Do Sports Foster Criminal Behavior?

This past season has been a particularly poor one for the NFL and its athletes. And that’s putting it lightly. In 2014, there were 59 arrests, citations or charges among NFL players. In 2015 alone, there have been 22.

There are two ways to look at these numbers. Either we can say there are plenty of crimes that happen in society committed by non-athletes every day, and this is just an example of there inevitably being bad apples in every bunch, or we can look at these numbers and conclude that there is a problem in the NFL that results in so many of its players to be linked to criminal activity. A closer look at the issue shows that there is some validity to the latter and it isn’t just a problem confined to the NFL.

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There is always going to be some sort of flaw in data collected. The data looked at for the purposes of this article is based on the number of players arrested, cited and/or charged with a crime. It only includes those arrests, citations or charges reported in the media, so there are presumably a few that have gone unreported. It also includes those who have had charges dropped, so presumably there are people innocent of any wrong-doing included.

However, even accounting for this, there are problems so prevalent that it outshines the few who may potentially be innocent. One obvious way this is seen is in cases of domestic violence. Many players have been arrested and even charged with domestic violence against a partner, but due to the nature of the crime and very complicated reasons, often times victims don’t want to testify against their abusers, and so charges have to be dropped.

There are also many other ways for athletes to get out of being charged or found guilty of a crime. From being well-liked to having connections in law enforcement, players find ways to evade charges all the time. While there are flaws in the data presented, there are also inherent flaws in the way our society deals with athletes that have to be taken into account alongside any outlier cases that may exist.

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The problem of athletes committing crimes isn’t solely confined to the NFL, though that stage has had the most spotlight in past year and a half. College football is just as bad as, if not worse than, the NFL for many reasons.

College football is a much more expansive system than the NFL, with many more teams and players, an entirely different structure, and an entirely different mindset. It is only natural that with such a large scale there are going to be more offenders than in the NFL. However, the numbers still seem unsettling. In 2014, there were 245 arrests, citations or charges among college football players. In 2015, there have been 64.

Many arrests in both the NFL and college football have gone unheard of at the national level, however, there have been an alarming number of stories that have made it to the national media that highlight extensive problems with athletes. Most notably have been Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson, Jameis Winston, and Josh Shaw.  Though these are only a few instances, they have brought light to many issues that have plagued the athletic world.

According to The New York Times and USA Today, from 2000- September 2014 there are 713 instances of athletes facing criminal charges or arrests of some sort. The most common is Driving Under the Influence (DUI) with 202 players charged or cited. Given that only the primary crime is cited by these sources (i.e. the most serious if two or more crimes were noted in the same instance by the same player), it is safe to assume that these criminal acts didn’t result in any harm to others. However, the next two highest categories are very alarming because they deal directly with these players harming others. 88 players were charged or cited with assault and battery, and 85 were charged or cited with domestic violence.

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In a sport that is inherently violent, it is a wonder we expect non-violent behavior from these athletes. As a society, we expect these players to be trained to hit and knock down anything that is in their way, and to stop the other team from scoring at almost any cost, and then we expect them to turn around and be model citizens. We teach them to apply what they learn on the field to their everyday lives, but expect them to distinguish on their own which parts are acceptable to transition over and which parts are not. We take athletes and make their decisions for them for the majority of their lives, from when to go to practice, to what to eat, to what classes they can take and what majors they can declare, to when they can talk to their friends, whether it is by their parents and guardians or their college coaches and athletic administrators. Then we throw them out the door when they decide to go to the NFL and we wonder why they can’t make proper decisions for themselves; we wonder why they don’t know right from wrong.

They’ve never had to know right from wrong, unless it has to do with which route to take or which block to make. They’ve never had to make a decision for themselves. They’ve never been given autonomy and then suddenly they’re expected to act like they’ve been doing it their whole lives and have perfected decision making to a T, when most of society hasn’t even done that without these circumstances forced upon us. We can’t expect these players to know things they haven’t been taught or had the chance to learn. We certainly can’t teach these players violence their whole lives and not expect some of them to lash out at some point.

Violence in any context isn’t permissible. These athletes can’t be given a pass because they didn’t know better. The law is the law, and what they did is still wrong. However, it does show society the role we plays in this cycle of violence, and it is time we stepped up and took responsibility for that role.

