Posts Tagged ‘nfl’
NFL Player Brings Disabled Teen to Dance
J.T. Thomas, a newly drafted NFL player with the Chicago Bears, brought a disabled teen to her school dance. Read more »
Cam Newton’s Father coming to BCS championship game
Presumed first-round NFL draft pick Cam Newton has some daddy issues. But that doesn’t mean pops is going to miss the big game.
According to the AP, Cam’s dad Cecil Newton will be attending the BCS Championship Game on Monday January 10, despite the fact that he “was involved in a pay-for-play attempt during his son’s recruitment by Mississippi State that resulted in limited access to Auburn’s athletics program.” But Cam Newton told reporters that his dad and other family members “are going to be loud and proud” at the big game. Here is a more specific exchange from the Orlando Sentinel:
Q. Is your dad coming?
A: Yes, he’s coming.
So there.
It probably doesn’t matter, but I wonder if maybe dad should sit this one out. Assuming the allegations are true (and from what I can tell they are), that means Cecil Newton asked for a lot of money in exchange for telling his son to play at Auburn. That’s not good. By going to the game, he becomes a target for reporters.
Then again, if he didn’t go, that would allow the billions of BCS blowhards to bloviate about that. So maybe he should go ahead and enjoy the game.
I’m not likely to ever be the father of a star athlete (sorry kids, just a feeling — but feel free to prove me wrong!) so I don’t know what it feels like to watch your child play in a big game like this one. I do know that I feel proud when one of my kids does anything cool, and if I did have a big time quarterback for a son, I know I would want to be there cheering him on.
Then again, I would never ask a school for a bribe in order to convince my son to play for a school, or do anything else for that matter. So there’s that.
Another question that came up when all of this stuff happened is whether or not Cam Newton knew what his dad was allegedly doing. It seems unlikely that he didn’t, but it’s not impossible. Fathers can be shitheads, and sons can be clueless. The NCAA didn’t punish Cam Newton, and if he’s a good QB, he’ll get drafted in the NFL and make a boatload of money. (Bleacher Report has a lengthy article about why Cam Newton wasn’t punished by the NCAA; I skimmed it but maybe you want to read the whole thing.) But if he didn’t know what his dad was doing, he might want to consider taking advice from someone else.
Outside links:
The Associated Press: Newton: Father coming to BCS game.
Newton: Like father, like son? – Arizona Daily Wildcat – Perspectives.
Female Sports Reporters Get Treated Like Crap
Today’s lesson for the boys — women should be treated with respect. For example, female sports reporters get treated like crap. They shouldn’t be.
ESPN’s Rod Franklin was “pulled off ESPN’s Saturday Fiesta Bowl radio broadcast by ESPN executives” according to Sports By Brooks. What did he do? He called reporter Jeanine Edwards “sweetcakes”. When Edwards, who is female, said “don’t call me sweetcakes, I don’t like being talked to like that,” Franklin replied, “okay then, a–hole.”
What a charmer.
I don’t watch college football much, and I hadn’t heard of Jeanine Edwards. So I Googled her. Admittedly, I did it to see what she looks like. Because I’m a guy. Here’s the first video that pops up, Billy Clyde Gillispie tells Jeanine Edwards she asked a dumb question.
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrXeBAoF3sM]
Nice, right? I’m sure Gillispie would have said that to a male reporter.
Through the wonders of YouTube Suggestions, up pops Bruce Pearl feels up Erin Andrews.
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsGCItJ7q4I]
Again, I’m SURE this would have happened if Pearl were being interviewed by Stuart Scott.
Those are both clips from ESPN. This next little gem is courtesy of a fan with a cell phone camera. Here is Rey Maualuga grinding on Hotty Erin Andrews.
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdDGYsYXHKc]
You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. Look at that. Are you serious? Was Rey Maualuga raised by wolves?
