;)
January 11th, 2016
On Saturday night, I wrote on Social Media during the AFC Playoff Game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals that I hoped that young kids watching the game were learning how not to play football. The Bengals not only self-destructed in the final two minutes of the game, but they did it in a way that is embarrassing to the NFL, and to be quite frank, to those associated with football everywhere.
Jeremy Hill fumbled the football with the game on the line. The man made a mistake by not securing the football with the game all but wrapped up for his team. Mistakes happen. That is part of football. Indeed, it is part of life. His fumble gave the Steelers the ball and a chance to drive for a game-winning field goal. But, what followed should not be part of football.
Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict and cornerback Adam (formerly known as "Pacman") Jones handed the Steelers the game with conduct that was not only unsportsmanlike, but also flies in the face of all that is good about football. I am a lawyer. I am also a high school football coach. But, the role in my life that I take most seriously is that of father. Would any father watching the actions of Burfict and Jones at the end of that game want their son to play a game where such conduct occurs? Are they examples of the values we want our kids to learn?
Burfict took a cheap and illegal shot to the head of Antonio Brown, a defenseless Steelers wideout and the best receiver in the league this season, giving him a concussion. His team was penalized 15 yards for his conduct while Brown remained on the field for several minutes being checked. Jones then garnered an additional 15 yard penalty as a result of a verbal and/or physical exchange with Steelers assistant coach Joey Porter and the officials. The result of the two penalties was the Steelers having the ball at the Bengals 18 yard line instead of the 48 yard line. The next play Chris Boswell drilled a 35 yard field goal to win the game and eliminate the Bengals from the playoffs.
It was the culmination of a night where Burfict and his defensive teammates were out of control both on the field and on the sideline. And, it should be a lesson for all young kids who watched --- it's not the way you are supposed to play the game.
Football can be and is at times a violent sport. After all, you have tremendous athletes moving at a high rate of speed colliding into each other with a significant amount of force. Because of this, players sometimes get injured. However, it should never be the goal to illegally injure an opposing player. It is unsportsmanlike, it is dirty and it is downright immoral.
We play the game to learn about hard work, teamwork and perseverance. We accept the risk of injury because we know that what we gain from the game outweighs the hardships it may bring. But, this is all premised upon the participants playing the game by the rules. When players are out of control and have no regard for the rules, the scales are tipped, the risk of serious injury goes up and it makes it a game not worth watching.
Intent to illegally injure. Verbal and physical altercations. Unfair play. None of these are principles that make the game great. None of these make us want to watch. None of these make us want to sign our kids up to play. They are downright despicable. So, I'm glad the actions of Burfict and Jones cost their team the game Saturday night. In fact, I hope it costs them their jobs. As for kids watching the game, I hope you learned something important. Playing illegally or acting like a fool is not the way you play the game. It will only cost you in football and in life.