Athletes Do Not Have To Be Your Role Models… In That Way

Athletes should be role models to society, but only for their athletic abilities. Athletes do not have to conduct themselves in a certain manner simply because they hold positions of influence, and should only be held to the same standards as everyone else. Ordinary people are not publicly or professionally held accountable for their private, personal lives, and athletes should be treated no differently. Their actions off the field should not dictate their worth as an athlete, nor impose punishment for them, so long as those actions do not interfere with their abilities to perform athletically, or interfere with the rules and spirit of the game and any team or league they may work for. Thus, they should not be held accountable by society for being general role models for life, as that job should be left up to the parent, not the athlete.

The most important thing in understanding an athlete’s true role is to understand what a role model is. Just as the name describes, a role model is a model for a specific role. Athletes should then, not be general models on how to live life for children or anyone else, but models for their role as athletes, and admired for their athletic abilities and talents. We do not expect accountants to fulfill more for the general public than their role as accountants, so we should not expect athletes to fulfill more for the general public than their role as athletes.

Some might argue that accountants, as a general rule, do not share the same influence and public exposure as athletes do, so to expect the same from them would not be fair or logical. It does hold true that athletes do their jobs for public entertainment and as such expose themselves to the general public much more than an accountant would. However, ultimately, it is up to parents to be positive role models for their children and to provide positive role models for them. If a parent does a proper job of teaching right from wrong based on the societal norms and values they wish to pass down to their children, as well as ensuring that the child has positive role models in any teachers or religious officials they might be surrounded by, then that child should be fully capable of separating an athlete’s personal actions from their professional ones. They should be able to admire Kobe Bryant for his talent as an NBA player, but still know that they should not follow down his path of marital infidelity or other legal indiscretions. They should also know that just as there are positive as well as negative people to model your character after, solely being an athlete does not make you worthy of being a role model, because some athletes have a positive societal impact and others have a negative one. It should be clear that, being a role model is not dictated or determined by their role as an athlete, just as being an actor or actress does not necessarily make someone a role model.

Furthermore, if you look at a job as a role, this logic does in fact hold up. An accountant is held accountable for his job performance by his bosses, but also by the customers of the business he works for who ultimately provide the financial backing for his salary. If a business has improper accounting practices, then that business will end up losing money or breaking the law, either of which would result in a reduction of customers, which results in a reduction of profits, which in turn results in a reduction of salary for employees or being laid off. An athlete is held accountable for his job performance in the same way, with the fans acting as the customers. If an athlete performs poorly on a consistent basis, the fans are eventually going to stop showing their support, so just as a business would with a poor performing accountant, the team or sponsor that athlete plays for is going to either demand improved performance from the athlete, reduce their salary, or lay them off. Both professionals have a role, and so long as they perform well in that role, they get to keep it.

In turn, one might ask, what if an athlete breaks the law? Even if it is not related to their role as an athlete, are they not accountable for their actions then? While, athletes are held accountable for their actions legally, the same holds true for any citizen of the United States. Since breaking the law is an act that is not related to their role as an athlete, but rather their role as a citizen, they are being held to the same level of accountability as any other person. However, we cannot use this legal precedent for every other aspect of their personal lives. If an athlete does something that is not illegal and not part of their role as an athlete, then that is part of their personal life, and they can only be held accountable for those actions by the people involved, not the general public.

We should not expect more from a star basketball player than to play phenomenal basketball, because an athlete’s personal life is not part of their professional life. So as long as it does not impact their professional duties, it should not be subject to public scrutiny and they should not have to be models for such actions, because it is not the public’s duty or place to hold an athlete accountable for anything other than their athletic abilities.

Steph Curry Will Be This Season’s MVP

Steph Curry is beloved by fans and media alike. He was received the most votes for the All-Star game, he has the best-selling jersey of the year, people call him relatable, like any other normal guy, and many say he’s the best player on the best team in the league.

The facts as they stand make a clear case for Curry. He has made more three-point shots than anyone in the past five seasons. He has made 286 three-pointers this season and 653 overall field goals, making him first and second in the NBA in those respective categories. He leads the league in free throw percentage (91.4%), steals (163), and is second in overall points (1900). He also has a Value Over Replacement rating of 7.9, the best of any player in the league.

