Not a good look for the Bears’ top rusher
It’s barely spring and already several athletes with no games to play seem to be telling us that too much free time is not a jock’s best friend.
+ We’re still reeling from last week’s news that a gun found in the garage of Marvin Harrison, the Indianapolis Colts’ 12-year all-pro wideout, may have been involved in the shooting of a man with whom Harrison had a fistfight. Harrison is one of the “good guys,” but new daily details may uncover a troubling dark side.
+ On Saturday night,Chicago Bears running back Thomas Benson failed a sobriety test while operating a 30-foot boat in Austin, then allegedly resisted arrest before being doused in pepper spray.Benson will appear in court on May 19 to dispute the charges.
+ Then today we hear that Nets forward Richard Jefferson, another jock with a squeegee-clean rep,was arrested and charged with assault for allegedly chocking a man in a Minneapolis bar.
+ Somewhere, Michael Vick might even be cracking a smile.
May 7, 2008 at 10:08 pm
The days of good guys in sports are gone. Million dollar contracts have ended that. Today’s good guy is actually just a guy who hasn’t been exposed yet. Look at Roger Clemens, if it wasn’t for the Mitchell Report and the subsequent lawsuit, he would be viewed by most (not Mike Piazza) as good guy. A guy who worked hard, but also took the time to be a loving husband. This may be a cynical approach, but as more and more “good guys” like Harrison continue to show their ass, how can we trust any of them?
And as the Pacman trade to Dallas shows, fines and suspensions won’t stop the bad behavior as long that person can perform on the field. Sports owners, GM’s, and coaches can’t help themselves when it comes to these players. We the fans can’t help ourselves; we hate the bad guy until he puts on our team’s uniform, then we root for him and cross our fingers and hope he stays out of trouble. So if we can’t cure ourselves of these athletes, why should they cure themselves of their bad behavior? As long as they don’t break some supposedly hallowed record like Barry Bonds did, the bad guys will always find work…..as long as they play.