DreisbachToHayes

February 11th, 2016 at 10:17 AM ^

just google it... terrible money decisions left and right.... has lost millions and millions on all sorts of terrible investments.   Typical athlete-who-thinks-they-are-a-business-man kind of thing.

So many athletes think they are smart and know what they are doing, but they would be way better just sticking their money in some stupid savings account than opening restaurants, clubs, carwashes, sporting goods stores, car dealerships, gyms, etc.  Rarely works out.

EDIT:  Actual number:  he is estimated to have lost 13.6 million in investments-gone-wrong since his football career ended.

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WolvinLA2

February 11th, 2016 at 10:06 AM ^

Right, but he shouldn't be punished for that in terms of HOF. Football is a team game, and not like basketball where one star can take over a game. The wins shouldn't matter, especially for a WR (QB it's a little different).

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mgobaran

February 11th, 2016 at 10:58 AM ^

He should be punished for accepting defeat all these years. For never standing up and leading this team out of the crap we have dealt with. Calvin Johnson is best known for a catch that didn't count as a catch, and breaking Jerry Rice's single season record in a year the Lions went 4-12. Great player. Great Athlete. Terrible leader. Minimal impact on the game. Minimal impact on his team and results. 

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Space Coyote

February 11th, 2016 at 8:31 AM ^

It sucks when it's placed on QBs, it sucks more when it's placed on a guy that maybe touches the ball 10 times a game out of a total of 150+ plays.

Football is the ultimate team sport. For it to come down to "he didn't win anything" is asinine.

And let's actually break it down for a second. Calvin played 9 seasons. 7 seasons he had over 1000 yards. 6 seasons he had 8+ TDs (4 seasons 12+ TDs). In back-to-back years he lead the NFL in receiving, one of which consistent of nearly 2000 yards receiving. He has over 11,000 yards receiving and over 80 TDs in 9 seasons. Despite only playing 9 seasons, he's 27th all time in yards, 22nd in TDs. He's 2nd all time in yards/game and 12th all time in yards per touch.

He has the consistency throughout his career, he has the great years where he was the best in the league, he has a handful of other years where he was top 5. That's a HOF career, even if he hangs it up now. And there isn't a doubt about it.

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xtramelanin

February 11th, 2016 at 8:55 AM ^

and one of the finest humans too - a consumate, humble, exceptionally dedicated player.   nobody combines his size, speed, moves, hands, and head.   all those 70-80's receivers (rice and swan are two of them) who played on teams that were loaded with HOF guys have a grossly over-inflated view of their abilities vs. calvin's. 

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Space Coyote

February 11th, 2016 at 11:27 AM ^

Not 3 or 4. 9 seasons is a pretty solid career length. If he played 3 more seasons and put up marginal numbers, he'd have the same numbers as the HOF players getting in during the same era.

Skipping the 3 or 4 marginal seasons (which he would likely put up better than marginal numbers, given what he did last season despite injury) doesn't preclude him from being a HOF player.

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bsand2053

February 11th, 2016 at 12:02 PM ^

I agree.  Calvin was a huge disappointment at left tackle, running back and strong safety.  He is not good enough to win games all by himself and therefore doesn't deserve to be in the same hall as all those players who won all their games with literally no help from any other player.

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CRISPed in the DIAG

February 11th, 2016 at 9:43 AM ^

Much of the targeting against Swann could have been avoided had Lambert not made a career out of targeting people.  Watch the Americas's Game episode for the '76 Raiders when you get a chance.

edit: sorry, you meant Bradshaw wouldn't have thrown at Swann had Megatron been the other WR. Hard to say. Stallworth might complicate things, but maybe.

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Zarniwoop

February 11th, 2016 at 7:30 AM ^

Swann is only in the hof because of the catches he made in the super bowl. Ironic he should say that as one of the hall's weakest links. Megatron is a shoe-in. He was the best receiver in the league by a vast amount for nearly a decade. People that honestly believe super bowls matter for this have tiny little minds.

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Reader71

February 11th, 2016 at 10:38 AM ^

Johnson was never the best player in the league. He was the best receiver in the league for 2-3 years. That 2000 yard season was amazing, and I think he probably makes it in because of that. But his career numbers are borderline HOF because he retired so early. Edit: The Super Bowl argument is horse shit, with that I agree.

