Last Week

In The Name of God The Most Gracious The Most Merciful 

Peace, What's up ROTB? This is Hamza Abdullah #41 for the Arizona Cardinals. I wrote a blog a few weeks ago, and had a lot of fun with it, so I decided to do another one. In this blog I hope to give the fans a look into the offseason of the NFL, and a sneak peek into the locker room. Eyes up please... 

Organized Team Activities aka OTA's are wrapping up this week in Tempe and I have to say we are getting some great work in. This time of year is a time for coaches to throw a lot at us and assess who can pick it up, while still performing at a high level. Our young guys really study hard and are adapting to the Pro game really well. Like I said in the last post, Early Doucet and Steve Breaston are working their tails off in the weight room and it's carrying over onto the football field. They are meticulous in their preparation and I know it's going to pay off. This is my first offseason with the team and it has been a ton of fun. Both on the field and off. We have been able to sneak away and squeeze in a few rounds of golf, some joint outings with the kids and take in some postseason basketball games. NFL players love the NBA. The main reason, they all think they could have played in the "League".

Hahaha, wrong, the 15th man on the bench of every NBA team is still 1 million times better then anyone else you've ever seen. I'll give you an example. My buddy Kyle Weaver, Guard/Forward for the Oklahoma City Thunder, is in his second year in the league and he's probably the 8th man on the team. Some nights he gets a lot of burn, other nights he stays suited up. But man oh man, I saw him play at the REC Center at Washington State one offseason, wow. Everything was so effortless to him, he never missed a shot, his handles were crazy, the guy guarding him was in a full sweat dripping and out of breath. Kyle had a long sleeve shirt on, didn't break a sweat, and didn't even have the common courtesy to tie his shoes up. Hahaha. It was unreal. I have a great appreciation for all professional athletes, and I never for one second question their ability. They are there for a reason. Another reason NFL players like the NBA is because most of them have favorite teams. And these players ride or die with their team. It's great conversation and most of the time it's down right hilarious. 

The reason it's funny is because guys are very creative and resourceful. For example, The Celtics won tonight, so now we're going to have guys come in tomorrow with brand spanking new, fresh out the FedEx box, Celtics gear. And of course they're going to be waiting for the Laker fans to come in to work. And yes, they will stay dressed in their gear as long as they possibly can. They would come to practice in Ray Allen jerseys if they didn't think Coach Whiz would fine them. Hahaha. I love it though, because the NBA playoffs is like a roller coaster. One day you're on top of the world, the next, the world is on top of you. That's why you have to stay even keel as best as possible. But We have guys that love to talk, and they know just what to say to push each other's buttons. So it gets very entertaining. All in all, its all in fun, we're competitors and I believe it brings teammates together.

The offseason is all about building team chemistry and laying the foundation of what we envision to be a successful season. I don't think I can properly explain what it's like competing for a spot on an NFL roster. To be in competition with others for a job and a position that could change your life, but not want the one's you're competing against to fail is hard to imagine for some people. But as an NFL player we become close with those who we are perceived to be competing against. The older you get, the more you realize, the one you're really competing against is yourself. So it's no use wishing ill on anyone. We just have to try our best and pray we put ourselves in a position to accomplish our goals. Coach Whiz is great because he does different things to try and make sure we're interacting with our teammates and making sure we're developing healthy relationships. We went bowling on Friday, and that was fun. I'm not very good, but it was great seeing guys like Michael Adams bowl. He was making that ball do exactly what he wanted. I'm not sure what he bowled, but I know it was high. Speaking of Michael, he recently said Dallas is a better place to live then L.A.  I'm from L.A., and that took me by surprise, I thought everyone loved California. I do, but it is too expensive. I don't know. What do you think? You like Dallas or L.A? To visit or live? 

I like to live out here in Tempe. It's awesome, everyone is so health conscious and they're way nicer then the people in L.A. Not to mention I don't have to sit in traffic. A big thank you goes out to all the people who know how to merge on and off the freeway... Thanks to everyone who read the last post, sorry I ran on about BBall, I'll make sure I give you guys more football. Which means I'll do another one soon. God willing. I watched all the YouTube's you guys recommended and some were cool, but the best was Baby stuck behinde couch! I loved it. If you guys have anymore, please let me know. Here's one for you guys, what if this man played Wide Receiver... Usain Bolt 9.58 100m New World Record Berlin [HQ]

TTYL, (my 2 year old said that to me) Peace