Are you sick of seeing the same ugly mugs on the television when you turn on SportsCenter, your favorite sports show, or the local news? Day after day, night after night, we continue to see and hear the latest on the same individuals over and over. It is understood that these are important figures in the sports world, but come on, give us a break on the same ole, same ole. We don’t need to know every twitter post from these guys! Here is the list of Media Darlings; the top 10 athletes loved by the media.

10. Manny Ramirez, left fielder, Los Angeles Dodgers.

How many times have you heard “that’s just Manny being Manny”? While the love fest for the left fielder has died down some since going to Los Angeles, he continues to get quite the coverage. Ramirez brought a lot of the news on himself, with his antics, such as going to the bathroom in between pitching changes, and his turbulent exit from Boston. Most recently, Manny served a suspension for breaking MLB’s performance enhancing drug policy. Ramirez helped lead his team to another NLCS this season, once again coming up short. After sweeping St. Louis, the Dodgers were downed by Philadelphia. Ramirez has 546 career homeruns.

9. Tom Brady, quarterback, New England Patriots.

I guess when you have a gorgeous celebrity wife, you can’t help but be put in the spotlight.  It can’t hurt that Brady has turned into a historic quarterback. Playing for Bill Bellichick never hurts either. Remember when Brady and his wife were expecting their child? What about when Brady got hurt? His coverage was all over, and still is today. Brady came back in 2009 as comeback player of the season, leading the Patriots to an AFC East title. Brady set another record this season by throwing for five touchdowns in one quarter (a win over Tennessee).

8. Alex Rodriguez, third basemen, New York Yankees.

No baseball player is dissected more than A-Rod. Rodriguez elected to make the jump from Seattle, to Texas, to the media capital of the world – in New York. It was iffy early in his tenure in New York whether he could survive or not, but the fall of 2009 proved he could. Whether it’s a ground out to third, a fly ball to right, or a grand slam, rest assured, you will see all of Alex Rodriguez’s at bats! Another steroid guy, as he admitted in February of 2009 to using them. A-Rod is just 17 homeruns short of 600, and is widely discussed as the next to break the all-time homerun record in Major League Baseball.

7. Lance Armstrong, cyclist.

For good reason, this guy is the best American cyclist ever. Luckily, for those of us ready to see Lance Armstrong retire for good, the Tour de France is only one month out of the year. If it were more, we would surely be getting a Lance overdose! Armstrong won seven straight Tour de France titles from 1995 to 2005. Armstrong is also known for his fight with testicular cancer, that he has had since 1996. Armstrong, in 2010, joined Team Radio Shack.

6. Terrell Owens, wide receiver, Buffalo Bills.

Known best for ripping apart talented football teams, Terrell Owens is slowly falling down the media love fest list. Owens was king during his final year with Tony Romo in Dallas. We still get to hear every comment he makes, just this time, nobody cares, because he plays in the northeast. No one is denying Owens’ talent. Out of Tennessee-Chattanooga, T.O. has been on six Pro Bowl teams, and amassed 1000 career receptions. Owens most famous sighting on television was with his great big goofy sun glasses, crying for his quarterback Tony Romo, in what may have been the biggest acting job by the wide receiver; “That’s my quarterback.  That’s my teammate.”

5. OchoCinco, wide receiver, Cincinnati Bengals.

Twitter loves OchoCinco and his antics. Good thing they do, because the NFL sure doesn’t. We hear every time Chad Johnson, errr, OchoCinco goes bathroom, as he posts it on Twitter. Every Sunday, if you turn on the TV, 85 will be shown doing whatever he did that week to get fined. Drafted out of Oregon State, Chad officially changed his name to “OchoCinco” in 2006. The wide receiver has made the Pro Bowl six times, and has caught nearly 700 passes, for just shy of 1000 yards and 62 touchdowns.

4. LeBron James, guard, Cleveland Cavaliers.

The King has been a hit with the worldwide leader of sports since his high school days. The one guy that was getting his high school games covered by major cable channels. James’s issue with the hummer, along with his entire journey as a complete stud in the NBA have been chronicled daily. Currently, James is in the media for his status for the 2011 season. When he becomes a free agent, many believe James will bolt his home state and head to the money in New York. He has led the Cavaliers to the NBA finals once in his career. LeBron, who turned 25 in December, won his first Most Valuable Player award in 2009.

