FOOTBALL’S GREATEST ALL in ONE PLACE

By Terry Lyons 

A version of this column appears as the cover story on DigitalSportsDesk.com

Not long ago, SI editor Bill Syken sat down at his desk with the journalistic assignment of a lifetime. He was asked to create "Sports Illustrated's Football's Greatest," a coffee table sized book that is now on sale. It just might be the best thing that's happened to the NFL since the birth of NFL Films.

WR Jerry Rice of the SF 49ers

Syken had a daunting task. He was asked to "quarterback" an effort to poll Sports Illustrated's highly qualified team of experts to create one voice, the ultimate NFL book to chronicle the "Top 10" in more than 20 categories of NFL history.  Syken has a team that includes NFL beat writer Peter King, the Monday morning QB himself, along with Tim Layden, Don Banks, Steve Rushin, Jim Trotter, Michael Silver, Damon Hack, Roy Blount Jr. and the entire army of SI photographers, historians, editors, writers and researchers. Not only did they highlight the top players by position, they also tackled the more obscure questions and "bar room" debates, such as "Best Stadium, Rivalry, Coaches, Games, Plays, Franchises, Uniforms.  You get the drift?

Well, Mr. Syken, congratulations on a job well done and, please, take the rest of the week off!

There are three things to keep in mind when (not if) you decide to buy this book and that is the fact the book has three lives.

It has a life for the curious.

For most, the very first thing you do when you hold the book and adore its perfectly thought-out and designed cover, is you turn to the lists to see where the SI experts ranked your favorite players.  Where did they rank Joe Namath? After Lombardi, who was the next Coach? Who were their choices for best offensive lineman, defensive back and so on.  Thankfully, they did not attempt to rank the Place Kickers but I would’ve been interested in the all-time great Punters.

Best Plays? Rivalries? Trades? Movies? Franchises?  It's all there.  They even ranked the best NFL-related Sports Illustrated covers of all-time.

The next impression after reading the “top 10” lists, is to immediately flip through the book to adore - get that - ADORE - the photography. While SI's depth in writing is beyond comparison in American sports writing lore, the photography is unquestionably the best sports photography in the history of the art. The second life of this book is to take hours upon hours and examine every single photograph.

Can it have a third life? Yes sir and that's the writing, of course. 

After flipping through the book and acting like a little kid on Christmas morning, the most enjoyable aspect of Sports Illustrated's Football's Greatest is the script. From the thought-provoking or memorable quotations to the introductory paragraphs of each section to the features on the top players, the book is a dream come true for those who treasure the written word.

"The beginning of the process was that we polled our longtime football writers and editors, asking them the best quarterbacks, defensive backs, the best games, plays - all the categories you see in the book," said Syken when he was asked how he dealt with the enormity of his assignment. "They sent their top 10 choices, along with commentary explaining their selections. From there, it was compiling them, just like you would do with a poll. 

"After that, the next job was to do the photo research and find the best photos, whether for a two-page spread or single page, plus a passage from a classic SI story related to the topic. So, we selected the photos, along with our photo staff and I went through the SI Vault and did a lot of reading, looking for the really great stories to find a couple paragraphs to go on each page. We wanted to give people something enjoyable to read that captures the essence of each selection," said Syken.

While you might believe the challenge of researching, editing and, ultimately, whittling down the massive amount of photography and stories might be a painstaking assignment, Syken and his colleagues enjoyed the process

"It can sound like a lot, but it was actually a lot of fun," he said. "It was fun going through the archives and finding these nuggets.  One that stands out, as an example; The Redskins were among the Top 10 franchises and while I was looking for a paragraph on the Redskins franchise, as opposed to a specific player or game, it was fun to find a Frank Deford story from 1979 when he was talking about sports in Washington and in general, we came across this quote from (former President) Richard Nixon explaining the unique role the Redskins play in Washington DC. It was fun to discover stuff like that."

Aside from his insight gleaned from hours of researching the written words and reviewing and selecting the photography depicted throughout the book, Syken had a keen observation that should be shared with everyone who loves football and appreciates the art and dedication of a photographer who stood out in the freezing cold, driving rain or even unbearable heat and sunshine to capture an image.

The NFL's Vince Lombardi Trophy

"This was something we talked about a lot," noted Syken as he explained the nuances of the book he helped create. "You generally think of technology as this march forward and it's always getting better and better and better. It's really amazing how beautiful the old pictures are. A couple of my favorite pictures in this book are in our section on the best single-season teams, and we have two of the (Green Bay) Packers teams from the '60s, the 1962 Packers and the 1966 Packers. Those are some amazing pictures, the color, how beautiful these photos truly are.

"I was showing the book to a nine year old who grew up in the new era of single-use stadiums, so it was fun for this child to see the baseball stadium that they were playing football in - and there's the home plate and the baselines.  It was an interesting piece of history."

