Richard Sherman: NFL wouldn’t have banned Sterling

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Because of the way the NFL supports the Redskins nickname, Richard Sherman doesn’t believe Commissioner Roger Goodell would have banned an owner for racist comments the way NBA Commissioner Adam Silver booted Donald Sterling.

Asked by Time Magazine if Goodell would have done what Silver did, Sherman said, “No, I don’t.”

Sherman, fresh off a new contract extension that made him the highest-paid NFL cornerback, took advantage of his newly elevated pedestal by saying something few others in the NFL would have the guts to say. He believes that the NFL doesn’t get racial sensitivity by the way it supported owner Daniel Snyder’s continued use of the name.

“Because we have an NFL team called the Redskins,” Sherman said, “I don’t think the NFL really is as concerned as they show. The NFL is more of a bottom-line league. If it doesn’t affect their bottom line, they’re not as concerned.”

Sherman said he was not surprised by Sterling’s disparaging remarks about blacks and pointed to the criticism he endured following his nationally televised rant after Seattle beat the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC title game.

“I wasn’t really shocked or anything because of what I saw after the incident after the NFC Championship Game,” he said. “You’ve got a lot of racial backlash, and a lot of racist comments that were uncalled for — I can never see a time where racism is called for. So it didn’t shock me as much as it would have had I not experienced that personally, had I not seen those things.

“It showed me that America still had some progress to make. On equality, and understanding that it doesn’t matter what color you are, you treat people as people. And whether a good person or a bad person, you don’t judge them off the color of their skin. You can know a person is a good person or a bad person by who they are, not by what they look like. In that situation, it just seems like a lot of people gave (Sterling) a lot of flak, well deserved, but you know — I feel like a lot more people were more surprised than they should have been.

“That’s why a lot of people shy away from the conversation that I forced on us in January. People want to it to be done, they want that uncomfortable truth to be over with, they want the racism to be done, they want to believe everything is great and hunky-dory. And it’s not. There’s a lot of racism still alive and still active. And it just forced America to rethink it once again, and to really, really understand that racism isn’t gone. We have to actively push it out. And snuff it out.”

http://sportspressnw.com/2184464/2014/sherman-nfl-wouldnt-have-banned-sterling

[Blue_Tires]

1. You could argue that the NFL wouldn't have allowed Sterling to own a team in the first place...

The NFL is by far the most discerning league when it comes to deciding who gets a spot in their little boys club...

[FSogol]

2. And yet they have a huge selection of asshats owning teams.

[Blue_Tires]

5. True, but there is a difference between the greedy asshat owner

and the "bring national shame and embarrassment to the league" - type of owner...

[FSogol]

8. They just know how to keep their mouths shut better. BTW, think Synder and

company are watching Sterling's loss of the team closely? If the court agrees that the league can force him out, the NFL could go down the same path to rename Washington's team.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

3. You might want to do an internet search for George Preston Marshall

He was the original owner of said team and the one who gave it its offensive name. He was well know for his racist opinions.

Marshall has gained infamy for his intractable opposition to having African-Americans on his roster. According to professor Charles Ross, "For 24 years Marshall was identified as the leading racist in the NFL".[3] Though the league had previously had a sprinkling of black players, blacks were excluded from all NFL teams just one year after the then-Boston Braves entered the league.

While the rest of the league began signing individual blacks in 1946 and actually drafting blacks in 1949, Marshall held out until 1962 before signing a black player. Along with his own personal views, Marshall refused to sign African-American players because of a desire to appeal to Southern markets, which lacked an NFL team until Dallas entered the league in 1960.[4] His intractability was routinely mocked in Washington Post columns by legendary writer Shirley Povich, who sarcastically used terms from the civil rights movement and related court cases to describe games: for instance, he once wrote that Jim Brown "integrated" the end zone, making the score "separate but unequal".

Finally, in 1962, Interior Secretary Stewart Udall and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy issued an ultimatum — unless Marshall signed a black player, the government would revoke the Redskins' 30-year lease on the year-old D.C. Stadium (now Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium), which had been paid for by government money and was owned by the Washington city government (which, then and now, is formally an arm of the federal government). Marshall's chief response was to make Ernie Davis, Syracuse's all-American running back, his number-one draft choice for 1962. Davis, however, demanded a trade, saying, "I won't play for that S.O.B."[citation needed] He got his wish, as the team sent him to Cleveland for All-Pro Bobby Mitchell. Mitchell was the first African American football player to play a game for the Redskins, and he played with the team for several years, initially at running back, but he made his biggest impact at wide receiver.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Preston_Marshall

[Blue_Tires]

4. I was referring more to the modern era

you go back far enough every owner was a racist asshat...

