I have a confession. I can't do it guys. I can't just switch my hate on at will, especially for a guy who I've defended for years now as being a downright solid guy. I understand the poor, in fact, the flat out awful timing of Finnegan's unexpected hold out. I also understand that he doesn't really seem to care whether or not he comes back next year. But as for now, I can't flip a switch and set my phasers to hate. At the same time, I'm a firm believer that me being a fan is based around rooting for a bunch of really classy blue colored shirts, some shiny blue pants, and a flaming thumbtack.
So yeah, there's that.
Look, everybody loves the underdog, especially one like Finnegan. I hate to admit it, but on the field I tend to carry myself a lot like he does; like a complete ass. I like to think that it's different from the way I carry myself off of it, but when you're out there, you have to work for every advantage you can get. When you're not that big, not that fast, and not that strong, making your opponent lose focus is a great way to gain the upper hand. In short, I relate to Finnegan. Not in that I'm an NFL cornerback who made his way up from the bottom, that'd be a dream come true, but in that I can be a real prick when I'm playing. I that this kind of makes me want to take his side in a lot of these things. It's stupid and completely wrecks any sort of subjectivity I could bring to this matter, but whatever, I'm not the most objective person in the first place if you haven't noticed.
Another part of me just seems to remember all the good that this guy has done while he's been here. Even at his worst, a mediocre cornerback, he's outplayed his draft position tenfold. That's freakin' awesome. The Andre Johnson fight is a big part of it for me too. I don't know if it's fair to call it a fight, that would imply both sides had a shot of winning in the first place and Finnegan was out-muscled and unprepared, but to get a star player who's otherwise been known as a saint to completely lose his mind on national TV to the point that he feels compelled to assault you is pretty hysterical. So Finny lost, who cares, it'll always be a moral victory in my mind.
So basically, I can't just "un-see" all of those things that made us (some of us...) love Finnegan in the first place. The feelings of hate that a lot of you feel right now just aren't in me. So what am I feeling right now? I'd call it a lot of disappointment. This is a player who I've tried to model myself after for a couple of years now, prick on the field, good guy off it, but this contract dispute, whatever you wanna call it, is kind of grinding my gears. It doesn't change his role model status for me, but it's really a let down to see one of my all time favorites acting this way, especially after the coaching staff having nothing but great things to say about his dedication to the team in the weirdest offseason in recent memory.
In terms of getting rid of him; not seeing it. I just don't see a market developing for the guy right now. The return would have to be pretty decent, a sixth round pick ain't doing it for me and a fourth would be awesome but I don't see it happening, so that pretty much leaves a fifth and, let's be honest, despite Reinfeldt's awesome record, finding the next Cortland Finnegan (late round corner who gives you a couple of awesome years) isn't something you just do.
Think about it this way; if you give up on Finnegan then the Texans fans win.
Anyways, there are my feelings, deal with it I guess.
[EDIT]: Well, it sounds like he's out of camp for a personal reason and that this has nothing to do with his contract. HEYOOOOOOO GO TEAM FINNEGAN!