NASCAR's Drinking Problem?

Jeff Gordon passed the late Dale Earnhardt Sunday when he won the Aaron's 499 NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Talladega Superspeedway. The checkered flag gave Gordon 77 career victories, sixth on the all-time list, while Earnhardt ended his career -- and his life -- with 76.

The story to me, however, isn't Gordon's accomplishment. The debate isn't whether Gordon is better than Earnhardt. What bothers me is how some of the 180,000 fans on-hand at Talladega treated the accomplishment. Gordon wins the race and fans toss beer cans -- some empty, others not so much -- onto the racing surface.

Just despicable.

Let me just say first and foremost that I have, over the years, been a Gordon fan. I've been a fan of his since he won his first Brickyard 400 in 1994 and I've continued to follow and root for him even as a good portion of my NASCAR allegiance has shifted to the red No. 8. I'm a proud member of the Junior Nation, but I still have a spot in my racing heart for Gordon.

But regardless of allegiance, what the fans at Talladega did Sunday was disgusting and humiliating. NASCAR has seen tremendous growth in the past 15 years -- so much so, ESPN forked over a ton of money to start broadcasting races again starting this season. National opinion of NASCAR as a sport might be up for debate, but chances are if ESPN says it's a sport, the sporting nation will, eventually, follow suit.

But if NASCAR is intent on continuing to grow, if the top motorsports series in America wants to be seen in the same light as the NFL, NBA and Major League Baseball, things like this have to stop. NASCAR's image is largely still one of the south; a lot of people see NASCAR as nothing more than a good ol' boy southern thing, something only simple, mindless rednecks indulge in.

And scenes like Sunday's at Talladega will do little to change that opinion. As a NASCAR fan, I am embarrassed by the display at Talladega. I'll defend NASCAR -- as a sport and as a sanctioning body -- but I cannot back the actions committed Sunday. It's embarrassing, it's disgusting and if NASCAR doesn't do something about it soon, all that growth the sport has enjoyed might start to go away.

I can speak from personal experience how passionate NASCAR fans are about their drivers. Every fan has that one driver they love, and that one driver they can't stand. For me, the hated driver is Tony Stewart. But for the majority of NASCAR fans, the hated is Gordon.

And I get that; I'm used to going to a Nextel Cup race at Richmond or Charlotte or Martinsville and hearing three-quarters of the grandstands boo Gordon at driver introductions. I'm used to the crowd cheering whenever Gordon wrecks or has a mechanical problem. In many ways, it's comical to see.

I've also heard some of the things NASCAR fans say when a driver they hate (namely Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, from what I've seen) wins a race. I won't repeat any of them in the interest of cleanliness, but suffice it to say a lot of homophobic slurs and the like are screamed. Often loud enough for children to hear.

But this? Chucking beer cans onto the race track? I hate Tony Stewart, but not once have I ever thrown something at him after he won a race. I'm all for booing, mocking and taunting ... but there has to be a line. And for me, that line stops at potentially endangering the drivers and other fans.

For every beer can that made it onto the track, how many didn't? How many half-empty cans of beer went sailing into the air for Gordon's car, only to wind up in some fan's lap -- or worse, off the back of some fan's head? How many more times do we have to see embarrassing displays like this before someone gets hurt?

I can't help but wonder how many fans went to Talladega Sunday for their first Cup race, only to see what the drunken minority did and think to themselves, "I'll never come back to one of these." The racing's great, the pageantry in-person for a NASCAR race is unlike anything else, but if fans fear for their safety, they're going to stop coming to the races.

And that's going to cost NASCAR and its sponsors money.

It's not the first time this has happened. Just last week, when Gordon won at Phoenix to tie Earnhardt and he paraded around the track with a flag bearing the Intimidator's famous No. 3, fans pelted him and the track with beer cans. Three years ago, Gordon found himself the target for wasted beer at Talladega after NASCAR declared he beat Dale Earnhardt, Jr. to the lead before a race-ending caution.

So we have three instances of fans chucking things onto the track, and they all come after Gordon wins a race. Is this going to happen every time Gordon wins a race from now on? If he keeps winning, he'll pass the likes of Cale Yarborough, Darrell Waltrip and Bobby Allison. Those three aren't quite the legends Earnhardt is, but a lot of fans still hold those drivers dear.