There’s more than just the stats at play for Curry, though. He has a natural gift. Some say he is best at ball handling. Some say he is best with his innate ability to read other players, to predict what they’re gonna do before they even do it. Some say both. He says all that matters is just going out on the court and forgetting what everyone else says.

Curry’s biggest competitor for MVP is James Harden of the Houston Rockets. Statistically speaking, Harden has the most win shares, the most points scored, the most free throws and the most minutes played. He is clearly valuable to his team, but he just doesn’t quite match up to all of Curry’s feats. While stats might put them in a closer match than most people would like to give Harden credit for, and Harden has no doubt worked for his team that has been laden with injuries and poor circumstances that had to be overcome, that is essentially deemed irrelevant. Harden doesn’t have the movement behind him that Curry does, and in the end that’s really all that matters.

It’s clear Curry has a great chance to be named MVP, but whether or not he actually wins the title doesn’t really matter at this point. America has already decided who their MVP is.

Why The Clippers Won’t Get Past The Spurs

Looking at the Clippers going into the playoffs, it was questionable whether they’d be able to hold their own in the playoffs, but after last night’s performance some people are wondering whether they’ve been holding out on us or if they’ll end up being the same ol’ Clippers.

1. Blake Griffin was great in last night’s game, making headline worthy dunks on Baynes three times, but played the most minutes during the game, which could be a problem is Doc Rivers tries to depend on him too much.
2. Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan held the court down for the Clippers, but the Spurs made a lot of mistakes, so they when (not if) they come out stronger, the Clippers current play might not be up to par.
3. Clippers could have played better on defense, which against the Spurs is something that is really going to hold them back going forward. The Spurs are going to have to come out strong in Game 2, so the Clippers need to step it up if they want to defeat the defending champs.
4. That being said, they still played one of the best defensive games of the season, and if this is the best, we can only assume they’re going to fall back to around their regular level as the series goes on.
5. The Clippers also need to work on their weak bench problems. Rivers played all 5 backups at once in the first half after saying he wouldn’t, which could lead to problems going forward.
6. Bench gets outscored when they play and that puts pressure on starters.
7. The Spurs played less time individually than all the starters on the Clippers, with no one playing more than Kawhi Leonard’s 33 minutes, but Griffin played 42, Jordan played 38 and Paul played 37, so the Spurs have more rotation flexibility and this will play against the Clipper’s previously discussed bench problems
8. JJ Reddick and Matt Barnes didn’t really contribute much in the last game, so if they don’t pick up slack
9. Not a strong fan base to back them up or really lend to any home court advantage (not that the Clippers are used to it)
10. Two days off gives Clipper’s starters resting time, but it also gives the Spurs a chance to come back hard with a fresh start.

Can All Athletes Get A Second Chance?

“America is the country of second chances.” This statement was made by Orin Starn, an anthropologist, writer, and journalist who focuses of society, culture, and sports and the intersection of those topics. However, this is a very flawed statement. While our society is willing to give second chances out, we only give out those chances to people we deem worthy, by a very skewed set of standards.

Tiger Woods is one such example. Woods spent his career living outside of any racial category. He was so exceptional at his sport of choice – and so willing to put on a smile and never criticize racial politics in American society – that he never faced the racial scrutiny that many minority athletes face in the media and society in general. However, after his sex scandal in 2009, he was almost immediately written off as finished, and society only viewed his injuries and his feeble attempts at a comeback as proof of that.

If we look at Arnold Palmer, however, we see a man who was well known as sexually promiscuous, and yet faced next to no scrutiny for it. To this day he is still regarded as one of the greatest men’s golfers of all time.

It is easy to point to different eras in society and say that has an impact on the way people are perceived. However, setting aside differences in society, there is still a very apparent double standard, where a white male was able to continue in his ways and be successful, but when a black man was exposed for very similar acts, he fell from society’s graces.

Even outside of race there is still a double standard in society in regards to who we’re willing to give second chances to. After Woods’ scandal, he lost many endorsement deals and his name, and in turn his brand image, was highly scrutinized in the media. He was not able to make money for the sport anymore, so he wasn’t deemed worthy anymore, thus written off as a failure by society.

If we look at someone like Michael Vick, also a black, male athlete, we see that since his personal brand image is not held in as high regards as his team’s image or the NFL’s image as a whole, he is worthy enough to get a second chance because he is able to make money for the league and team he plays for.

