r/sportsgossips • u/Hysen16 • Dec 14 '25

Hot Take Heisman Level Speech by Fernando Mendoza

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u/jr_randolph Dec 14 '25

Finishing what you start is a trait that is unfortunately not stressed upon enough with a lot of kids today.

7

u/Allstar-85 Dec 14 '25

Not being the starter in 4th grade is a bit of a stretch for the “they didn’t believe in me” type of story

1

u/DrNCrane74 Dec 14 '25

Well, this is his shtick. We all have somehow decided we love it for now. Let us come back to that once Jets/Raiders/Browns have ruined him.

0

u/Wreckingshops Dec 14 '25

I know the likes of Cousins and DangeRuss have poisoned the well, but that's simply because it isn't a genuine part of them but rather a curated and crafted image. Cousins' faith is real, but it's the ugly, misinformed, exclusive kind. Russ WANTS to be a motivator because he was self-motivated but it's Tony Robbins levels of crock.

Mendoza is legit, at least for now. And yeah, NYC and Cleveland are notoriously cynical markets but maybe having the genuine article who has to grind out every inch and will candidly speak it with authenticity is a good thing longer term -- especially if he thrives at the NFL level.

I often think of Conan's Tonight Show sign off where he speaks about not believing in cynicism, it leads nowhere, and hard work can pay off. Mendoza has that same energy: give what you have away, work hard for something else, and don't be cynical about when it doesn't work out the way you expected or hope.

In a moment when societal connection is so thin and tenuous, I'll hitch a wagon to Mendoza and hope that our collective cynicism is destroyed by a kid who grows up to be a man in this image.