Vacation Man Not Winning Many Friends

July 29th, 2009
Vacation Man of BSPN.com would rather have Lorenzo Neal as a fullback than this man.

Vacation Man of BSPN.com would rather have Lorenzo Neal as a fullback than this man, the A-Train.

Joe has to tip his cap to Vacation Man of BSPN.com. Not only does he do a solid job of covering the NFC South, Vacation Man has a pair of cajones.

For those not in the know, Vacation Man lives in Tampa. Yet Vacation Man is not bashful about how he feels that former Bucs great Mike Alstott was overrated.

In the past, Vacation Man went so  far as to state Lorenzo Neal was a better fullback than Alstott. You can imagine the feedback Vacation Man got. It’s wasn’t good.

Well, Vacation Man is sticking to his guns. In a mailbag segment on BSPN.com, Vacation Man was called out (again) on his views on Alstott. Again, Vacation Man comes out firing.

Ricky in Naples, Fla. writes:Almost as overrated as Jason Sehorn? Are you nuts? Mike Alstott energized an entire stadium, guaranteed a first down on 3rd and 1, and made a name for himself when very little fullbacks do so. He could catch, run, block…an asset to any team. I agree with you 100% on Seahorn, I’ve been saying it for years, however, I sincerely disagree with you on this one my man.

Vacation Man:We can disagree — that’s part of the game. I said Alstott was a very good player. He’s certainly a fan favorite here in Tampa Bay and always has been a solid citizen. But there’s also a perception this guy is on a Hall of Fame level. He’s not. Yes, he had some nice runs and not many fullbacks can do that (or get the chance to do that) these days. But Alstott was a fullback and fullbacks are supposed to be great blockers, first and foremost. You really think Alstott was a great blocker? I don’t.

Joe has stated this before and he will write it again: Joe has absolutely nothing against Lorenzo Neal. And Vacation Man is correct: Neal was a ferocious blocker; better than Alstott.

A good offensive coach doesn’t try to pidgeonhole players. Bo Schembechler and Woody Hayes are dead. This isn’t the three-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust Big Ten of the 1960s. This is the NFL of the 21st Century.

A good coach puts his best 11 players out on the field. The ultimate goal of an offense is to move the chains and put the ball in the end zone. Who was better at doing that, Neal or Alstott?

Joe thinks the answer is obvious.

Also, if Neal was such a precious fullback, why did he bounce around the NFL? Additionally, Joe isn’t aware of Neal playing on any Super Bowl-winning team.

One Response to “Vacation Man Not Winning Many Friends”

  1. Keith Says:

    Vacation Man is right on, Neal is a better fullback than the A-train. I am a fan of Mike’s but he is no Hall of Famer also. Bucs Hall of fame yes but NFL, HECK NO!