This double standard is not fair for society as a whole, because it tells people that unless you can make money for us or fit into our mold of what the ideal person/athlete/celebrity/etc. should be, then you are not worthy of a second chance. America is a country of second chances, but only for those who are deemed worthy enough by shoddy double standards in society.

Christine Brennan

Christine Brennan began her career in sports journalism in a time when there wasn’t a defined path for women in that field to follow. She had to be a trailblazer, and after listening to her speak, it is evident that, even today she still holds that role.

Brennan began her career in Florida at the Miami Herald in 1981, as the first full-time woman sports writer there. Writing about the University of Miami football team during the height of their dynasty in the 80s allowed her to move forward in her career, catapulting her to a position at the Washington Post where she was able to cover a wide array of sports both in the US and internationally. Brennan emphasizes that many of her career moves and advances happened because she was in the right place at the right time and being there allowed her access to many more opportunities.

As a trailblazer for women in sports media, Brennan has also given back during her career. She is currently on the Board of Trustees at her alma mater, Northwestern University, and that role has allowed her to create opportunities for women interested in sports media, as well as female collegiate athletes, to pursue careers they might otherwise have access to.

Even when she isn’t working, Brennan tries to give back to aspiring sports journalists, speaking at various events and to classes, giving advice on how to be better sports journalists. One noteworthy point Brennan really stressed was to always treat sources with respect and be nice, because you never know when they will be able to help you out down the line. It is clear that Brennan recognizes her role as a trailblazer and even to this day she continues to give back and help others not just follow in her path, but create their own.

A Letter To Derek Jeter

Dear Mr. Jeter,

This letter is written to you from my heart; from a Red Sox fan to a low-life Yankee. A week ago you said you were going to retire from baseball at the end of the 2014 season. The legend that my generation grew up with will no longer be playing in MLB. And yes, as a Red Sox fan, I am fully willing to admit that you are a legend. If anyone can’t admit that, they are fooling themselves.

You have been playing baseball in the Major Leagues for almost as long as I have been alive. I’ve heard about you ever since I learned how to understand words. I’ve watched you play ever since I developed an understanding for the sport of baseball. You were the first baseball player I ever learned about. Before I knew that Sox was spelled with an ‘x’, I knew who Derek Jeter was. That is how important you are to the sport of baseball.

On the same token, ever since I learned what a pattern was I thought pinstripes were hideous. Ever since I learned what a Yankee was I knew they were some sort of Commies hell-bent on ruining the world. Ever since I learned who you were, I knew you were a bad, bad man (no matter what my aunt or all those People Magazine covers said about you). As long as I have known who you were I have never had any positive feelings for you.

So I should be happy that you’re retiring. One less Yankee legend for us Sox fans to worry about. But for some reason, I’m not happy about it. I’m oddly sentimental. Part of me gets your choice. I wouldn’t want to play another season with A-Rod either. He is a taint on America’s beloved pastime.

But if you don’t play next year, all the fun goes out the window. There is no one on the Yankees that I care about hating but you. I care about hating you, because it’s fun. I care about hating you because you’re a really good player and a formidable opponent for us. I don’t care about hating Ellsbury because I’m too hurt by him leaving and really all he ever did was steal bases (yes, I’m salty). I don’t care about hating Youkilis because I still love him and I still wear my Youk Red Sox shirt (sue me). And I don’t care about hating ARod, because he isn’t someone you have to care about hating. He is just someone you hate and don’t have to think about or put effort into it (plus I highly doubt he’ll actually be allowed to play when and if he comes back in 2015).

I have to actively hate you and I love that. If you leave, WHO WILL BE LEFT TO HATE DEREK? CC? Beltran? That’s a joke. I couldn’t care less about those guys. You’re the one I love to hate and if you leave baseball, you’ll break my heart. When I told my best friend why I was writing this letter she said “yes Jordan, I’m sure your hatred of him is what he cares about”. In all of her pointed sarcasm, she has a point. You don’t care that I hate you. You don’t care that I won’t care about hating any particular Yankee once you leave. It’s not going to change your mind and make you stay in baseball.

