Watson Promises "Uncomfortable Conversations" With White Players At Camp

[HPF Bob]

https://sports.yahoo.com/deshaun-wat...212339350.html

"It's going to be a lot of tests for a lot of people, especially the white teammates."

[Arky]

Eh, show up, do your job, respect your teammates whatever they believe (and they should do likewise), leave the attitude at home and don't bend the knee if you don't want to. That's the way they do it in a free country. Is that too much to ask?

[HPF Bob]

Apparently in the Woke Football League, it is. Once they got Drew Brees to back down after standing up for the American flag and the U.S. military, the door was blown wide open.

It will be interesting to see what becomes of the unfortunately-named Sam Coonrod, the lone San Francisco Giants player who refused to take a knee for the anthem on Opening Day. Coonrod said that, as a Christian, he refuses to take a knee for anyone but Jesus. Playing in a place like San Francisco, that's a very brave move. I expect he's already enduring untold harassment for it.

[Arky]

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

Apparently in the Woke Football League, it is. Once they got Drew Brees to back down after standing up for the American flag and the U.S. military, the door was blown wide open.

It will be interesting to see what becomes of the unfortunately-named Sam Coonrod, the lone San Francisco Giants player who refused to take a knee for the anthem on Opening Day. Coonrod said that, as a Christian, he refuses to take a knee for anyone but Jesus. Playing in a place like San Francisco, that's a very brave move. I expect he's already enduring untold harassment for it.

Yes, that's who I was thinking of when I wrote that. I read his reasons and thought he was justified. And, hey, Jon Snow never bent the knee.

Just a bunch of crap going on in this bizarro world these days. Plandemic, medical Mafia, government up to no good, social engineering, people fighting/snitching on/arguing with one another..... A football forum is probably not the place to discuss this but the impact of the previous sentence is effecting everything....

I'm getting a passport for the first time. Might be heading south.....

[barrett]

I think players and coaches and owners have some interesting decisions.

Players have to decide how far to push their convictions. Will they cash checks from an owner who speaks out against causes they care about? I would guess they will. Can they push out an owner like NBA players did?
They don't have the same fans, workforce, or pay guarantees that NBA players have. Star NFL players like Deshaun can probably make loud demands and get listened to by their team owner. Especially while negotiating a new contract. I also think Deshaun is right that white players will get uncomfortable real fast if they don't tow the line and play public ally in the exact way expected.

Coaches have a team of largely black young men. Coaches already exist in a weird grey area between players and ownership. If coaches don't support black causes they can lose the locker room. Especially if the star players in that locker room are outspoken about those causes. Bill O'Brien probably buys a ton of buy in from his team just by kneeling. Who knows if he believes kneeling matters either way, but he probably heads off all kinds of trouble by doing it. And I would guess he cares more about locker room trouble then about angry fans. Fans here have mostly hated him for a while now and it doesn't bother him at all.

And ownership in every NFL city cares passionately about money. They need to decide what the correct balance is between conflict with their own players on a level that hurts the bottom line, versus angry fans who don't buy $13 beers.

Basically, a few people in the NFL probably have actual convictions in some direction, a bunch will go along with whatever is trending, others will do whatever protects team chemistry, and other will do whatever helps the financial bottom line.

[HPF Bob]

Can't disagree with any of this, Barrett. The 98% white National Hockey League is doing their own BLM thing but they highlight fighting racism as opposed to BLM issues. Who opposes fighting racism? Very safe territory.