If clownish acts such as this continue, NASCAR could be looking at a huge problem, especially if Gordon keeps running the way he has so far this season. What's more ... what if Gordon wins the championship this year? Does that mean he gets pelted after the last race at Homestead?

When will NASCAR do something about this? Granted, Talladega warned before the race Sunday that anyone who threw something onto the track would be arrested. And with beefed-up security, I know some of the offenders were. But how do you pick out so many guilty parties out of a crowd of 180,000 or more?

You don't. But here's a novel thought -- one that will probably never be put in place. Stop selling beer after the halfway point of the race. And on top of that, stop letting fans bring their own beer in. The NFL did that a couple years ago after a couple incidents of fans throwing objects and snow onto the field, most notably at a Cleveland Browns game. If the NFL can enact such a measure and survive, so can NASCAR.

And if any fan refuses to come to a NASCAR race because they can't truck in a huge cooler full of whatever beer their favorite driver sponsors, then they're not a real NASCAR fan and have no business being at a Nextel Cup race in first place.

Gordon should be congratulated for his accomplishment; Earnhardt is one of the sport's all-time greats and Gordon has surpassed him in terms of the numbers. I realize in the eyes of many fans, Gordon will never truly urpass Earnhardt, and I respect that. I get what Earnhardt meant and still means to NASCAR, and I realize the rivalry these two had meant Gordon fans hated Earnhardt and vice versa. I'm not telling NASCAR fans to stop hating Gordon; I'm telling them to stop acting like fools and recognize the accomplishment of a legend.

I won't argue who's better: Gordon or Earnhardt. That's an argument I'll never make, because it's near impossible and I realize looking at it analytically would be lost on most NASCAR fans. Because according to most of them, Earnhardt is God and Gordon is Satan.

Nothing will ever change that.

But enough with the beer-throwing. It makes you look stupid and immature and it's potentially dangerous. You're not happy with Gordon winning the race and surpassing Earnhardt at his track on what would've been his 56th birthday? Fine; boo the guy. Refuse to clap or acknowledge it. But the minute you get a brain freeze and you decide to chuck a piece of metal onto the race track, you put people in danger and you give the sport you claim to love a bad name.

To the fans: Stop it.

To NASCAR: Do something about it.

To Jeff Gordon: Congratulations on a career milestone. It's not your fault some NASCAR fans are morons.

And lastly, to Dale Earnhardt: You're still missed, Big E. And I wanna apologize for some of your fans. I wish you were still around to set them straight.

NFL Draft Thoughts and Musings

I have to admit; I'm not a huge NFL Draft geek. I don't really like paying attention to the months upon months of pre-draft hype and I'm not one to sit at my computer trying to figure out who's going where in the field of 255. I have neither the time nor the energy to sift through an army of college football players to determine who goes where -- partly because of my distaste for college football (have I perhaps mentioned that before?).

Now, if you're asking me to project the 65 teams to make the NCAA tournament, sit me down in front of a television with a buttload of tape and stacks of RPI numbers and conference standings and season schedules. Then leave me alone for 48-72 hours as I sift through it all and give you my projected field.

I do, however, watch the first round of the NFL Draft and follow enough of the other six rounds to get a general feel for what the new blood of the league will look like in the coming season ... and to see how badly Daniel Snyder's going to screw up the Redskins this year.

So, in lieu of today's happenings, I present some thoughts and musings on day one of the NFL Draft.

-Oakland had no choice but to take JaMarcus Russell. I realize Calvin Johnson from Georgia Tech was the best overall player in the draft according to most experts, but imagine this scenario: Randy Moss lined up on one side, Johnson lined up on the other and ... Andrew Walter bent over center?

Look up wasted talent in the dictionary and you'd probably see that very scenario.

Things would've been different had Kansas City and Miami agreed to trade Trent Green. If Green had gone to the Dolphins, that would've likely meant the cutting of Daunte Culpepper. Culpepper could then go to Oakland, reunite with Moss and leave the Raiders free to get Johnson. But with no Culpepper, and no other free agent option (unless you count Tim Rattay, which ... I don't), the Raiders had no choice but to take Russell No. 1.

