No surprise here
More and more news will likely break about Gregg Williams's bounty program in the NFL (and similar situations with other teams), and I will continue to not be stunned and/or outraged.
I should dare say that the bounty program and its ilk has been around for generations in various incarnations. Remember "The Body Bag Game"?
It's football. Every team wants to "punish" their opponent with their running game while "sending a message" with their pass rush. Former Redskin and current D.C. area sports radio personality Rick "Doc" Walker is famous for declaring each game about "manhood issues," and no one would disagree. The worst thing a football team can be called is soft.
No, football is bloodthirsty, from the players to the fans. Every time the opposing quarterback drops back to pass, you want him to get destroyed. It makes your heart fill with vicious glee when the play concludes and the other team's quarterback is rolling around on the grass. If the enemy has to go to their #2 quarterback, your boys have gotten the job done.
(I don't think you get the same visceral joy in baseball when your pitcher drills the other team's slugger; satisfaction comes far more likely from a strikeout or a key hit instead.)
So, hey, bounty program in the NFL. In other breaking news, a superstar wide receiver is upset that he's not getting the ball more often, a superstar basketball player is getting favorable calls from referees, and a superstar pitcher wants the batter to know that the inner half of the plate is his (and thinks said batter had better hurry himself around the bases the next time he hits a home run).
I should dare say that the bounty program and its ilk has been around for generations in various incarnations. Remember "The Body Bag Game"?
It's football. Every team wants to "punish" their opponent with their running game while "sending a message" with their pass rush. Former Redskin and current D.C. area sports radio personality Rick "Doc" Walker is famous for declaring each game about "manhood issues," and no one would disagree. The worst thing a football team can be called is soft.
No, football is bloodthirsty, from the players to the fans. Every time the opposing quarterback drops back to pass, you want him to get destroyed. It makes your heart fill with vicious glee when the play concludes and the other team's quarterback is rolling around on the grass. If the enemy has to go to their #2 quarterback, your boys have gotten the job done.
(I don't think you get the same visceral joy in baseball when your pitcher drills the other team's slugger; satisfaction comes far more likely from a strikeout or a key hit instead.)
So, hey, bounty program in the NFL. In other breaking news, a superstar wide receiver is upset that he's not getting the ball more often, a superstar basketball player is getting favorable calls from referees, and a superstar pitcher wants the batter to know that the inner half of the plate is his (and thinks said batter had better hurry himself around the bases the next time he hits a home run).
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