
"I think when they get to the realization that one player cannot beat a whole team and we won without T.O. We got to the Super Bowl without T.O. We can win without T.O. I think that they'll educate themselves more and they'll know that could happen."
Mitchell still wasn’t finished. On Monday, center Hank Fraley touched off another firestorm of sorts by admitting that Mitchell helped quarterback Donovan McNabb call a play late in the fourth quarter.
"Donovan, he dry heaves a lot when he gets under certain situations,” Mitchell explained. “It's happened before. It's happened in the NFC Championship game.
"He was dry heaving and he couldn't get the words out in the play, so he gave me hand signals. ... I basically called the play and knew what the coaches were thinking in that situation. I called the play out and went on from there."
Mitchell also addressed how Jacksonville, which has taken its share of criticism over the last few weeks, fared as the host city for the Super Bowl.
"Jacksonville had five years to prepare for this, and even with the preparing is it was a bad situation, and I can't believe the NFL handled it like that,” he said.
"What really annoyed me was Jacksonville, the city, taking advantage of it. The Comfort Inn suites were $500 a night for a regular room. Just the players' families – everybody really got taken advantage of."
E-mail Andy Schwartz
philadelphia.comcastsportsnet.com/view_content_0p.asp?ID=4113
