No Respect Here for the Rev

[ramsrams]

Incredible.

Isaac Bruce retires. One of the classiest guys ever to play the game. Super Bowl winning TD catch. 9th in TD's. 5th in catches. 2nd behind that Rice fellow in all-time yardage as a WR.

No mention here.

I know St. Louis is now a small market team, but the guy deserves some props.

At least more than Joe Gibbs signing with the Rams.

Jeez.

[Kosher Ham]

He should have retired years ago.

Great player and probable HOF player. But it is not like there are a ton of Rams fans around.

Not surprising that it is slightly overlooked.

[ramsrams]

Well, Jerry Rice should have retired a couple of years earlier as well.

This is the "Around the NFL" section. I don't expect Rams fans here. I expect Redskins fans that know the game.

[Kosher Ham]

Well, Jerry Rice should have retired a couple of years earlier as well.

This is the "Around the NFL" section. I don't expect Rams fans here. I expect Redskins fans that know the game.

Rice should have retired too, I am not disagreeing with that.

We know the game and know the Rams and the success of Bruce. But I did not say around here, I simply said "around". To come here and complain about it is fruitless. The Rams one SB win is not the shining star to most of us.

Calling him the "Rev" in the thread title is kind of silly though. Seriously we don't follow the Rams that closely, nor do most Rams fans that I have met over the years. In all fairness, I have only met 3 over the years, but none in the last 6 years.

[Hail_Skins]

I am not trying to be a prick but why on earth is there a Rams fan from Ontario on a Redskins message board, just seem odd and a long way from home, not even in our division none the less.

[ramsrams]

A credible question.

I found this board due to Tayman's cartoons. I thought it would be nice to give something back. I've written up the Rams POV every game we've played the Skins since 2004, save last year, when I encountered some technical difficulties.

I'm not a troll, and most here quite like my occasional contributions.

[KDawg]

Incredible.

Isaac Bruce retires. One of the classiest guys ever to play the game. Super Bowl winning TD catch. 9th in TD's. 5th in catches. 2nd behind that Rice fellow in all-time yardage as a WR.

No mention here.

I know St. Louis is now a small market team, but the guy deserves some props.

At least more than Joe Gibbs signing with the Rams.

Jeez.

And you just mentioned it. And brought it up.

I, and I'm sure others, didn't have a clue that he even retired. That makes it quite difficult to talk about. You're a Rams fan, of course you'd find out before a good portion of us did. And of the 'Skins fans who knew, only a small portion of them ever post threads.

Chances are, most of us didn't have a clue... The Rams have never been a large draw on this forum.

All of that said... Bruce was a phenomenal wide receiver and a guy that I always respected and admired for the way he played the game and what I had heard about him off the field.

Have a good post career Mr. Bruce. I appreciate class.

[ramsrams]

Fair enough.

[sideshow24]

Always liked Bruce. You could have honored him better with a proper thread title and by not calling us out. We're not even in your division.

[CrypticVillain]

I am not trying to be a prick but why on earth is there a Rams fan from Ontario on a Redskins message board, just seem odd and a long way from home, not even in our division none the less.

If you knew your ExtremeSkins history, you would know that the founder is Canadian.

Issac Bruce was my man. I am pretty sure the rest of the league looks at him like Redskins fans look at Darrell Green. He was professional, didn't get in much trouble and kept his mouth shut. Alone he was racking up catches, yards, and touchdown. Definitely HOF worthy.....

[Hail_Skins]

If you knew your ExtremeSkins history, you would know that the founder is Canadian.

Its not where your from, it's where your at!

[Old Dominion Monarch 06]

I think it speaks for itself, a lot of us flat out just don't really care. If you want garaunteed praise and discussion on a retiring Rams player, perhaps a Rams forum is better suited for you. Every detail of the NFL doesn't make it to our Around the NFL forum...and if you haven't noticed the majority of the talk here is NFC east.

[DefenderoftheStar]

Wow, go Issac Bruce, a classy guy all the way, professional on and off the field. A record breaker, all around HoF WR material and someone you can count on in any game. He played the game like an all star without the drama and broke some fans hearts along the way.

He'll be missed in the sense the NFL doesnt have enough classy guys and people wont notice because he never played on the big stage as his talent and never brought the "Me" title to himself.