Unfortunately, probably not. A lot of guys seem unaware that there is a behavior line that shouldn’t be crossed; “they just don’t get it”, to bring back a popular phrase from the Anita Hill-Clarence Thomas days. Jezebel points out that Ron Franklin has made similar comments in the past. And look at what happened with Ines Sainz and the Jets earlier this year. I can guarantee you that very few of the players and coaches who were involved in hooting, hollering, and trying to get a better look at her ass think that they did anything wrong. They all need to learn what Bill Clinton never could — that “harass” is one word.
Obviously I’m not immune to looking at women. This post started because I wondered if Jeanine Edwards was hot. The difference is that I’m a guy with a laptop Googling someone’s name. I’m not putting my hands on a woman. Or sneaking up behind her like a serial killer. Or even referring to her as “sweetcakes”, followed by “a-hole” when she tells me to cut it out.
Women are allowed to be hot, and to get jobs that based in part on their hotness. Erin Andrews is a perfect example. Not that she’s not a good reporter; I have no idea if she is or isn’t. I do know that she’s way hot. Which is why someone creep made a video of her showering, which led to her appearance on Dancing With The Stars. If she looked like Ernest Borgnine, would either of those things have happened? It’s OK for her to want to be looked at, and it’s OK for me to look at her. It is not OK for her to be spoken to in a rude manner based solely upon her being female. It is even more not OK for her to be touched, fondled, or be subjected to backdoor grinding, especially when she’s trying to do her job.
In case this seems like a double standard, here are some visual aids.
This video is tacky (and a tiny bit amusing). It is the work of an anonymous person with minimal video/photo editing skills. It is certainly in poor taste but doesn’t really hurt anyone.
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEI9k_oxtZo]
This video is of a gigantic guy physically imposing himself on a woman who is doing her job. It’s ridiculous behavior.
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdDGYsYXHKc]
Do I want my kids to be making videos celebrating Erin Andrews’ posterior? I would hope that they would be more creative and have better things to do. I wouldn’t care if they watched it, however. (When they’re older.) But if they thought it was acceptable to speak to a woman with disdain due to her gender? Or worse, put their hands on her, or sneak up behind her and make grinding motions because they think she’s hot?
Here’s a tip. Make sure your boys know that it’s one thing to be Beavis with your buddies. It’s another to be a Butthead in public. Make sure they know how to treat women with respect.
Father And Son Quarterbacks
From the Sunday night NBC NFL game, here are some Father and Son Quarterback combos. Read more »
Mark Sanchez Praises Mark Brunell’s Dad Skills
This week on 1050 ESPN Radio, Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez praised backup QB Mark Brunell’s dad skills.
Brunell, said Sanchez (aka The Sanchise, aka Nacho), is an “awesome dad.”
Brunell’s children are “super polite”, and always say “yes sir” or “no sir.” Sanchez likes that. We do too.
You can listen to the interview here. You can also find video of Rex Ryan telling reporters that “footgate” is a “personal matter” he has no plans to discuss with anyone. It’s worth the eight seconds it takes to watch.
Stay At Home Dad Brian St. Pierre Starting At QB
The intersection of Daddydom and the NFL continues. First we had the Shanahan and Son show in Washington, with Mike Shanahan protecting his son after benching Donovan McNabb (probably — it’s just a theory of mine). Now we get stay at home dad Brian St. Pierre starting at QB for the Carolina Panthers.
That’s right — from diaper duty to NFL starter in about a week. Not bad, right?
It’s not like St. Pierre hasn’t played pro football before. He’s thrown five passes. In eight years. His time carrying clipboards even includes a visit to Super Bowl XLIII as the third-string QB on the Arizona Cardinals.
St. Pierre will be starting at QB for the Carolina Panthers, who are probably the crappiest team in the league right now. Some say head coach John Fox is thumbing his nose at the Panthers higher-ups because he knows he’s going to get fired at the end of the year. See, there’s a rookie QB on the roster that’s been there since the start of the season, and St. Pierre got there, like, a few days ago. The Panthers are so bad this year that it probably doesn’t matter, although could be forgiven for expressing concern for this SAHD‘s safety. Big Daddy Brian is only getting the nod because Panthers rookie QB Jimmy Clausen has a concussion. Football is a dangerous game.