As you already said, there are “other things” you want to do. I’m not gonna stop you from expanding your dating diamond, Jeter. Every team needs backups. I get that. You do you. I guess all I really want to say to you now is that as much as I hate you, the game won’t be the same without you. This will be a season for the books and I can’t wait to enjoy it. And I definitely can’t wait for your last regular season game at Fenway. Maybe I’ll even buy tickets just so I can refuse to give you a standing ovation.

Why I Might Stop Watching Football

Anyone that knows me knows how much I love sports. I’ve always said baseball is my religion and football is my political ideology. Given the events that have taken place this year, I’ve never thought that to be more true.

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The sport of football has seen a very tumultuous year. We started off on a great note when a Raven’s player wanted to use the Super Bowl to promote gay rights. That, however, led to a 49ers player saying a lot of not so nice things about gay people. While many football players (and athletes in general) came out and said they disagreed with him, it still exposed this football culture that has been cultivating, and that, as fans, we largely have ignored. In hindsight, this story was really the match that started the forest fire as it were.

In November, we learned that the NFL had plans for a gay player to come out and remain active, a first for professional football, but it fell apart. There are many different reasons attributed to why, but none of them really matter. The fact is no NFL players came out, even after Jason Collins, an NBA player wrote an article for Sports Illustrated stating he was gay, and there was relatively little backlash.

Of course, in all fairness, we should consider the fact that he isn’t playing for any team this year. Him being past his prime and not playing well last season only further muddies whether he hasn’t been signed because of his sexual orientation or because of he just doesn’t play basketball at an elite level anymore. Still, most would say at least progress has been made in basketball, whereas we have yet to see any in football.

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Though it happened at the end of 2012, Jovan Belcher killing his girlfriend and himself in a murder-suicide no one could have seen coming was a big story. It seemed to be an isolated incident, until people started saying that he had a problem with concussions. Though the team came out and said he didn’t have a history of concussions, it still opened up talk about the impact the sport has on the lives of players after their finished with their careers. People immediately pointed to the suicides of past players, like Junior Seau and Dave Duerson, that have been blamed on concussions they suffered from football. All of this led to a documentary that was being made, titled “League of Denial“, that focused on the NFL’s mishandling of concussions. However, in August ESPN pulled out of the documentary, and many said Roger Goodell and the NFL played a large part in pressuring them to do so. Naturally, he and the league denied those claims. Regardless, this incident still highlighted a health problem running rampant in the NFL.

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Next we turn our attention to Steubenville, Ohio. In March, two high school football players were convicted of raping a 16-year-old girl at a party. The incident immediately grabbed the nations attention, thanks to it being tweeted and put on various other social media platforms by attendees of the party. Recently, four more people have been charged in the rape case, but this time those being charged are school employees. It has also been underreported that some of the charges being brought against these employees have to do with an entirely separate rape of a 14-year-old girl from April 2012. While it is clear people are being punished for what happened, it still brought to light some grotesque things and opened the discussion on the privileges football players and even coaches think they have just because they play, or are involved with, the sport of football.

We follow that discussion to the Vanderbilt rape case from earlier this year. I previously wrote an article about it, in which I discussed why everyone calling for the banishment of football due to this rape case was wrong. I stand by my point that football should not be done away with just because some people think it allows them certain privileges that they most definitely do not have.

However, if we look at this case within the narrative of football privilege we have seen this year, even specifically concerning solely rape, it’s hard to ignore the fact that the culture in football creates boys and men who think it is okay to do things like this, and who think they can get away with it, just because they play football. All of this is tied up in a larger discussion of why that is, and it comes back to football being a large-scale perpetuator of gender stereotypes, specifically “masculinity”. While this is an important discussion to have, for now, we will just focus on the fact that football does create this culture, and that both the Steubenville and the Vanderbilt case show that.

We can also see that in the Jameis Winston case. While he was not charged with anything due to lack of evidence, it is hard to believe that if a proper investigation had taken place the same result would have occurred. I would like to make one thing clear right now. No one ever said Jameis Winston did not rape that girl. It was simply determined they could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he did it. In our legal system, everyone is innocent until proven guilty, even if we aren’t given the chance to prove them guilty.

Now, onto the problematic issues with this case. It took almost an entire year for the case to brought to the State Attorney, and that only happened after the press made the story public. I am not shocked that after eleven months it was hard to find enough evidence to charge anyone of rape.