3. Brett Favre, quarterback, Minnesota Vikings.

Mr. retire and comeback, over and over again – Brett Favre. Favre is best known for hijacking the local news the last couple July’s. First it was his drama with his long time team the Green Bay Packers, then it was his desire to return. First to the Big Apple, with the New York Jets, followed by his retirement again, which led to another return; this time to Minnesota with the Vikings; a long time rival of the Packers. Favre, in 2009, had a scuffle with his head coach Brad Childress that led to ongoing media coverage lasting for weeks. Favre and the Vikings have righted the ship, and he is leading the high powered offense into the Big Easy to take on the Saints in the NFC title game.

2. Tim Tebow, quarterback, University of Florida.

As one individual put it when discussing Mr. Tebow and the media coverage, “no person has had the media on their knees more than Tim Tebow.” Known widely for the most popular collegiate athlete, Tebow has let his talking be done on the field. Tebow helped lead Florida to two national championships, and also has a Heisman to boot. Tebow is talked about as the second coming of God for all his countless missionary deeds. Most recently, Tebow has spent the past three summers in the Philippines, working with his father’s missionary and orphanage.

1. Tiger Woods, golfer, sex addict.

Especially now. Tiger Woods was plastered all over the news for weeks after his car accident, which led to his marital status going down the drain. Even before all the drama went down with Tiger, he was the lead story on weekends for all major tournaments. Woods has won 14 major golf championships, which is second most of any male golfer in history. Tiger has been awarded with the PGA Player of the Year for a record of ten times. Woods announced an indefinite leave from golf to focus on his marriage and family in December of 2009. Tiger has recently been reported to have been seen in Mississippi at a rehabilitation center to be treated for his sex addiction.

Others receiving an absurd amount of coverage:

Derek Jeter, shortstop, New York Yankees

Shaquille O’Neal, center, Cleveland Cavaliers

Rafael Nadel, Tennis star

Peyton Manning, quarterback, Indianapolis Colts

Tony Romo, quarterback, Dallas Cowboys

Donovan McNabb, quarterback, Philadelphia Eagles

In light of the on-going Michael Crabtree holdout, the NFL is in a situation that could blemish their image for some time to come. There was always the constant thought in the back of the fans’ mind that some of the players in the NFL were only in it for the money and in all rights, is a fair statement for some. However, there is an ever growing trend of holdouts and contract ultimatums that are sweeping through the NFL every year. Players are demanding more money at the first on-site of success and it seems like nobody is ever happy with their contracts. These increasing trends have fueled sour emotions from NFL enthusiasts. With the recent talk of removing the salary cap in the NFL, it does not seem like the money issues will be going away anytime in the near future. College players are often proposed huge amounts of money before they ever step on the field.  These players often want more money before they prove themselves at the next level. Then you have players who have breakout seasons and what’s the first thing they do they do? They cash in on the statistics, demanding for raises and contract re-negotiations. We take a look at 5 of the greediest players in the NFL over the past few seasons and give you some insight in to how foolish some of these contract debacles play out.

#5. WR Roddy White (Atlanta Falcons) – Roddy White became a force for the Atlanta Falcons in his 3rd season, catching 83 receptions for 1,202 yards and 6 scores. A year later in the 2008 season those numbers improved with help from one of the best rookie quarterbacks that ever stepped on the field. White ended 2008 with 88 catches and ranked 4th in the NFL with 1,382 yards. However, following the breakout season that resulted in White’s first trip to a Pro Bowl things took an ugly turn. Entering the 2009 off-season, White was to begin the 5th year of a 5 year contract worth 2.28 million for the season. However, that was not nearly good enough for Roddy, when he announced he would not return to the team until he got the type of money he deserves for being an elite NFL target. It just happened to workout for White. After days of negotiation, White was offered a contract for 6 years worth 50 million dollars, becoming the 2nd highest paid receiver in the NFL. The proposal was good enough to get White back on the practice fields immediately and satisfied for at least a few more years. However, the deal has not appeared to be beneficial to the Falcons considering White has caught just 15 passes for 119 yards through his first 3 games in 2009.  At this rate, he will be worth around $13,000 for every yard he produces for the Falcons organization.

#4. CB Dunta Robinson (Houston Texans) – Dunta Robinson was a first round pick for the Texans back in 2004.  He jumped out to an impressive start in his rookie season picking off 6 passes. The early success brought some big bucks to the Texans star cornerback.  However, Robinson has failed to repeat the success he has had in his rookie season. Robinson has had a season high, 2 interceptions since the 2004 season, and when his contract expired at the end of last season things got interesting. Robinson wanted money that a top 5 corner in the NFL would receive (around 23 million). However, Houston administration offered him just 18 million and evidently that was an insult to the young defensive back. While 5 million is a lot of money, it’s definitely not a soft proposal due to Robinson’s production in the NFL. However, Robinson held out from signing a long term contract and settled for 1 year deal making fewer than 10 million for the 2009 season. Robinson made even more headlines this season when his cleats were inscribed with the words “Pay me Rick” on the hill of the shoe. A statement aimed at Texans general manager Rick Smith. The move by Robinson to withhold from long term contract, reportedly cost the Texans cornerback 23 million in guaranteed funds.

