Tiger Woods: Finally Faces the Public

Tiger Woods walked up to a podium early Friday and addressed a national audience to once again apologize for his infidelities. He apologized to fans, his business partners, and his sponsors. The richest golfer in the world talked about continuing his charitable efforts and also talked about his stay in sex therapy for cheating on his wife. He spoke about understanding why the press wants to know details of his life but made it clear those issues would be solely between he and his wife.

He spoke at great length about wanting to protect his family and criticized the paparazzi for following his family including his children and mother everywhere they went. He made a plea to the media to leave his family alone.

Woods defended his wife, Elin Nordegren, saying she never attacked him or touched him during the Thanksgiving incident when he ran into the tree with his SUV.

Then he began talking about Buddhism which was the religion he was taught as a child. He talked about drifting away from his religion and wanting to go back to his early teachings. Then he went into detail about what he learned in sex therapy which included relying on his religion and friends.

Woods answered what his golf fans wanted to hear which is that he plans to return to golf but he didn't give a exact time but said it may be in 2010. He apologized to his fellow golfers for holding the press conference during the same weeked the Accenture tournament will take place. He then asked the audience and viewers if they could one day believe in him again. After he finished speaking he hugged his mother.

Obviously what he said was well scripted and was devised to suit his wide purpose which was a plea for forgiveness from everyone. Clearly he wants to restore his image and I think he's well on his way. He appeared to come across as genuine despite the fact he was obviously rehearsed. But he was subdued and humble even when he was asking the media to leave his family alone. I believe the plea for his family resonated with a lot of people because he was very sincere. He was smart in that he didn't attack the media but rather respectfully revealed how his actions allowed his family to be negatively impacted by the mainstream press.

I think he did a great job although it was obviously staged and orchestrated. But I'm positive he didn't garner too much sympathy because at the end of the day, Tiger Woods has earned 100 million dollars from golf earning plus more from endorsements. I'm sure some of the companies may return to backing him; that's obvious. He has some work to do with rebuilding his family but I'm sure he won't have a problem with that. People won't forget about his infidelities but I don't think it'll matter. A year from now I suspect this will be a non-story and Woods will categorically return to form on and off the course and will always be considered the best golfer that has ever lived.

Darrell Green: The Fastest Baby Boomer Alive and Still Healthy

On February 15th of this year NFL Hall of Famer Darrell Green turned 50. Shortly after, according to his twitter account, he became the fastest baby boomer alive. Green claimed to have run the 40 yard dash in 4.43 seconds on his birthday. Who should doubt him? The answer is no one. He won all of the NFL fastest man competitions he entered; and ten years ago at age 40 he made headlines for running a tad bit faster forty time of 4.2.

Green is a two time Super Bowl champ and 7 time pro bowler whose storied career reads like 50 pages from the Guiness Book of World Records. Most of his records made prominent because of the 20 years he spent in the league. He holds the record for most career interceptions and most interceptions returned by a Redskins player in history. He holds the record for most games played by a defensive player in league history and at age 40, he signed a five year contract with Washington, a team he played with his entire NFL career.

But the story here is much bigger than the fact that Green can run a faster time than almost everyone half his age. The story here is a more positive story than the ones NFL fans have heard in the past few years. Green like Brett Favre, Warren Moon and Deion Sanders who've played long and illustrious career in the league and are in top physical condition for their age, are simply a rarity and should be celebrated.

In 2011, the NFL is expected to have a lockout as they try to figure out a new plan to split the revenue between owners and players. Other issues being discussed include how much dough to fork over to retired players especially the ones with health issues related or unrelated to football. For years now it's become widely accepted that players in the league are susceptible to health problems later on in life as a result of the physical nature of the sport. This problem became more of a serious issue when Hall of Famer Reggie White passed away at age 43 in 2004 of a cardiac arrhythmia. Many players have also suffered from heart problems and concussions. The most unexpected case occurred this year when All American defensive end Gaines Adams died of a heart attack at age 26.

So while NFL owners bicker back and forth with the players' union about shrinking profits, I hope providing substantive health benefits to retired players isn't pushed aside. In the meantime when you hear a story about a 50 year old beast running a 4.43 40 yard dash, all you can do is chuckle or think what the.......???