For whatever reason, I am also not shocked that during investigations:

A Tallahassee detective told an accuser’s attorney that Tallahassee is a “big football town” and her client’s life could “be made miserable” if she pursued a sexual assault case against Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston.

It almost seems straight from the script of a movie, a little too unreal. All of this stems from that great “football privilege” we see all too often.

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Next we look to the infamous Richie Incognito/Jonathan Martin scandal. I also wrote about this when it was happening, and all of the points I made still ring true. Bullying is a problem, but the way society views bullying is an even bigger problem. This is also a talk that comes back to the culture of “masculinity” perpetuated by football. When I read about the Incognito/Martin story, I can’t help but be reminded of this discussion that I have been a part of all too often this year.

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One final point I have to bring up is the attitude that fans have towards football. While we are so quick to condemn players, coaches, the NFL, the NCAA, and anyone else who may be involved in the sport, we hardly ever take a step back to look at ourselves and the way we both effect and are affected by the sport. When that gay NFL player was considering coming out, he said the one thing he was most scared of was not fellow player’s reactions, but the fans’ reactions.

After the Iron Bowl, a woman was shot and killed, because, as one witness reports, she wasn’t a big enough Alabama fan, and wasn’t disappointed enough when they lost.

That is crazy. That is the single most insane thing I’ve heard since I learned about H.H. Holmes.

Fans never cease to amaze me. They can be the most supportive people for their team, but they can also be the most destructive. More than in any other sport, fans of football tend to take their fandom to the extreme, getting mad when other fans aren’t as dedicated as they are, rioting when their teams don’t do well, and even sending death threats when a player does something they don’t agree with. While we see examples of this in any sport, it is much more exaggerated in football, and that ties back into the idea of football being the most aggressive and “masculine” sport in our society.

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I have been a football fan since the day I was born. It’s in my blood and it’s a large part of the way I identify myself. However, as I have made very clear, football is going through a rough time. Society is changing, and parts of the sport are attempting to change, but it is so rooted in antiquated notions and practices, that it seems almost impossible for it to keep up with society. Unless the very way we go about looking at football changes, the sport and all of the bad things that come with it are never going to change.

For that reason, my interest in the sport has been quickly dwindling. As I stated before, I always say baseball is my religion and football is my political ideology. I say this, because much like religion, baseball is something that just is in my life. Just like how people go to church every Sunday and celebrate Christmas and Easter, starting in March I watch baseball every day I can, and I celebrate Opening Day and the World Series.

Much like politics, football is something I just get and something I fell in love with from the second I discovered it. However, also like politics, football is something that I have grown to dislike the more bureaucratic it becomes, and the more isolated from reality it remains. While I’m not ready to completely give it up yet, each week I find myself asking the same question: is it even worth it anymore?

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Update:  It has been announced that the rights to “League of Denial” have been purchased and it may be turned into a feature film.

Throwing A Punch Does Not Make You A Man

As is the case with any breaking story, no one knows all of the details right away. Over time, new information has been brought to light, and we inevitably learn shocking new things about the severity of this situation. When I first heard the Jonathan Martin/Richie Incognito story, my initial reaction was shock. Not shock that this had occurred, but shock that a grown man playing for a professional football team stormed out of team facilities because he was being bullied. It seemed like something that would happen on a school playground, not in the NFL. Then I thought about it a little more. It must have taken an insane amount of courage to finally stand up and say “enough is enough” and remove yourself from the situation, especially as a male in a profession that requires you to be one of the toughest, strongest people in society. He would be seen as a wimp and a coward when all he wanted to do was play the sport he loved without fear of being harassed every single day.

Like I said, no one knew most of the details we know now when the story first broke. There are still many things we do not yet know. However, I was a little disturbed when I watched this video clip of ex-NFL players and commentators discussing this issue on TV. How could they possibly be blaming Martin? Not only were commentators finding fault in Martin, but his own teammates cast doubt on his credibility, and openly and overwhelmingly supported his aggressor. They’re not sure if they want him back on the team. His own coach told him to be more aggressive and physical about the situation.

Clearly there is something wrong with the way society is viewing this situation, and it speaks to a much larger issue. There are many problems with the way we view victims of bullying in this society, but the way we view and discuss adult and/or male victims of bullying is abhorrent.