And FWIW I already know about Marshall, since my father and grandfather were both 'skins fans...Naturally they were Baltimore Colts fans until the Redskins finally integrated...

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

6. Sterling's the longest standing NBA owner

So I guess it follows.

[JI7]

24. maybe things have changed, didn't sterling buy this over 3 decades ago ?

[cilla4progress]

7. Props to Sherman

for taking this head-on! Tell it!

We can't let up the march to justice.

[Supersedeas]

30. speaking truth to power

[Jenoch]

9. I thought Sherman was an

asshat in the NFC Championship game and it had nothing to do with the color of his skin and everything to do with his actions.

[KT2000]

14. that was one moment

please read about him - a very impressive guy.

[Jenoch]

16. Oh I know about him.

He is not your average NFL player. He is smart and outspoken. I remember an NFL player who graduated from Harvard with a degree in finance and economics. He played for about 15 years and was a pro bowler. Until the end of his career he pretty much kept his mouth shut.

Sherman can be as outspoken as he wishes to. He may even be correct. But that does not mean I need to admire him or have anything positive to say about him. Ali used to say he was the greatest but that was for showmanship, not because of the need for everyone to recognize him as the greatest. Sherman hqs self-esteem issues in my opinion.

[flying rabbit]

22. I would say

that Ali's showmanship was a need for everyone to recognize him as the greatest.

[Jenoch]

26. I would say itcwas about Ali promoting the next fight.

He talked trash about his opponent in order to promote the upxoming fight.

I don't remember him doing the same at random moments throughout his daily life.

[flying rabbit]

27. Going to the superbowl is a random moment? nt

[Jenoch]

28. The Superbowl was months ago.

[Scuba]

17. I didn't.

[Jenoch]

19. .

http://m.

[Scuba]

20. I saw it a couple times. I've heard much worse trash talking at the local YMCA.

Much worse. And not after making a Super Bowl winning play moments earlier, either.

[Jenoch]

21. I didn't lke his actions on the field either.

I find an athlete with some humility deserves more respect than somebody like Sherman.

I also know there are some that will call me rqcist because of my opinion, but that's not true. I am not a fan of loudmouths of any skin color.

[PeteSelman]

10. I don't understand why people don't like this guy.

He's smart and tells it like it is. And he's a boss player too.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

11. I like him

For obvious reasons.

[Egnever]

12. People dont like him because they dont know him.

The only thing most people know of him is his outburst at the end of the playoff game.

I thought he was a complete asshole myself when that was all I knew of him. Now that i have looked into who he really is I have a lot of respect for him.

Hell Obama clowned him in the correspondence dinner for that playoff rant. It wasn't Shermans best moment and unfortunately it is the one most people know him for.

[Jamaal510]

15. If you're a 49er fan,

you might not have such a difficult time disliking him.

[KT2000]

13. Love Richard Sherman

Not really into sports but saw his remarks after the Championship game so I started following him (not literally).
He gives such thoughtful answers in interviews that it deepens the conversation beyond any possibility of a sound-bite. He makes people think - including the interviewer.

Have a feeling football is just the beginning for him - He's got bigger things in store.

[Scuba]

18. This Packer fan is also a Richard Sherman fan.

I also think Sweetness was the best player to ever lace up a pair of cleats, so I'm something of a heretic around here.

[DeSwiss]

25. +1000

[Jesus Malverde]

23. marge schott...nt

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

29. That was Major League Baseball

[cilla4progress]

31. You've got to consider the CONTEXT of his outburst at the end of that NFC game

If you look into it, it is much different than superficially portrayed in the media.

You don't judge someone on one moment - esp. something so emotional. Maybe not his best moment, but, really....

I'm a Washingtonian. I've watched every game of every season for untold years.

Richard Sherman's finesse, effort, heart, competence, grace, and spirit infuse our team.

Feel so lucky, and looking forward to September! We've got SO MUCH going for us.

If you are a Seahawk fan like I am, do you find yourself just saying to yourself sometimes, "DAYUM I CAN'T BELIEVE WE DID IT! WON THE SUPERBOWL!" I mean, I believe, but it's so amazing, and so deserved after an epic season!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Supersedeas]

33. all of that, yes

[liberal_at_heart]

32. This guy is incredible. Intelligent, talented, and not afraid to speak the truth.