Richard Sherman: Hero of the Media
By now everyone has heard about Seattle Seahawk’s cornerback Richard Sherman’s venting after his team clinched a berth in the Super Bowl. If not , here it is. That’s okay, it opens up in a new tab/window.
I’m not even going to talk about the racist shit some people spouted. But let’s see how some in the sports media talked about it.
They ranged from my reaction of go-on-with-your-bad-self to you-are-a-disgrace-I-can’t-believe-you-got-a-degree-from-Stanford-have-some-class. Let’s talk about this.
One thing I can almost guarantee is that all sports journalists hate the trite soundbites. “It is what it is.” “We gave it our all.” “At the end of the day…” I’ve made my distaste for this shit very vocal lately saying that I really want to carry a cattle prod to electrocute anyone who gives us these trite phrases. Other media folk have shared the same sentiment.
So why then do we persecute someone for giving us something outside of the normal Derek Jeter-esque quote?
“You can give us something interesting, but at least have some class.”
Okay, that’s fine. But let’s realize that this interview took place right after the game ended. Sherman had no time to cool down. The adrenaline was still pumping, perhaps even more so for him since his tip on the pass to Michael Crabtree with 22 seconds left led to the interception that won the game for Seattle. Of course things would be unpredictable.
On all of his other postgame interviews on the podium at the trophy presentation and on the set with the Fox guys, Sherman was calm and collected.
“But look at Russell Wilson.”
Sure, but like I said players are unpredictable immediately after the game.
Sherman in his weekly column on The MMQB explains a little bit about the history between the two.
It goes back to something he said to me this offseason in Arizona, but you’d have to ask him about that. A lot of what I said to Andrews was adrenaline talking, and some of that was Crabtree. I just don’t like him.
The Seattle Times learned the beef started when Crabtree tried to start a fight with Sherman at a charity event in Arizona.
I feel bad for athletes. They’re in a damned-if-you-do-damned-if-you-don’t position. And if you’re an outspoken black athlete, it’s even worse. You get thinly veiled racist words like “thug” and “punk” and “classless” thrown at you by so-called respectable journalists. Never mind if you have a degree from Stanford.
Perhaps the media gets what they deserve. I hear them bitch about how athletes give them nothing, yet I’ve seen some of their tweets about this “thug” Sherman. I guess it is what it is.