We looked on YouTube for video of St. Pierre throwing one of his five NFL passes, but no dice. If life happens to get longer and we manage to dig one up, we’ll let you know.
Is Mike Shanahan Protecting His Son?
Much has been said about the benching of Donovan McNabb on October 31, 2010. We have a new daddy-related theory to add to the mix. Is Mike Shanahan protecting his son?
First, some background:
(If you already know what happened and just want to skip to the theory, click here.)
This weekend, Washington Redskins coach Mike Shanahan benched quarterback Donovan McNabb with less than two minutes to go in a winnable game and put in backup QB Rex Grossman. Rex rewarded this vote of confidence by immediately fumbling the ball. The Lions’ Ndamukong Suh scooped it up and ran it it in for a touchdown, putting the game out of reach.
At the post game press conference, Shanahan gave the following explanation for the move:
“With a minute left and Rex knowing how to run that two-minute offense, I felt with the time and no timeouts, he gave us the best chance to win in that scenario, just knowing the terminology, what we’ve done, how we’ve run it. [That] puts a lot of pressure on the quarterback that hasn’t been used to that terminology, and I thought that was the best scenario for us to have a chance to win….It gave us the best chance to win. What you have to do sometimes if you’ve got to understand everything is sped up when you don’t have timeouts. It’s got to come automatic….I thought it was the best scenario to put him in there in that situation.”
The next day, the coach said that McNabb lacked the “proper conditioning” to run the 2-minute drill:
“The cardiovascular endurance that it takes to run a two-minute [drill], going all the way down with no time-outs, calling plays, it’s just not easy. If I thought it was the best situation to do, then Donovan would have run the two-minute offense.”
So… McNabb is not as good as Grossman at the 2-minute drill, and he’s not in shape. Kind of. Also a possible hamstring problem. Both hamstrings. Yeah, that’s the ticket.
Redskins offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan — Mike’s son — says that McNabb “knew benching was a possibility”. McNabb, no stranger to being ridiculed for all sorts of things, says he was not aware of this.
Now, some facts. Rex Grossman, who started in the Super Bowl for the Chicago Bears when they got destroyed by the Indianapolis Colts, is not what anyone would call a good quarterback. At this point he is at best a second stringer. A backup. In fact, he was a backup for the Houston Texans last season, where Kyle Shanahan — Mike’s son — was the offensive coordinator. Shanahan the younger ran an offense that was designed by Shanahan the elder. An offense that is apparently so complex it can only be run by someone who is deeply familiar with it. Even if they aren’t, you know, good enough to be an NFL starter.
So here’s the theory. It is possible that in the heat of the game, Kyle Shanahan — Mike’s son — tells his dad that the right guy for this situation is Rex Grossman. Dad listens. The result is the worst possible outcome — snap, fumble, touchdown for the other team. At the press conference, head coach/Kyle’s dad decides that the best way to handle this is to say something negative about his starting quarterback. The next day, he makes up a new reason, one that still says something negative about his starting quarterback, but not quite as negative. Kyle decides to weigh in and say that McNabb always knew that a benching might happen — because really, why would anyone think that keeping your mouth shut is a good idea at this point — something that, for the record, McNabb says he was unaware of.
This wouldn’t be the first time an NFL dad defended his NFL son. Back in 2005, former Giants great Phil Simms told Steve Young to “lay off” his son Chris when Young said that perhaps Chris lacked the mental toughness to be an NFL starter, in part because he was perhaps raised in a “laissez-faire kind of atmosphere”. Chris Simms is now basically out of the league and was recently busted for driving while under the influence of marijuana; he pleaded not guilty. The arresting officer said the smell of pot was “very strong” in Simms’ car and that the former Bucs and Titans QB “had a very flushed face”, according to the New York Post.
Phil Simms hasn’t said anything about Chris recently. At least not in public.
We have no inside information here. It’s just a theory. Rather than saying, “you know what, I listened to my son and we lost the game. It was a mistake, one I will try not to make again,” Shanahan the elder instead decided to protect his son and throw his quarterback under the bus. Just a theory.
What do you think? Is Mike Shanahan protecting his son?