Why is it so unfathomable that being made fun of and taken advantage of to no end, even as an adult, can be detrimental to a person? Why does a person have to have something mentally wrong with them if they’re bullied? Why does a man have to physically fight an aggressor to prove himself and his worth, when we teach children to not physically fight back when bullied?

A number of people have started speaking up about the way we look at bullying in this culture, but this is only the beginning. In order to effectively address bullying, we need to address the ways in which we allow, even encourage, bullying to happen. Part of that includes addressing the differences in our treatment of adult and child bullies and bullying victims. If we teach our children to handle situations in a certain manner, then we should not turn around and expect adults to act in the complete opposite manner. It should not be expected that Martin fight back or hit his bully, just because he’s an adult, just because he’s a man, or just because he’s a football player. Jonathan Martin did the right thing when he walked out of that facility, and we can only hope he set an example for others to follow.

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Update: For context, here is a great timeline of the events surrounding this situation.

Why Mike Napoli is the Red Sox’ Most Valuable Player

It was 2011, October was just beginning, the Cardinals were on fire, and all my friends had jumped on their bandwagon. Naturally, I jumped on the Texas Rangers’ bandwagon and instantly fell in love with two players. I adored Josh Hamilton for his devastating good looks, and admired Mike Napoli, because I’ve always thought catchers were the best, and he was potentially the most underrated player on that team.

Flash forward to 2013. Napoli (just barely) passed his physical, and agreed to a one-year $5 million deal with the Red Sox. Napoli had problems staying healthy though, and after his physical showed signs of a hip problem, many doubted his ability to stay healthy the entire season.

Flash forward to present day. Not only did Napoli stay healthy for the entire season, but in the biggest one season turnaround perhaps ever, he has been arguably the most valuable player on the Sox this year.

Napoli has been crucial to the clubhouse chemistry this season. He was the first to join Jonny Gomes in the beard growing antics, essentially jump-starting the trend among all the other players. Beard growing has been essential to this team’s success, as it has turned them into a family of sorts.

Napoli’s personality has also been fundamental for this team. This past offseason General Manager Ben Cherington set out to sign players that would not only play well together, but that would get along well with each other. In signing Napoli, he did just that.  From day one of spring training Napoli started getting along with team, and his relationship with all the players only grew. From joking about Boegarts not reaching puberty, to sunbathing on the pitcher’s mound before the ALCS, to being the go-to target of everyone’s beard tugs, Napoli’s presence has been a staple on the Sox.

On top of having a devastatingly good looking beard and an out-of-the-park personality, Mike Napoli is also a juggernaut on the field. In game 3 of the ALCS Napoli took us back to his first major league at bat in 2006, which also happened to be his first major league hit, a home run off Justin Verlander. History repeated itself in that game as Napoli hit a homer off Verlander once more, to score the only run of the game and lead the Sox to a win. He got five more hits and three more runs that series alone. In Game 1 of the World Series, Napoli unleashed his bat once again, hitting a three-run double, to jump-start the 8 runs the Sox would score that night to beat the Cardinals.

Napoli always comes through when his team needs him the most, both on and off the field. Wherever he goes, whatever team he is on, he fits in with the players and stands out to the fans. He provides that extra something the team didn’t even know they were missing. He is the player every manager wants on their team.

Some may argue that he isn’t the best personality or the best bat on the team. Clearly Pedroia is the unspoken captain and leader of these Red Sox, and his recent contract extension that lasts through 2021 is a clear indicator that this may be the most important man on the team. There is no doubting that in the long run, Pedroia is the most valuable player on the team. He is the embodiment of everything Red Sox. However this season, Napoli provided a fresh, new dose of fun personality that a leader like Pedroia can’t fully provide anymore. Gone are the days of the “lasershow” comments.

Others may say Big Papi himself, David Ortiz, is the season MVP. While he has surely stepped up his game this season, and reminded all of Fenway’s faithful exactly why we call him Big Papi, I still think he hasn’t quite been to the team or the fans what Napoli has been.

The season isn’t over yet, but it’s pretty clear Mike Napoli deserves the MVP award for all of his contributions to the team, and to baseball, this season. I’m not the only one who thinks so, either. However, even if Napoli doesn’t win any official awards, every Red Sox fan, and any fan of baseball for that matter, can appreciate all Nap has done for the team and he will always hold a special place in our hearts.