The Rams will miss him because that talent doesnt come along every day on the offensive side, and any QB would be happy to have a WR like him on their team.

[pjfootballer]

Fellow Memphis State Alum. Happy Retirement to Isaac Bruce. A good guy and fellow Memphis Tiger.

[Ghost of]

I agree that calling us out was unnecessary but otherwise the response has been overly harsh.

I've had mixed feelings about Ike Bruce since that article I read about how he prayed over his playbook (which I could overlook, it's a form of meditation and might have helped him gain confidence, after all) but then said that maybe Derrick Thomas didn't pray enough and maybe that's why he got killed in that accident. I don't think Bruce even meant what it sounded like, in retrospect, but some people are unable to properly rebut the paradoxes and internal contradictions of their beliefs, so it sounded very insensitive (at best) in the wake of that loss.

I was playing in a field with some guys from George Washington U (a decade ago? sheesh) and I was serious about playing wideout and still entertained semi-pro dreams at the time. Some guy called out on defense, "someone get Isaac Bruce over here!" That was a cool moment for me. I was schooling them cats in khakis and skateboard shoes.

[acuratl1984]

Its not where your from, it's where your at!

Umm. it is where you are from....

If I was from Virginia, and I move to Germany... I would still be a Redskins fan...

What if RamsRams was from LA or ST Louis, and moved to Canada?

[Califan007 The Constipated]

Incredible.

Isaac Bruce retires. One of the classiest guys ever to play the game. Super Bowl winning TD catch. 9th in TD's. 5th in catches. 2nd behind that Rice fellow in all-time yardage as a WR.

No mention here.

I know St. Louis is now a small market team, but the guy deserves some props.

At least more than Joe Gibbs signing with the Rams.

Jeez.

Out of curiosity, have you gone to every NFL team's message board and chastised that team's fan base if they didn't start a thread honoring Isaac Bruce, or are we special in that regard? lol...

[CrypticVillain]

Out of curiosity, have you gone to every NFL team's message board and chastised that team's fan base if they didn't start a thread honoring Isaac Bruce, or are we special in that regard? lol...

Maybe he doesn't care about other message boards because he knows ES is the best :1stplace:

[Califan007 The Constipated]

Maybe he doesn't care about other message boards because he knows ES is the best :1stplace:

I gotta tell ya, while I haven't visited every message board for every team, out of the 12 or so teams' and fans' message boards I have visited ES easily out-does the ones I have visited in terms of looks, navigation, organization, etc. :yes:...

[ramsrams]

Here's a pretty good summation of why I like Ike.

http://blogs.nfl.com/2010/06/09/bruce-a-true-pro-gets-my-hall-of-fame-vote/

Bruce, a true pro, gets my Hall of Fame vote

When I think of Isaac Bruce, I remember my first broadcast for FOX, which was in 1998 in St. Louis. Dick Vermeil’s Rams were preparing for their season-opener against the Saints, which in those days was a division game.

Kurt Warner had yet to burst on the scene. Marshall Faulk was playing for the Colts. Torry Holt was getting ready for his final year with the Wolfpack. Orlando Pace was just getting his toes wet in the pro football waters.

In fact, across the street at Busch Stadium that weekend, a guy named Mark McGwire was going for the fabled home run record held by Roger Maris. Throughout the broadcast, we would break into the coverage to watch McGwire’s at-bats. McGwire didn’t break the record that day. Quite frankly, I can’t remember off the top of my head who won that game between the Rams and Saints.

But I do recall that in our production meeting on the Friday before the game, I met “The Reverend” Isaac Bruce for the first time. The public relations staff warned me that The Rev might not show, and if he did, he might not say much.

Bruce did show. He didn’t say much — he never did — but he always let his play do the talking. It’s kind of how we wish all the young kids coming into the league would do it. There was a time when wide receivers were just receivers. Not stars, not divas. Championships weren’t won because of their talent.

And now Bruce is leaving the game as quietly as he came in, and as quietly as he played.

The Rev was a surgeon when it came to route running. To this day, his routes are as beautiful a thing to watch as anything the game has to offer. His 20-yard in-cuts left corners with broken ankles. No one to this day can make a full-speed cut across the field like Bruce could. It’s still the highlight reel that Mike Martz shows young receivers in the league. Holt, his counterpart for over a decade, watched and learned everything from Bruce.

