After a turbulent year in the stand-up ‘Monday Night Football’, Booger McFarland honed his chops on the ESPN analyst counter during the 2020 NFL season.
Amid a roundtable discussion about Dwayne Haskins on ‘Monday Night Countdown’, McFarland made a comment which, well, let’s say but it will attract attention.
The Washington football team released Haskins on Monday, a shocking decision because he only used a draft in the first round last year on the Ohio fullback. But when he adds Haskins’ performance on the field, his off-field COVID-19 protocol offenses and the fact that Ron Rivera, in his first year in Washington, had nothing to do with drafting it, the move a little less astonishingly.
While talking to Randy Moss, Suzy Kolber and Adam Schefter, McFarland addressed Haskins’ issues and painted them as part of what he sees as a bigger problem among NFL players.
Here is what he had to say:
“Especially young African-American players …”
“Often young players, especially – I continue – especially young African-American players, because they make up 70 percent of this league, they get into this league and ask themselves the wrong thing,” McFarland said. ‘They come in the league and do not say’ how can I be a better player? “They do not say ‘how can I be a better teammate?’ They do not say ‘how can I be a better person; how can my organization get over the hump? ‘
“Here’s what they say. They said ‘how can I build my brand better? How can I build my social media better? How can I practice on Instagram and show everyone that I’m ready to go, but when I get to the game, I do not act? ‘
McFarland compares Haskins to JaMarcus Russell
McFarland’s take is not entirely unique. He has made comments that are repeatedly levied by critics who are making a case with members of the Millennial and Gen Z generation who do not know a world without the internet or social media.
But on Monday he made his own focus on the broad brushes and applied it to the very specific group, the Black NFL player. He went on to call Haskins by name and select him along with the striking NFL bust, former Oakland Raiders No. 1 JaMarcus Russell.
“Unfortunately, Dwayne Haskins is not the first case I have seen like that,” McFarland continued. “And it will not be the last. And it bothers me, because a lot of it is the young African-American player. They come in and do not take it as a business. It’s still a game for them. …
‘I saw a quarter do that. I saw JaMarcus Russell do it. The number 1 choice in the draft, they gave him $ 40 million, and he threw it in the damn drain because he did not take it seriously. ”
The names that did not come up in his protest include Johnny Manziel, Ryan Leaf, Paxton Lynch and Jake Locker – other notable quarterback chests that obviously do not meet his set criteria for criticism.
The media game is going to draw a lot of attention to what you write or say. Warm is plentiful because it is good for business. McFarland paused for a moment on Monday, saying, “I’m going on,” before diving into his fiery dive.
And he’s likely to get attention on Tuesday, whether he likes it or not.
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