Right now David Akers is a hero to fans in San Francisco and fantasy football owners all over the world. On Sunday Akers made 4 consecutive field goals propelling the San Francisco 49ers to a 33-17 victory over the Seattle Seahawks. The all pro kicker (he's also a member of the all decade team) has played most of his career in Philadelphia, but signed with the 49ers this summer after contract talks with the Eagles broke down. Did he make the right decision?
Absolutely not. The 49ers have an outside chance of making the playoffs (they play in the worst division in football), but the Eagles are favorites to make the Super Bowl. Most professional athletes will tell you their number one goal is to win a championship. If that's true there's no plausible explanation as to why David Akers would jump ship at a time when the Eagles are poised to make that dream a reality.
Pride and ego have a way of clouding peoples judgement and I think both factors were at work in this situation. After years of loyal and dedicated service Akers thought he was entitled to some form of long term security and a modest pay raise. Although the Eagles acknowledged he is one of the best at his craft they simply weren't willing to give in to his demands. He's only a kicker after all.
In the end the change of scenery may be a good thing for him. I'm sure San Francisco is a much better place for his family and Philadelphia fans are notorious for being hard on their sports teams, but Super Bowl rings are hard to come by. If the Eagles win the Super Bowl without him how embarrassing would that be for him? Like the great Marcellus Wallace said, "pride only hurts, it never helps.
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