No easy answers: NFL players and their troubles
by MaPatsFan on Apr 5, 2009 11:36 AM EDT
in Opinion
5 comments
Former Patriot Donte Stallworth couldn't have imagined this in his worst nightmares. After signing a 7 year contract with the Browns worth $35 million last year, the 28 year old receiver must've felt as if he could finish out his career in one place after bouncing around from New Orleans to Philly to New England. After drinking at a club on South Beach, Stallworth made the biggest mistake of his life: he didn't hand the keys over to someone and call a cab. Instead, he got behind the wheel of his car, probably thinking, "I'm fine. Nothing will ever happen." Was he ever wrong. He will never forget March 14, 2009 for the rest of his life. It is the day his football career most likely came to an end. However, even sadder than the loss of his career is the death of Mario Reyes, a construction crane operator trying to catch a bus after his shift. How very sad for Mario and his family.
Then we have the somewhat bizarre case of Plaxico Burress. Many of us Patriots fans remember him for the catch that ended our 2007 reign as the greatest football team of this era. Unfortunately, he's remembered for something else: shooting himself in the thigh with an unlicensed handgun. The New York Giants, considering this the straw that broke the camel's back, released Burress on April 4, 2009. Talent and productivity could no longer trump the troubled life Plaxico had made for himself. Fines, suspensions, and now illegal weapons charges all added up to an insurmountable mountain for the Giants. Enough is enough, Plaxico. Unlike Stallworth, Burress may rebound from this and possibly pick up with another team. Afterall, look how much rope was given to Adam "Pacman" Jones.
Us normal citizens may become righteously indignant over the free passes star atlhetes get when it comes to brushes with the law. How many times have we heard of an athlete plea bargaining down a charge to a ridiculously low level or a college star allowed to run rampant? Well, don't let the teams, players, and agents fool you; it's about money. The agent loses money if the player is not getting paid, the team loses money in ticket sales, and the player loses his job. The less indignant of us normal citizens may give these athletes a pass, boys being boys, if you will. Whatever you believe, the simple fact is these athletes are role models, whether they like it or not. On TV almost all year, money, partying... why wouldn't a young, impressionable kid want that lifestyle and, even worse, attempt to emulate it? Hopefully, his parents have a brain and explain how the real world works.
Teams react in different ways to these situations. Some will cover them up until it's no longer possible to do so and some, like the Giants, will not accept the antics of their players, not even the stars of their clubs. I'm sure Coughlin and the Giants weren't totally "pure" on this one; releasing Burress allows them to free up a roster spot and go after another player, but at least they sent a message to the rest of their players: our fuse is only so long. More importantly, they sent a message to aspiring NFL athletes everywhere: talent may get you in the door, but brains, maturity, and hard work will keep that door from shutting in your face.
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overall, nicely done...except one thing
However I do have a beef with something you wrote in that last paragraph: “…and some, like the Giants, will not accept the antics of their players, not even the stars of their clubs.” Refresh my memory again, when did Plax do this? Uh huh. And when was he arrested? Uh huh. And when was he released?
Exactly.
Not only that, there were reports (never even denied by the Giants, AFAIK) that in the day or so after the shooting, they KNEW what had happened and yet no one from the club reported anything either to the NFL offices nor to the police. Despite the fact (or maybe, because of the fact) that another Giants player took the gun after Plax shot it and hid it in his car. And the fact that one (or maybe it was two) Giants players brought Plax to the hospital and were with him (and remained silent) when he registered at the hospital under a FALSE NAME and gave a bogus story about being shot in a convenience store parking lot (or something along those lines).
There is absolutely no way I can agree with the claim that the Giants took the “high road” in this incident at all. Taking the high road would have been reporting the incident—including the involvement of players besides Plax—immediately to the NFL offices and to the police. And releasing all of those players immediately. That’s my $0.02 at least.
All that being said, I don’t want my one beef about that one line to take away from the fact I really do think you did a nice job with the article. Kudos.
by JohnPaul on Apr 5, 2009 1:49 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Good points, JP
Stories on this site are written by the community, the comments being the most important part, in my mind.
Blogger at SBNation's Patriots blog, Pats Pulpit
by MaPatsFan on Apr 5, 2009 2:11 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Role models?
First: Stallworth signed with the Browns, not the Bears last year.
What strikes me most about the legal troubles of athletes is the banality of it all. Guns, drugs, DUI’s, domestic violence – those are pretty much the same crimes facing other young men. I have no statistical evidence for this, but it seems to me, they are neither more, nor less criminal than their peers outside the watchful eye of the press.
This shows clearly that professional athletes are not drafted for their moral standards. They are drafted for their physical skills and for the performance on their gametape, and I never really understood why they are or should be seen as role models, unless you want to play in the NFL as well.
Now, as for the teams, they are obviously taking a buisness approach, meaning sanctions mostly reflects the value of the player vs the PR damage of the affair. I believe Peter King summed it up nicely: If your starting qb problem has a drug problem he will NOT be cut, a borderline starter at right guard MIGHT be cut and the undrafted free agent WILL be cut.
by hythlodaeus on Apr 5, 2009 2:58 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Yep, role models
Thanks for the Browns correction; can’t believe I missed that. :-(
I do believe they’re role models simply by virtue of their omnipresence in our lives. A pro athlete doing something wrong is much more visible than someone of the same age doing the same thing.
Blogger at SBNation's Patriots blog, Pats Pulpit
by MaPatsFan on Apr 5, 2009 5:04 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
the Bears have been in the news lately, with the Cutler trade and all.
Keep the faith!
by Marima on Apr 5, 2009 6:50 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
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