#3. Terrell Owens (Buffalo Bills) – Owens’ contract propaganda, like his career, may be coming to an end. But, that does not take away from the multiple contract tirades that were given over the course of his career. Owens burst on the scene 1996 with the San Francisco 49ers and did not really breakout until the 2001 season. After a few pay increases and stable years, Owens became unhappy during the 2003 season and wanted to “explore his options.” The move was to land a bigger contract and that he did in 2004, when the Philadelphia Eagles gave him a 7 year deal worth 48 million dollars. Evidently the contract was not good enough. A year later after making 7.5 million the season prior, Owens openly stated that he needed a new contract “to feed his family.” After tons of controversy during his tenure with the Eagles, Owens was given a 2nd chance by the Dallas Cowboys, when they gave him a 3 year deal worth 25 million. Owens became an effective force in Dallas in lure of an elite passing offense destined for success. After posting a 1,355 yard season in 2007, Owens received another contract renewal for 4 years equaling 34 millions and more importantly, a 12 million signing bonus. While the deal was never made a public affair, it was reported the Owens requested a salary increase following the big year for the Cowboys. However, that would be the last of the salary saga for the controversial wide receiver. Owens was cut from Dallas following 2008 after internal conflict and picked up by the Buffalo Bills, where he has yet to produce this season catching just 8 passes for 158 yards (as of week 4)

#2. QB JaMarcus Russell (Oakland Raiders) – JaMarcus Russell was selected as the number 1 overall pick in the 2007 draft, but when the contract negotiations did not add up.  Russell’s career went from the highest of high to the lowest of lows. In retrospect, the holdout was simply ridiculous. Russell was offered a 6 year deal for 60 million dollar contract with a guaranteed amount of 26.5 million. However, that was not good enough for the rookie who had never stepped on the field. The lucrative part of the story was not that Russell was unsatisfied with the yearly figures, but was looking for 30 million in guaranteed money. It almost seemed like he had 28 million in credit card debt that had to be taken care of right away. The holdout lasted several weeks which was enough time for the Raiders future quarterback to miss both training camps and all of the preseason. As a result, Russell was so far behind that he played catch up for the remainder of the 2007 season, starting just 4 games. To make matters worse, Russell has yet to have any success in the NFL after demanding all the money before ever proving his worthiness. Russell currently sits ranked dead last out of all starters for 2009 with a quarterback rating of 42.4 which has included just 1 touchdown pass all year with 4 other interceptions.  In 2009, Al Davis is currently paying JaMarcus around 1.6 million dollars per touchdown pass.

#1. WR Michael Crabtree (San Francisco 49ers) – Whatever happened to proving your worth in your profession? Up until week 5, where negotiations were opened up again, the Michael Crabtree holdout was beginning to look like it could have ended up being the most ridiculous and foolish holdout in NFL history. After months of non-negotiations and each passing week of regular season action, it appeared that Crabtree was not going to play at all in his rookie season. The 49ers’ tenth overall pick in the 2009 draft was expected to be the first receiver selected in the NFL draft, but went 2nd behind Maryland’s Darius Heyward-Bey. Heyward-Bey and the Raiders reached a 5 year deal worth 38 millions, with 23.5 million guaranteed. However, Crabtree assumed that because of his name, he was worth more then what Heyward-Bey was paid by the Raiders.  He demanded that he get more than the 23.5 million guaranteed that Heyward-Bey received.  Evidently the 49ers have no interest in paying him that kind of money and doing so would give future rookies the impression that they can re-write the “slotting system” rules of rookie contract negotiations. So, “Crabs” and the 49ers organization haven’t reached any type of agreement after four weeks of NFL action. At this point, he has missed so much time of development and may no longer be worth the 20 million (plus incentives) that the 49ers originally offered him. Crabtree now has put himself into a foolish situation where he could miss the entire 2009 season. The question a lot of people are asking is what other team would want negotiate a deal with him for 2010 after missing an entire year of football? Even if a team were to negotiate with him, it would be unwise to offer him the type of money initially offered by the 49ers. However, the saga continues to put a bad taste on the perception of greed in the NFL. Crabtree’s public perception is also being ruined by this holdout, and if he doesn’t change his ways, so could his career in the NFL.