One problem in sports nowadays is the lack of good nicknames. There's too many lazy nicknames - A-Rod, ManRam, etc - just using people's names, and mashing them together somehow. The origins of good nicknames aren't necessarily immediately obvious - often they involve a quick story, or at the least an explanation. Good ones in today's game include Sean Casey as the Mayor and Travis Hafner as Pronk (though of course who knows Hafner will be around the way his career has turned). I think it's everyone's personal duty to rectify this problem, and good nickname developing starts in the grassroots - nicknames start small and grow in force (some, anyway). Thus, I'm making it my personal duty to push some nicknames into the lexicon, or attempt anyway. I ask that anyone reading this should start using these nicknames when they talk about the player involved, and that they explain to their friends and get them to start using them too. Hell, force a conversation involving these players just so you can get the nickname in there.

Our nickname today will be Bills' safety Donte Whitner as "The Prophet"


Of course, I wouldn't expect anyone to go enforcing a nickname that had no explanation. In this offseason, Donte Whitner issued a guarentee that the Bills would make the playoffs. So far, the Bills are 3-0, their best start in 16 years. Coincidence? I'm not sure, but either way, this start surely makes Donte a (the) Prophet. Now, hopefully the Bills will keep it up, but even if they don't, the nickname stays - that's part of what it means to be a nickname, continuing to be used even if the story that made it true in the first place doesn't hold up exactly anymore.

You've got your nickname. Start using it.