For an indication of how the coverage of sports in general and pro football in particular has changed from the days of Grantland Rice, one need only glance at The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Packers blog. On Tuesday afternoon, writer Greg Bedard provided a play-by-play rundown of how each quarterback performed in two-minute drills.
Bedard's account is either a fun little glimpse at a portion of practice or lighter fluid for hysterical fans eager to ferret out any underachieving players on the roster. It's also a nod to how all-consuming sports media are becoming. With its regularly updated blog and Twitter feeds, the Journal Sentinel is simply trying to stay even with the mountains of NFL-related content online. Fans in search of the latest from training camp can turn to the Packers' official site, the NFL's TV network and website, ESPN's army of correspondents and even Twitter feeds from individual players.
Cincinnati receiver Chad Ochocinco, nee Johnson, prompted the NFL to draft an official Twitter policy after announcing his intention to tweet from the sidelines during games this season. His posts feature photos from the locker room and back-and-forth shout-outs with Phoenix receiver Larry Fitzgerald.
Green Bay head coach Mike McCarthy wants no part of the social networking experiment and has forbidden any tweeting from his players during team activities at training camp. But that hasn't prevented guys like linebacker Nick Barnett, tight end Jermichael Finley and running back Ryan Grant from staying in touch with their "tweeps" during down time.
In terms of quality, none of them can touch Shaquille O'Neal, however, who tweeted over the weekend: "Attention all scrabble players, is pigsriot a word?"