In this past Monday night NFL game between Philadelphia and Dallas, Eagles rookie Desean Jackson made an embarassing, somewhat rookie mistake. After pulling in a 61 yard “touchdown” pass from Eagles QB Donovan McKnabb and sprinting the last few yards for a sure touchdown, Jackson began to celebrate just before he crossed the goal line. He flicked the ball down and spread his arms in triumph! LET THE CELEBRATION BEGIN! Ah, excuse me….Desean? Could I have a quiet word with you just for a second? I don’t want to say anything but you seemed to have grounded the ball at the one yard line. I bet you didn’t know that did you? What’s that you say? The very same thing happened to you in 2005 during a high school all star game? You did what? You spread your arms for a celebratory swan dive into the end zone only to land at the one yard line? Well, that’s sure embarrassing!
Desean? Could I make a minor suggestion here? Perhaps you might want to reconsider the whole celebration thing. You know, like just play the game and not put so much thought and energy into counting your chickens or touchdowns before they’ve hatched. Apparently you are a football stud. A great player! That’s wonderful! So how about if you just stick to your job, playing the game and leave the celebration antics to the cheerleaders. You see, that’s their job. They celebrate the touchdowns while you, as the football player score them. Just a suggestion!