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This is precisely what I was afraid would happen, and it only took four weeks:
Limbaugh's idea of commentary Sunday involved an absurd attack on Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb and on "the media" that have overrated him because "the media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well. There's interest in black quarterbacks and coaches doing well." McNabb, Limbaugh said, isn't "as good as everyone says he has been."
The idea that McNabb is overhyped is questionable to begin with, and the idea that he is overhyped because the national sports media has a desire to promote black quarterbacks is ludicrous on its face:
In 1985, Randall Cunningham was drafted by the Eagles. At his first news conference in Philadelphia, an older white reporter asked him, "What makes you think you'll ever be able to read NFL defenses?"In January 1988, it was considered major news that an African American quarterback named Doug Williams was starting in the Super Bowl for the Washington Redskins. During the pregame week of hype, Williams was famously asked, "How long have you been a black quarterback?"
To this day, black quarter backs are tend to be discussed in terms of their athletic abality, not their field generalship, although the situation has improved somewhat.
Limbaugh did what everyone with a brain said he would do: he used football as an excuse to push his predetermined, conservative political agenda. Limbaugh is not acting as a fan, he is acting as a conservative political hack. I swear, the conservative movement in this country is like the Communist movement - to both, everything is politics.
I should not have to listen to a conservative political operative spout out conservative talking points with no hope of rebuttal (remember, despite the fact that Tom Jackson, for example, is about a billion times smarter than Limbaugh, neither Jackson or anyone else on that set has spent their professional careers dealing with political issues. They are sports casters, not pundits. ) during a football show. ESPN has allowed Rush to politicize football, and to do it in his typical, cowardly fashion.
Why the hell should I, or anyone else, support that?
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And as bad as Limbaugh is, Michael Irvin is even more difficult to watch, if you can believe that. Every time some prima donna football crybaby makes a scene, Irvin sides with the prima donna football crybaby.
And his wide receiver bias is even worse than Boomer Esiason's QB bias. If a receiver isn't making plays, it's because the line can't block or because the QB can't make the throw. It's never because the WR can't get open.
This morning, while discussing Terrell Owens' latest outbursts, Irvin put me in the extremely uncomfortable position of having to side with Sean Salisbury. According to Irvin, all of Owens' negative commentary and sideline antics are completely justified, and nobody should begrudge Owens for being a major league prick.
Salisbury: [paraphrasing] "Fine, but if you're going to be like that, you'd better never drop a pass, never blow a route, never jump offsides... your best player should be your leader, and Owens isn't leading. He needs to be gone next year."
Posted by: tgirschBy the way, you're absolutely wrong. Limbaugh didn't wait until week 4. He politicized football in his very first segment, in week 1. He railed on the NFL's minority hiring process, saying that it was a "stupid" policy that "doesn't accomplish anything," but he didn't offer any viable alternatives.
He said all it does is force owners to give "token" interviews to black coaches, before hiring the white coach they want. The elephant in the room that he ignored was the very real possibility that, during the "token" interview, the owner might actually like what he sees, and reconsider.
Posted by: tgirschYou are very correct about Rush. After the first week of the season, I felt Rush did a decent job on ESPN Sunday Countdown, I even wrote that on my blog. But after a few more weeks, I can see that he isn’t going to abandon his conservative views just because he is on a sports show, he is going to find a way to promote his conservative views. Since the first week I have felt he has made several such comments that are more about conservative politics than they are about football. Time for me to write a negative review.
Posted by: PaigeWhat's on your mind, if you will allow the overstatement?
Posted by: Rubin Laurie
