HawkShack.com

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/13991 ... res-losers

We were talking about thin skin in another topic. Well I think this one trumps them. If you can't handle criticism (however irrational) in Buffalo where is this guy going to be able to deal? Way to endear yourself to the city Sammy.

Sadly, that attitude exists in more than just Sammy Watkins mind. He was just foolish enough to speak honestly. It's one more piece of evidence of the gulf that exists between highly paid, pampered professional athletes and the average Joe. And people wonder why it is that I don't pay homage to professional athletes by wearing their names and/or numbers.

RiverDog wrote:Sadly, that attitude exists in more than just Sammy Watkins mind. He was just foolish enough to speak honestly. It's one more piece of evidence of the gulf that exists between highly paid, pampered professional athletes and the average Joe. And people wonder why it is that I don't pay homage to professional athletes by wearing their names and/or numbers.

Oh yeah I am not naïve enough to think that athletes don't think this. There is a monster difference though between expressing that thought to your colleagues in the locker room or your friends and family though and writing a couple paragraphs to slam the fans on Instagram.

It wasn't just some impulsive "eff you guys" type of one sentence tweet. He put some thought into it. People already have a problem with players salaries and acting entitled and you go out of your way to rub your fans faces in it playing in a blue collar town. Really Really dumb.

Social media is the perfect outlet for idiotic stuff like this, and Watkins is just the latest example.

Luckily for him, the potential boos will disappear when he scores his next touchdown. People have short memories, so they don't hold grudges for too long.

Zorn76 wrote:Luckily for him, the potential boos will disappear when he scores his next touchdown. People have short memories, so they don't hold grudges for too long.

I think it's the team winning that creates short memories- if he's scoring TDs but they end up 5-11 or something, I bet their patience with getting ridiculed by a millionaire whose outrageous salary *they enable* wears thin fast.

kalibane wrote:Oh yeah I am not naïve enough to think that athletes don't think this. There is a monster difference though between expressing that thought to your colleagues in the locker room or your friends and family though and writing a couple paragraphs to slam the fans on Instagram.

It wasn't just some impulsive "eff you guys" type of one sentence tweet. He put some thought into it. People already have a problem with players salaries and acting entitled and you go out of your way to rub your fans faces in it playing in a blue collar town. Really Really dumb.

Agreed, the fact that it was so premeditated and doing so publicly makes it worse... lots worse. I was just saying the first thing that crossed my mind when I read his comments.

But I don't think the fact that he did it in a blue collar town makes a great deal of difference. I'm a college educated white collar worker and I took offense to his comments. That type of insensitivity crosses multiple class lines, touches anyone that has to work for a living vs. playing a frigging game. IMO if he said that in Seattle or Santa Clara he's going to get the same response as he would Cleveland or Pittsburgh.

I have to play devils advocate with this a bit. Watkins is basically correct about much of what he said about people who rag about injured players. It could have been said much more tactfully but most of the people who call out injured NFL players would be hospitalized after one collision with a strong safety over the middle. Yet most everyone in the NFL does their best to make it on the field on Sunday. This is a brutally violent sport that the average fan cannot understand the magnitude of.

I think sometimes some fans do need to "get a life".

Hawktawk wrote:I have to play devils advocate with this a bit. Watkins is basically correct about much of what he said about people who rag about injured players. It could have been said much more tactfully but most of the people who call out injured NFL players would be hospitalized after one collision with a strong safety over the middle. Yet most everyone in the NFL does their best to make it on the field on Sunday. This is a brutally violent sport that the average fan cannot understand the magnitude of.

I think sometimes some fans do need to "get a life".

But that's not what he said. He didn't defend his position by noting that he plays in a brutally violent sport, he said anyone that questions an injury are "losers" and told his fans to just go about working "at your own little jobs for the rest of your lives". It was a slap in the face to every man and woman that has to work an 8 hour a day, 40 hour a week job and worry about putting food on the table, pay the rent, and put little Billy and Mary through college, all things that prima donna doesn't have to worry about. He insulted several classes of people with those comments.

If those incredibly insensitive comments happened to be about race, religion, national origin, or sexual orientation, instead of class he'd be suspended. But because he insulted a majority rather than a minority, it will pass without so much as an eyebrow being raised.