At the risk of sounding insensitive...

[OpIv37]

Look, I know this is a trivial matter compared to the severe destruction of the hurricane, but I'm going to bring it up anyway because this board is for discussing the Bills and not rebuilding the South or rescuing people.

JP went to school at Tulane and probably knows a lot of people in the area. Think it will be a distraction for him? Will it affect his play? Also, Brett Favre is from Mississippi and has a house in the affected area- will it affect him as well? In the past, Favre has almost seemed to play even better when he has some trauma in his personal life, but JP's young and hasn't really faced this type of adversity before. Any thoughts on how he'll respond?

:feedback:

[mysticsoto]

Look, I know this is a trivial matter compared to the severe destruction of the hurricane, but I'm going to bring it up anyway because this board is for discussing the Bills and not rebuilding the South or rescuing people.

JP went to school at Tulane and probably knows a lot of people in the area. Think it will be a distraction for him? Will it affect his play? Also, Brett Favre is from Mississippi and has a house in the affected area- will it affect him as well? In the past, Favre has almost seemed to play even better when he has some trauma in his personal life, but JP's young and hasn't really faced this type of adversity before. Any thoughts on how he'll respond?

:feedback:

Do you mean for Friday's game or for when the season starts? I think JP is focused on trying to get better and knows that he probably going to play for a half in this game and will focus. For the season, I think once the season starts in 12 days, the entire focus will be on the game, and the hurricane will be a distant thought on someone's mind.

Favre does seem to perform better when something bad happens to him. It probably means he concentrates fully on football to avoid thinking about the unpleasantness of life. Or maybe he'll dedicate a particular game to someone and therefore put his all into it to honor someone.

[OpIv37]

as far as JP is concerned, I actually meant both, although hopefully by the time the real games start he'll have heard from his friends in the area and won't be as distracted. He really does seem committed to the game- I certainly can't fault him for that- but even when people have good intentions, it can be very difficult to be 100% when a disaster such as this affects them personally.

[Wolffman]

I don't think he'll be that distracted because his family lives in Cali, not near Tulane. I'm sure he has some friends there, but it's not like everyone he knows lives there.

[OpIv37]

I don't think he'll be that distracted because his family lives in Cali, not near Tulane. I'm sure he has some friends there, but it's not like everyone he knows lives there.

good point.

[The last buffalo fan]

I don't think he'll be that distracted because his family lives in Cali, not near Tulane. I'm sure he has some friends there, but it's not like everyone he knows lives there.
School love, maybe??

He'll be fine, because as you said before adversity makes you stronger, that's a fact. The kid is already a tough guy, and a dedicated person, I mean in his duties. And the most important thing.................he's 50% Mexican!!!!

[The King]

I think JP should donate or volunteer time to help out down there. A great act of kindness on his part.

[Tatonka]

no more threads about JP.

[OpIv37]

no more threads about JP.

first, I didn't say anything negative about him. Second, he's the starting quarterback and while we all have our opinions on how he'll perform, no one really knows until the season starts and his play will have a huge impact on the success or failure of our team. So it seems logical that there would be a lot of discussion about him on this message board.

[Nic82]

I don't think it will affect his play. Competition serves as temporary amnesia. Players have tunnel vision between the lines.

[HAMMER]

JP most likely has very few friends or acquaintances left at Tulane, and his family is all in Venice Beach. I'd be surprised if this became a distraction for him.

[justasportsfan]

JP has been dreaming for the season to start. The first snap of regular season will be a dream come true. I doubt it's gonna distract him.

[Mudflap1]

Well, concerning Brett Favre, it appears his family is safe and that his home is ok except for some damage, but his childhood house is pretty beat up. Overall, his family is safe so all should be good for him.

I don't think J.P. Losman will be distracted. You have to understand, 80% of the people left New Orleans and are safe, even if their homes aren't. The other 20%, unfortunately, are the poorest citizens of the city. Being realistic, they probably weren't J.P. Losman's peers at Tulane, a very high-quality, and costly, public school. I'm sure anybody Losman knows are probably safe. That being said, I'm sure he's human and feels terrible about what's happened (I lived there myself for several years so I know firsthand you feel a link there, and it feels bad), but I'm sure he knows his task at hand, and that's to be quarterback for the Buffalo Bills.

Maybe he'll be a success this year and it will be a feel-good story for New Orleans.

Jon