Thursday, April 16, 2015

Gotta Keep Roman Strong, Calvin Johnson

Photo Credit: RamblinWreck.com
I was doing a bit of research for this mock draft I'm doing with a bunch of bros, and I came across something that was probably common knowledge to wrestling fans who are really into backgrounds of their favorite wrestlers. Roman Reigns, back when he was just a regular old Joe (Anoa'i), played football for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. I'm pretty sure I read that somewhere else, but it's funny when you get reminded of how far wrestling roots can spread when you're waist-deep in other nerdy endeavors. Side note, nothing, and I mean nothing, is nerdier than doing a seven-round full mock NFL draft except for maybe doing a full 40 round MLB draft. Just because sports aren't considered "nerdy" doesn't mean you can't make a total geek-fest out of it.

Anyway, what I didn't know until Friend of The Blog Jeff McDevitt illuminated the subject is that Reigns was a co-captain on the team with none other than Calvin Johnson, currently the best wide receiver in all of professional football. The stats may not have borne out last year, but like his Ramblin' Wreck teammate, Johnson spent a good bit of the fall out on the sidelines hurt. If only he were healthy, maybe he could have helped to keep Roman strong. Ah, the what-ifs of sports are as complex as the Universe itself. If only Reigns had kept Johnson's number, then maybe The Shield would still be together with Dean Ambrose, Reigns, and Megatron holding down the fort. I mean, that picture above does indicate a certain level of cool brotherhood, right?