Over the years sports, just like every other profession or pastime, has developed its own expressions and way of talking.  Some expressions are great descriptive sayings that help to make sports colorful and entertaining.  However, others are just plain dumb and should be removed from the vernacular of the sports world.  Below I am listing a few of the expressions that really get on my nerves.  I am sure I am not alone and that these are far from a comprehensive list.  So, what pet peeves do you have?  Here are mine:

"They're giving 110%"  This is impossible.  It is impossible to give 110%.  An athlete can give 100% or less, but he or she cannot give an effort that equals more than 100% of what they are capable of.  Sportscasters, players and coaches like to use this term to make you feel like they are giving some type of special effort.  Really, they just sound stupid.  They reinforce to us fans that they failed math class in high school.  Maybe they believe that they are using 110% the same way some businesses use percentages that exceed 100.  For instance, this factory is operating at 120% of capacity.  However, this isn't a literal term.  What they really mean is that the factory is exceeding a benchmark set for it by 20%.  This is not the same.  A factory cannot exceed 100% of its capacity.  It's capacity is exactly that, its capacity-nothing more.  Just like a player cannot give more than he or she is exactly capable of.  When I go to work or go to play my favorite sport I give 100%, or less, because it is impossible for me to give any more.  Professional athletes are no different.

"He's got a knee" (or "He's got an ankle, a shoulder, a wrist . . .") This expression which is supposed to give me an injury update on a player tells me next to nothing.  It is a shortened version of "He has an injured knee" but that wouldn't help all that much either.  You know what, I have a knee too.  In fact, I have two knees, but I am sure no one in America really cares to hear about the fact that my legs are anatomically correct.  What would be helpful is to tell me what is wrong with a player's knee.  For instance, he has torn cartilage or a sprained ACL and he'll be out for 3-4 weeks.  Now I know if I should drop that guy from my fantasy team or hold on to him until he comes back. 

"Overachiever"  Okay, this goes along with 110%.  It is impossible to be an overachiever.  You can exceed expectations, but you cannot achieve more than exactly what you are capable of.  It is possible to be an underachiever which is a nice way to say someone is lazy or unprepared or out of shape.  You might have been tempted to call me an overachiever when I beat my big brother 1 on 1 in basketball for the first time, but the reality is that he played poorly and I played as well as possible.  But I didn't overachieve.  I just achieved.  And I will never let my big bro forget about it.  So, let's stop calling athletes overachievers because they do better than expected.  They can be a surprise but they haven't achieved anything more than exactly what they are capable of.

"They came to play"  This is just about the dumbest expression to ever leave someone's mouth, along with "we gotta just make plays."  "They came to play" is something that some color commentator said decades ago thinking he made some type of bold statement about the effort or level of play of one team.  Here is a news flash:  Every team comes to play when they show up for their game.  Otherwise, why would they have shown up?  You could say they came well prepared for the game or team X is showing much better effort than team Y.  But, to just say "they came to play" is really just stupid.  Along with this expression is one that has become a favorite of coaches:  "We just have to make plays" or "We gotta go out there and just make plays" "If we make more plays than our opponent, we should win the game" You can make good plays or you can make bad plays, but just making plays means nothing.  I make plays all the time.  I go out and make plays whenever I play a sport.  Is that enough to get me to the NFL or NBA?  I am guessing probably not.  A player or team can perform well on KEY plays, but just making plays is not enough.  Let's start playing well and making good plays or playing poorly and making bad plays.  But athletes should aspire to do more than "just make plays."

"He's a Player" or "He's gonna be a Player"  Guess what?  I'm a player too.  You name the sport, I'm a player.  What kind of player, though?  I am not a very good player.  I am not a professional player, not a stand out player or even a competitive player.  Just a player.  This is another lazy expression used in place of real analysis.  Instead of saying something to the effect of "His size, qickness and ability to drive to the basket should make him an effect player on offense at the NBA level" we get "Oh, he'll be a player at the next level, for sure . . ."  Yeah, that tells me pretty much, . . . nothing.

So, sound off and let us know what expressions you hear on the field or during a broadcast that have been bugging you.  Sports are full of them.  Which ones make your list as the most irritating.