Right he is. The stunning quality of the photography, shot on film and developed just right or the striking beauty of a black & white image taken at the old, old Yankee Stadium. My words cannot do it justice.

Please see DigitalSportsDesk.com for the rest of this story/book review.

Just Do Your Job

The New York Times tried to do a feature on one of the great 'behind the scenes' guys in pro football history, our man Berj.  Once an entry-level, game night staffer at The Garden, Berj quickly proved he was one of the guys you could really depend on.  No nonsense.

He's brought that talent to the NE Patriots to help coach Bill Belichick get the job done, quietly and thoroughly.  Here's the story:

Blocking for the Patriots Coach So He Can Do His Job

By GREG BISHOP

The Coach

INDIANAPOLIS — The man inside the coffee shop is Bill Belichick’s chief of staff, one of his most trusted confidants. Since Belichick became the coach of the New England Patriots in 2000, this man has spent more time with him than quarterback Tom Brady, Belichick’s family members or anyone else, really. Yet even Patriots fans have never heard of him.

As he politely but begrudgingly spoke on background in the coffee shop, a short walk from the Patriots’ hotel for Super Bowl XLVI, no one recognized the man, or how important he was — and is — to New England’s success. His name is Berj Najarian. By title, he is director of football/head coach administration.
On Sunday, the Patriots will play in their fifth Super Bowl since the 2001 season. That run, the best stretch in the N.F.L. in recent years, is defined by three championships and the aura of secrecy that surrounds the franchise, which is part of the Patriot Way. In a system in which injuries are guarded as state secrets and coaches conduct their business like C.I.A. operatives, the Patriots allow little understanding of what, exactly, they have done to reach such sustained success.
Najarian’s role exemplifies that paranoid mystique. He is the gatekeeper to Belichick, the monitor of the monotone.
“He is the consigliere of the New England Patriots,” the team’s offensive coordinator, Bill O’Brien, said. “No question about it.”
All week, as Belichick conducted interviews, Najarian stood off to the side, close enough to hear and observe, but far enough not to attract attention. He wore no media credential, nor any identification. A few members of the Boston and national media recognized him. Otherwise, he went unnoticed.
Najarian was there from the beginning, before this Patriot Way existed, before Belichick became a Hall of Fame-caliber coach. Najarian was there when Belichick, never a master of public relations, scribbled, “I resign as HC of the NYJ,” shortly after the Jets promoted him to head coach.
The Patriots snagged Belichick instead. He drove to New England with part of his inner circle: Najarian, Eric Mangini and Scott Pioli. Mangini and Pioli eventually left for other jobs. Belichick and Najarian remain. Even their offices at 1 Patriot Place connect.
Earlier in his career, in Cleveland from 1991 to 1995, Belichick bombed at news conferences. His demeanor: surly. His personality: prickly. His image: tyrant.
Once in New England, Belichick sought to soften that image, to show his sense of humor, his human side, both of which, those close to him insist, actually exist. Najarian advised Belichick in this role, and while the coach infamous for his hoodie and his icy handshakes never came to resemble a teddy bear, he has been credited this week with appearing more comfortable and relaxed. If the Kraft family and Belichick created the Patriot Way, Najarian burnished it, especially as it related to all things Belichick.
At the same time, Najarian also handled Belichick’s major crisis, the so-called Spygate videotaping controversy, which engulfed the Patriots on their last run to the Super Bowl, four seasons ago. Belichick took his first Spygate-related question here Thursday. Count that as another win for Najarian.
“He’s one of our hidden weapons,” the team’s owner, Robert K. Kraft, said.
The retired quarterback Drew Bledsoe said that in the organizations he played for — New England, Buffalo, Dallas — he never encountered someone with a role similar to Najarian’s. Because Najarian stood between Belichick and the rest of the world, that role “gave him a ton of power,” Bledsoe said. He added: “With the Patriots, it’s an efficiency thing. Berj worried about stuff so Bill didn’t have to.”
Najarian, because of his proximity to Belichick, also took some ribbing. Bledsoe and some co-conspirators, whom he declined to name, once sent Najarian a dozen roses on Secretary’s Day. “From what I understand, he was a little offended,” Bledsoe said. “We thought it was hysterical.”
Najarian’s job description can be summarized in six words: help Belichick carry out his program.
Najarian does not coach players. He does everything else, deciding which issues are worthy of Belichick’s attention so the coach can focus on football, his staff, meetings, practices, strategy and film sessions.
Najarian handles the logistics of Belichick’s day: whom he meets and what interviews he conducts. If a corporate sponsor needs a Patriots coach to speak, Najarian determines which coach. When the rookies arrive, he helps indoctrinate them. When Brady creates a stir with a comment about fans getting “lubed up,” Najarian handles damage control and helps deliver the team’s strange response that Brady was referring to drinking water. At practices, he even selects the music, from Bruce Springsteen to Dr. Dre.
This affords Najarian a place in Belichick’s inner circle, which changes but remains relatively small. His other longtime confidants include Ernie Adams (director of football research), Nick Caserio (director of player personnel) and assistant coaches.
“Berj is really important,” a relaxed Belichick said this week, cracking a rare public smile. “There isn’t nearly enough time in this press conference to talk about him.”
Just as coaches around the N.F.L. have tried to emulate Belichick’s approach to football, his former assistants have also hired their own version of Najarian, including Mangini with the Jets and Josh McDaniels in Denver.
Najarian gave one quotation for this article. “One of our sayings is for everyone to ‘just do your job,’ ” he said. “Contributing to Bill Belichick doing his job and at the same time helping uphold the standard of excellence set by the Kraft family is a privilege. With that comes many responsibilities within the football operation and organization, and I appreciate the opportunity to fulfill them.”
Growing up on Long Island — his father was a child psychiatrist, his mother a housewife — Najarian never anticipated this career path. He graduated from Boston University and interned with the Knicks in 1994. John Cirillo, then the senior vice president for communications of Madison Square Garden, said Najarian possessed a quiet calm and tireless work ethic.
From there, Najarian worked in public relations with the Jets. Frank Ramos, who was a longtime public-relations director with the franchise, said Najarian “came to get along very well with the defensive coaches.” He added: “He got really close with Belichick. There aren’t that many who can get that close to Bill. I don’t know why he did.”
Often, Ramos noted, Najarian stayed late at the Jets’ complex, talking football, hanging around Belichick. The Belichick crew once took part in a weight-loss competition, with official weigh-ins and hefty penalties, and Belichick would hide slices of pizza in everyone else’s desks.
When he arrived in New England, Najarian joined Stacey James, now the Patriots’ vice president for media relations, in a potentially awkward situation. They divide their duties at Belichick (Najarian) and everything else (James). Reporters who cover the team regularly said they expect to hear from Najarian when they write critically of Belichick. Some said future access depended on what they wrote.
Not that Najarian wanted to address any of that. If Belichick is happy and the Krafts are happy, he prefers to stay in the shadows.
On the ESPN set, Tedy Bruschi, the retired Patriots linebacker turned analyst, raised both eyebrows when asked about Najarian. No longer affiliated with the team, he still declined to comment.
“How many people talk about the consigliere?” he said.
Very few, it turns out, just as the gatekeeper to Belichick, in line with the Patriot Way, prefers it.

