I think I know where this is gonna go today.
And to be honest, I'm not all that bad with having the discussion.
The unwise comments yesterday from Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, in response to a question from Panthers beatwriter Jourdan Rodrigue bring up a myriad issues and caution flags.
No matter how old we get chronologically, a great deal of us still have a need -- if not an impluse -- to react and behave like we're still children.
Newton's playful grin and whimsical approach to Rodrigue's question are as disturbing as they are childish.
It can be debated (and I'm quite sure it will be) that Newton - in his mind - never meant to offend the journalist. He probably does genuinely feel it's funny to hear a female talk about football strategy.
Much the same way I'm sure women would find it funny to hear a male talk about decisions and risks in careers that exist purely and exclusively for women.
Oh that's right... there are none of those.
Newton's comments are going to create a buzz today. Not because the words show a hatred for women, at least not the way I interpreted them.
Worse than a hatred of women in this business however, is the ignorance in believing that breasts and a vagina make it impossible for a person in possession of those two characteristics to have a serious discussion about football.
Not all women are well-versed in sports.
But this discussion goes off the rails completely with men the minute we try to compare the two conversations.
Does the woman in charge of a female professional basketball team laugh at a question from a male reporter covering that particular beat?
Does the woman who just competed in a three-set championship match on center court at the U.S Open chuckle at a question from a male?
Does the woman who just scored a goal for her country in a globally televised women's soccer match get a hearty guffaw when asked by a man about the match she just played?
The answer to all of these questions, to many of you, would be that you haven't got the faintest possible idea.
Because we don't watch a majority of these sporting events.
That's not an accusation, nor is it meant to be malicious. It's just fact.
Last night, the Minnesota Lynx won the WNBA championship. It was a thrilling Game 5 with the Los Angeles Sparks. Led by Maya Moore, Sylvia Fowles and Lindsay Whalen, this is the fourth time the Lynx have captured the crown in the last seven seasons.
Did any of those women giggle at a postgame press conference question from a man who happened to be covering the event?
I have no idea. I didn't watch the postgame press conference.
I'll be honest. I didn't watch the game, either. I was watching a National League Wildcard baseball game.
But Newton's gonna get raked over the coals for this one, and quite frankly, he should.
Because the culture of fear, or the reaction to being uncomfortable in a situation, is not all exclusive to Newton.
We don't like things out of place.
Whether it's how to put the seat down in the bathroom, how to properly clean the coffee pot or who should be talking to men about a "man's only" business, it's not the women who have the issue asking the question.
It's the males -- you know, the ones being paid millions of dollars to make sure receivers who run routes get the football in their hands -- who are still little boys who are scared to talk the girl across the hall.
The window of time for the proper apology is closing rapidly on this one.
And the court of public opinion -- particularly today -- is gonna be brutal to the Panthers quarterback.
But I'm sure he'll be fine.
He'll just smile and laugh it off.
One last thing on the Newton comments....
I'll remind everyone (again) that the character on the field... the one who celebrates touchdowns with dance moves and handing out footballs to kids... may not be the best role model for our youth.
They don't pay him to do that. They pay him to be an entertainer.
You don't get to decide how he truly lives his life.
So it seems we're right back where we started from with Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown.
Remember the Facebook Live incident last season during the playoffs?
Yeah, he's back at it again... Only this time his prop was a gatorade cooler which he decided to use as a prop during a temper tantrum he threw on the sidelines last weekend during a Steelers victory over their division rival Baltimore Ravens.
Former teammate Ryan Clark said the incident isn't a surprise at all for Brown, telling ESPN Radio, "Antonio has done an extremely good job of tricking people. He’s done a very good spin job of having us think, or making people think who don’t know him, that it’s all about the Pittsburgh Steelers. He's just a hard worker who’s here to win football games.
"No, Antonio Brown loves Antonio Brown. If you listen to people talk about him. If you listen to the media, a lot of time the fans, they have an adoration for him that is not necessarily a depiction of who he is. He’s like most receivers. He’s selfish.”
The discourse between Brown and his teammates, as well as head coach Mike Tomlin appears to be at a boiling point yet again.
This is a story worth following, if for no other reason than sheer entertainment.
Unless you're a Steelers fan, in which case, you're gnawing your fingernails with every single catch being made by a receiver not named Antonio Brown.
The National League Wildcard Game last night definitely lived up to the hype, with the Arizona Diamondbacks edging the stubborn Colorado Rockies 11-8 and moving onto the National League Divisional round and a series with the Dodgers.
Arizona opened up a 6-0 lead after 4 innings, but the wheels fell off starting pitcher Zack Grienke as the Rockies closed to within one run. The DBacks never lost the lead and edged clear with a 2-run single off the bat of AJ Pollock in the bottom of the 8th. Both NL Divisonal rounds, Arizona vs. Los Angeles and the Cubs vs. Washington get underway on Friday.
American League Divisional rounds begin today with the Houston Astros hosting the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees on the road to face the Cleveland Indians.
You want to know what the difference will be between these Wildcard games and the Divisional round games?
Two words. Starting pitching.
The four starting pitchers in the two American League and National League Wildcard games combined to throw for just 7 1/3 innings.
So when these first games of the second round get going this week and weekend, don't be surprised if the quality of the division winners is a little better than what you've seen so far.
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It's a busy show coming up this morning on FIRST SPORTS. We'll talk some college football with Chuck Hayes, get you caught up on some NFL news with Ryan Van Bibber and we've got a really cool local event coming up this weekend at Defined Fitness. We'll tell you all about it.
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