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mrkid

February 11th, 2016 at 7:32 AM ^

Lynn Swann would be the third best WR on the Lions today, behind Calvin and Tate. Calvin deserves the HOF. He had monster seasons every year, he could still make a catch in triple coverage. It's not his fault he was on a terrible team. Imagine what the Lions would be WITHOUT Calvin?

I don't think the years played will matter. That trend will become the new norm. We will have to start evaluating shorter careers for the HOF. In 9 years, Calvin put out some ridiculous numbers and was clearly the best WR in the game.

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jdon

February 11th, 2016 at 7:35 AM ^

I agree.
The Seattle fumble highlights his lack of field awareness.
Was he the second most talents wideout I've ever seen (moss)? Yes.
But his game day performance failed time and time again.

Remember the Dallas playoff game he played out of his mind last year? Me either.



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mrkid

February 11th, 2016 at 8:08 AM ^

I like how you made a list of Johnson's biggest failures and came up with a regular season game fumble and a mediocre playoff game. Detroit was up 20-7 in the 3rd quarter in that game.

Given that you have two black marks on his 9 year career says a lot about how good he really was.

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jdon

February 11th, 2016 at 11:33 AM ^

I chose the Seattle game as a perfect example of something I consistently seen out of him...

I was at the Atlanta game he set the single season record and I just want to say he had a plethora of empty yardage.

I don't hate the guy and I won't cry if he gets into the hall of fame but I will reiterate that he isn't HOF material in my mind due to a combination of a lack of accomplishments team wise and an inability outside of the N.O. playoff game to take over key games.

Charles Tillman owned him too... And no one is talking about putting Tillman in the hall.



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Magnus

February 11th, 2016 at 7:44 AM ^

Well, if Swann is right, then I think there's a problem with the Hall of Fame.

There should be a Hall of People Who Won Super Bowls.

And there should be a Hall of People Who Were Great in the Regular Season. Personally, I think the Hall of People Who Were Great in the Regular Season would look pretty enticing with people like Dan Fouts, Dan Marino, Barry Sanders, Calvin Johnson, and lots of others.

Isn't there already an award for people who, like, won Super Bowls and stuff? Isn't it the Lombardi Trophy? Isn't it a Super Bowl ring? Why do individual players have to win team championships/playoff games to be recognized for their individual greatness?

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N. Campus Tech

February 11th, 2016 at 7:55 AM ^

The Hall of Fame is not an award for team accomplishments, it's to recognize individual achievements. While Calvin never had the opportunity to showcase his talents on the big stage of the 2nd round of the playoffs, he was clearly the best wide receiver in the NFL for the last decade. If there is any Hall of Famer that should keep his mouth shut, it's the marginal Lynn Swann. He was an average receiver over his career, and was fortunate to have played on a dynasty. He had the opportunity to play on many big stages, and (to his credit) made some big plays.

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BrownJuggernaut

February 11th, 2016 at 7:59 AM ^

I'd have to look more at Megatron's stats beyond what was presented in the article, but Swann's argument is complete horseshit. While I do think that winning is an important thing, it's not the end all be all. It's a case by case basis. Megatron has been one of the best receivers of his era and has had as much impact as a receiver as anyone, while healthy.

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BrownJuggernaut

February 11th, 2016 at 9:30 AM ^

Totally agree. You have to rely on someone else to get you the ball. You have to be able to get open and catch the ball. Megatron has plucked his share of balls when covered by multiple defenders because he was that good. The use of the past tense seems really weird. Wide receiver isn't like a running back where you're handed the ball. There's a lot more variability. It should be added that Megatron changed the way defenses approached the Lions.

If he had better players around him, better scheme, a better QB, I have no doubt the winning knock on him wouldn't exist. 

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BrownJuggernaut

February 11th, 2016 at 9:27 AM ^

Yeah - I'm not a Lions fan nor do I do fantasy football though, so I don't know his stats or even a ballpark of his stats offhand. That 15.9 yds/rec and 555 first downs is real impressive. I'm really disappointed in his defensive stats though. That's probably what will keep him out!!!

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