What is about professional athletes that makes them want to utter ridiculous, hyperbolic boasts about themselves and their teammates and their franchise's chances of winning the next championship and the championship after that and probably the championship after that too?
While what New York Jets cornerback Buster Skrine uttered on Thursday doesn't exactly qualify as a ridiculous boast or even as calling a Super Bowl shot, it does seem to carry a fair amount of ill-advised braggadocio and it certainly carries a comparison no fan in New York is likely to be happy to hear made.
"I've never played on a defense with this much talent," said Skrine, via SI.com's Don Banks. "Our front seven has all-stars and then in the back end, we have all-stars. I've never seen anything like this. Everybody said the Philadelphia Eagles were going to be like the Dream Team, but we have chemistry on this defense already, and you can see it out in practice. I mean, we can match up however you want to match up. We can match up with any offense."
The 2011 Philadelphia Eagles - also known by the now tongue-in-cheek moniker of "The Dream Team" - were comprised of pricey free agent additions who many thought would finally be able to get Philly its first Lombardi Trophy. The collection of mercenary talent, which included quarterback Vince Young, cornerbacks Nnamdi Asomugha and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, defensive end Jason Babin, tight end Donald Lee and wide receiver Johnnie Lee Higgins, earned the "Dream Team" nickname thanks an ill-fated preseason comment by Young.
"Nnamdi [Asomugha] to [Dominique Rodgers-]Cromartie, to Jason [Babin] to myself," Young said at the time, via Chris Chase of Yahoo Sports. "I know they are going to do some more things. [...] It's just beautiful to see where we're trying to go."
The Eagles, of course, wound up finishing with a record of 8-8 and missed the playoffs. Long-time Eagles head coach Andy Reid was fired the very next season.
In short, it's a strange comparison for Skrine to make, though it is actually somewhat accurate at this point. The new Jets brass, led by GM Mike Maccagnan and head coach Todd Bowles, went on an absolute defensive shopping spree in their first offseason.
Brought onboard via free agency were Skrine and fellow cornerbacks Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie. They now sit atop a group that already included a former first-round pick in Dee Milliner and a former third-rounder in Dexter McDougle.
Leonard Williams was added via the draft to compete alongside a defensive line unit that has Pro Bowl talents like Muhammad Wilkerson and Sheldon Richardson.
And veteran inside linebacker David Harris was signed to a new contract extension, ensuring he'll quarterback Bowles' defensive unit for at least a few more seasons.
While Skrine and Bowles and Maccagnan are, no doubt, hopeful that any comparison to the 2011 Eagles ends at the point of gathering all that talent - and it's likely that it will - this is the kind of quote that can certainly come back to bite Skrine and Co. if things don't fall New York's way next season and the team winds up performing well below Skrine's lofty expectations.