NFL policy getting attention...

The NFL's new policies which limit media reports from team sites and curtail video clips to a short 45-seconds have created quite a stir in the sports communications world. Enough for the Boston Globe to run an Op-Ed piece to protest the NFL's policy and to put forth a bit of a warning to the NFL hierarchy on the longterm ramifications of such a policy.

The rules are intended to protect the NFL's IP and to limit web sites and bloggers who are credentialed for press conferences and the like on team properties. Many a sports editor has yet to sign credential forms and will likely make an issue of the policy to NFL brass.

At the same time, photographers are mulling NFL policy which for 2007 is requiring credentialed photographers to wear sideline vests which have been sold to sponsors such as Canon camera. Some of the photographers have their own deals with the likes of Nikon. It surely poses problems and the NFL has hinted that photographers might consider turning the vests insside out if the sponsorship is an issue.

The viewpoint? The NFL’s policy has rubbed the news media the wrong way. The limitation of general access to the coaches, players and personnel during the week is combined with the fact that the NFL Network has insider access to team and league staff far above the accredited media. Now, with the vise grips on the amount of time that news media can run video clips, you have to wonder why the media corps doesn’t revolt and threaten to limit its staffing and coverage.

The media would need to stay the course for weeks on end in order to force the NFL to change its policy. The media (TV stations, Radio Stations, newspaper web sites and Internet sites) would have to explain to fans that their sports news coverage has been halted to protect freedom of the press principles. The media would need to run political-like lobbying campaigns to have fans help fight their cause and to put pressure of the NFL to ease its rules and to allow more fluid access and video reports (standard practice is to allow some 2-2.5 minutes of video in a regularly scheduled news cast).

As a sports media communications practice, I believe there is a common ground in this case. The NFL has taken a step too far. They are trying to crack down on the Internet sites who roll tons of video clips and compete against NFL.com for fan attention, especially from mid-week coaches press conferences and the like. In addition, the regular news casts, such as ESPN News, often airing the coaches news conferences in their entirety. The NFL is taking steps to create eventual rights fees for all types of access, not just game coverage.

I think the NFL tried to put a blanket policy on areas that need more specific and individualized policies. They need to re-think the issue and ease their restriction.