The Raiders then did a smart thing in picking up Arizona State tight end Zach Miller in the second round (No. 38 overall). He wasn't the best TE on the board, but picking up an offensive weapon to help out Russell is a good move. Now all the Raiders need is an offensive line (the Raiders picked up offensive tackle Mario Henderson from Florida State in the third round).

-Cleveland's move to get Quinn wasn't genius ... it was dumb luck. Seriously, who could've seen Miami taking Ted Ginn, Jr. over Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn at No. 9 overall? I'm no Mel Kiper, Jr. (not enough hair), but even I was shocked by that pick. Ginn wasn't projected as anything better than a mid- to late first-round pick, and that was without the ankle injury he suffered in the national championship game. And with the Dolphins' QB situation up in the air, all I can say to this is ... what?!

I have no problem with Cleveland taking big Joe Thomas out of Wisconsin No. 3 overall -- if they feel they need to boost the offensive line, I won't argue the point. In fact, based on how infrequently I saw the Browns last year, I happen to agree; Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson need protecting.

But let's not pat Cleveland on the back for geniusly trading with Dallas to get the No. 22 overall pick to snag Quinn. There was no way of knowing he'd fall that far.

-Washington doesn't implode the 2007 NFL Draft. I've heard some Internet rumblings about the Redskins' pick of LSU's LaRon Landry at No. 6 overall. What are the Redskins thinking? some ask. Why didn't they take Brady Quinn? others argue.

Well, while I can certainly appreciate the "take the best player available" mentality, I'm not keen on taking a quarterback in the first round for the second time in three years. Jason Campbell did show signs of progress toward the end of last season, and who knows what he'll be able to do with a backfield of Ladell Betts and a healthy Clinton Portis. So I have no problem with Washington not taking Quinn.

I'm also fine with who the Redskins did pick. Landry is quick and has good hands; he'll fit in perfectly beside Sean Taylor in the secondary. He was the best defensive player available for many teams in this year's draft, and Washington got him.

Even more importantly, they didn't trade him. I nearly vomited when I heard they were shopping the No. 6 pick several weeks ago to Chicago for the No. 31 and Lance Briggs. Washington needs to stop pursuing every high-priced, big-name free agent out there and start focusing on the draft again. Every consistently successful playoff team focuses on the draft and uses free agency to supplement. Washington's been doing it the other way around with Snyder calling the shots.

But I like this pick. I don't like Washington not having another pick until the fifth round, but hey; baby steps. ...

-Buffalo might come out of letting Willis McGahee go without much damage. At least, if all the projections on running back -- and Buffalo's pick at No. 12 overall -- Marshawn Lynch out of Cal pan out. I'd heard him going later in the first round, likely to Green Bay (who lost Ahmad Green not that long ago to the Houston Texans), but I like that Buffalo went for him first.

I don't think the Bills should've let McGahee go to begin with -- not if he was as productive as he was -- but if Lynch is everything scouts and experts say he can be, he'll be a productive back as well, and he'll go a long way to helping that offense, specifically up-and-coming quarterback J.P. Losman.

-Speaking of Green Bay ... what were they thinking going defense with the No. 16 overall pick? I realize the Packers weren't that great defensively last season, but shouldn't they have tried a little harder to get Brett Favre some help? I'm hard-pressed to name a wide receiver for the Packers right now, they just lost their feature back in Ahmad Green, and tight end Bubba Franks is a shadow of his former self.

The Packers needed offense. Take one of the wide receivers who were still available at the time -- like LSU's Dwayne Bowe or Tennessee's Robert Meachem -- or a tight end (Greg Olsen out of Miami, the best available TE, was still on the board).

No offense to Justin Harrell -- he might be a fine player in the NFL -- but I think defensive tackle could've been addressed in later rounds. If the Packers hope to contend in a weak NFC this coming year, they needed to go offense in the first round.

-Something seems backwards here ... So let me get this straight: Cincinnati takes Michigan cornerback Leon Hall -- by all accounts I've seen, a really good class guy -- at No. 18, while New England takes Miami safety Brandon Mariweather -- whom I last saw doing the Boot Scootin' Boogie on a Florida International player's head -- at No. 24?

I get Cincy taking a character pick -- after the past two years of arrests and commissioner Roger Goodell's tougher conduct policy -- they were bound to get a good guy. But since when do the Patriots start taking guys with questionable character?

I mean, first this and then they trade for Randy Moss? Has Hell frozen over or something?