Media Day: Every Picture Tells A Story. Don't It?

The wonders of modern technology have made a writer of anyone with a keyboard and an internet connection. And a photographer of anyone with a remotely modern cell phone.

Even amidst the tsunami of words and images made available by a few keystrokes, though, you can still pick out the real thing immediately.

And Neil Leifer, who made the image above for Sports Illustrated, is the real thing.

You might not recognize the name, but if you became a football fan any time between the 1960s up until the Internet turned sports journalism from something that required seeking and often paying into a colorful segment of the popular culture landscape, you know his work.

Leifer's images were to the pre-digital age print media what Ed and Steve Sabol's NFL Films productions were to television: iconic links between the sport and its rapidly growing base of devotees.

Leifer, who shot just about every sport of significance beginning in the 1950s, has published a collection of his football images, Guts and Glory: The Golden Age of American Football. Today, Deadspin published four of the images, along with Leifer's descriptions of the situations, techniques, cameras and even type of film (for those not familiar with the non-cinematic use of the word, that's a thin flexible strip of cellulose coated with a photographic emulsion, used to make negatives and transparencies) that went into creating them.

The thing is, you don't know when during the play to shoot—you're shooting with a sequence camera, four or five frames a second. There were 36 frames on a roll of film, and it would not be uncommon to shoot about 30 rolls of film of a game. Sometimes it would be 28 or 33. A lot of it would be junk, but it's a hell of a lot easier to be a genius when you edit than when you shoot.

 So if you are a photographer, an admirer of the art, or just like you some football, do yourself a favor and check it out.

The introduction includes a link to popular online retailer, for anyone who is looking for a Christmas gift for someone who might really, really like it.

Cough. Cough.

OH, AND THE BILLS are playing the Dolphins tonight. This used to be quite a big deal nationally, but with both teams aspiring to mediocrity for most of the past decade,  nobody outside Buffalo or Miami cares much these days (and the latter is iffy at best).

The Bills (3-6), with the offseason addition of high-priced defensive end Mario Williams, weren't supposed to be this bad. And the Dolphins (4-5), with rookie coach Joe Philbin, rookie quarterback, Ryan Tannehill and many holes to fill, weren't supposed to be this good.

Jim Kelly versus Dan Marino this is not. But on Thursday night, the prime-time lights will once again shine on these two longtime division rivals in a game that will determine who stays in the postseason picture for at least another week.

THE NEW YORK JETS provided the biggest story of the week. Surprisingly enough, it involves Tim Tebow. The New York Daily News published a piece loaded with named and unnamed players and members of the Jets organization stating in very clear, understandable terms that they want no part of Tebow doing anything besides taking the rare snap in the Wildcat formation or blocking for the punter.

Left guard Matt Slauson, who has repeatedly supported Sanchez, made it clear that the fourth-year signal caller is the Jets’ best quarterback.

“It’s not even close,” Slauson said. “All the other quarterbacks know it. I have all the confidence in Mark. We don’t really have a choice.”

When asked about the team’s two other quarterbacks on the depth chart as possible alternatives — Tebow and Greg McElroy — Slauson clarified that the Jets really have only one other quarterback.

“We have Greg . . . and we have an athlete,” Slauson said.

But could the Jets win with Tebow as the No. 1 quarterback?

“Do I have to answer that question?” a veteran starter said, shaking his head.

While this comes as no surprise to anyone who has actually watched the man throw a pass, it must be jarring news to the good folks at ESPN. Or at least it would be if playing ability entered into the network's news judgment.

And I like Tebow, from what I've seen of the guy. Too bad he's not a better quarterback.

SPEAKING OF THE JETS, they reached the conclusion this week that Aaron Maybin is not very good at playing football.

If his playing career is over, one highlight, besides the half-dozen sacks the Bills 2009 first-round pick recorded last season with the Jets, was getting the full Rick Reilly treatment from the hackiest hack who ever hacked.

I'm no art critic, but perhaps Maybin has something to fall back on. Kind of tough to make nasty cracks about someone who has lost a child, as detailed in the video. I might be losing my edge.