The squeaky wheels often get the headlines and news conferences — and sometimes even reality TV shows — and provide a great deal of entertainment. But when we are teaching the next generation how to play the game, don’t we want to teach them how to be true pros? That was Bruce. He was a technician, incredibly durable and productive for 16 seasons.

I don’t always understand where the Hall of Fame stands on receivers anymore. Lynn Swann is in, and rightfully so. But he averaged 37 catches per season for less than a decade. Many who double that production are on the outside looking in, and many more with impressive resumes are coming soon.

When we talk about Bruce, we’re talking about the quiet leader of an offense that defined football for a great five-year run. No team was more fun to watch than the Rams. Always, quietly going about his business, was Bruce.

Let’s hope the Hall voters listen to how The Rev played the game. He gets my vote.

– Brian Baldinger

[Hail_Skins]

Good read he would have made a damn fine Redskin! But I respect his accomplisments either way.

[HailGreen28]

Why do we need a thread about Rev. Reggie White now? What's the fuss? Oh wait a minute, this thread is about WHO?

[ramsrams]

From a former Skin:

http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/A-players-perspective-on-Isaac-Bruce.html

Isaac Bruce officially retired from the NFL this week, and he did so as a St. Louis Ram after the club traded for the WR before he made his formal announcement.

For me personally, seeing Isaac retire brought back plenty of memories to the 2000 season when I was drafted by the Rams. As a rookie walking into that locker room, it was hard not to be starstruck by the enormous amount of talent and the Super Bowl rings they all received from the 1999 season.

Bruce retired this week after 16 seasons.

Marshall Faulk, Kurt Warner, Todd Lyght, London Fletcher, Orlando Pace, Ricky Proehl, Torry Holt and of course, Isaac. You want to talk about professionals — this was it.

And, like most rookies who are drafted in the sixth round (holding out hope that their name eventually gets called), I was, well, to be honest — a nobody. Drafted No. 198 overall.

Basically, just a safety who was stiff in the hips, could be used in the box to take up lead blocks in an eight-man front, and of course, run down and cover kicks — taking a beating along the way. And, just making the team that year was a battle.

But, watching Isaac and learning how to work, how to prepare and how to treat each practice like a business meeting was huge for my career. I remember seeing him in practice, the attention to detail every time he came to the line of scrimmage and the perfection he demanded as a pro player — from himself. You want to talk about an athlete that was smooth — that was Isaac. Effortless is what I call it, when a player can run a double move — even a triple move — at full speed near the top of his route without hesitation.

Try covering that or the deep dig route that we will see in Chicago this year from the Bears receivers in Mike Martz’s offense. No one did it better than Ike.

However, I always go back to what he was like in the locker room. There are plenty of guys whom I played with or played against during my career that were great athletes on the field. But, Isaac treated everyone in that building like a true veteran should — with respect. I viewed him as a role model because he was a player I could learn from in so many ways.

And, I will always respect that.

Yes, I know where this discussion goes, as anytime a player retires from this league after a successful career, we always turn our attention to the Hall of Fame.

Is Bruce headed to Canton? The numbers and the ring say he should.

Understandably, I am beyond biased when it comes to Isaac’s career. But, when I look at his career numbers, his two Super Bowl appearances and his ring from the ’99 season, I do believe I have a valid argument.

Sixteen seasons as a pro. That is a lifetime in this league. So many that Isaac’s first season in the NFL with the Rams came in Los Angeles. It takes a true pro to keep playing and to keep producing for that amount of time. It takes a player to dedicate his body and to show up every training camp. Not easy.

But, it usually comes down to numbers when we talk about the ballot.

OK, what about these: 1,245 receptions, 15,208 yards and 91 TDs. If these numbers aren’t good enough to head to Canton, then what is? Where do we draw the line on success and how can we judge players’ careers if we don’t put Isaac in the Hall of Fame?

I don’t vote, but if I did, I would have no issue voting Isaac Bruce in as a first-ballot Hall of Famer — because he stood for what was good in the NFL.

And, he produced beyond what is expected at the wide receiver position.

[Audible_Red40]

Glad we took Heath Shuler and Tre Johnson instead of Isaac bruce in 1994.

That makes me happy, not so much.