Wednesday, November 6, 2013

What Does "Handle It Like A Man" Really Mean?

When somebody says something even more perfectly, and eloquently than you can... well... best for me to just step aside and not get in the way...

Steve,

Regarding the "locker room mentality" of football players, I believe it is just that, a mentality. I don't know anything about Jonathan Martin outside of his wikipedia page, but when someone has narrowed down their college choices to Harvard and Stanford, I think it is safe to say that he is a "cut above" intellectually. Perhaps that was the issue. He was willing to put up with a certain amount of crap, as any logical person would in order to make the life-changing amount of money an NFL job offers. But, at some point, a line was crossed, and a man with dignity (and choices) will simply say "enough."

I have a distinct problem with people saying he needed to handle it like a man. To a civilized and logical person, this is exactly how a man handles this sort of thing. I am even more impressed because, with his strength and size, he is perfectly capable of pushing Incognito's nasal bone into his brain, thus ending the abuse. Unfortunately, to the mouth breathers who play in and watch the NFL, that is the only kind of response they understand or respect.

With all the talk of bullying, I think it is too simple to label it that. It brings to mind, as you yourself said, of playground push fights between larger bullies and little kids. This serves to make Martin seem like a pussy for not simply "handling it like a man" This was one huge man acting like a child and another huge man acting like an adult.

As always, keep up the great work.

Michael Lehman M.D.
Jacksonville, FL


Michael, well put, and amen. Thank you. It makes zero sense that the "only" way for Martin to handle it "like a man" was to put himself on the simplistic level of this idiot above.

Only because of the NFL's "rights system" did Martin not have the choice any other person would have in the professional world - to simply quit and go work for another more "evolved" company than the "Miami Dolphins Football Inc."

Only in the testosterone soaked, but logically crippled world of high level football could a team think that a guy who has earned the STARTING LEFT TACKLE position needed to be "toughened up."

Hey, dummies. You didn't have anybody better!

If Martin was such a marshmallow when it came to actually playing football, instead of crushing brews and hanging out with Richie Incognito and his boyz, then bench his ass and start somebody else.

If he's not finishing blocks on the field because he's "soft"... then COACH HIM!

It's not that hard. 

Now the entire Dolphins team (and fanbase, what's left of it) pays the price for utterly bad coaching and management. You are OUT two starting linemen, because you didn't have a pulse on the working environment on your team.

And entire off-season of preparation, countless hours of scouting and coaching, the grind of a regular season...and you are on the verge of throwing it all away because of this?

So go ahead, blame Martin. Sound "tough". And you'll end up being what you deserve to be: losers.

13 comments:

  1. I couldn't believe on Monday when I heard old players on Fox Sports and ESPN actually blaming Martin for the bullying because he didn't just tell Incognito to stop. I'm all for standing up for yourself and if the way to do that is to walk away, like Martin did, then how can he be blamed? I think the pussy way out is to do what these other people are doing and bring guns and other violence into the situation. I hope Incognito never plays another snap and if the rumors are true that he was being egged on by coaches, I hope their careers are over.

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    1. Mike Vick convicted felon. Still in league.

      Teams will forgive this event. Its much ado about nothing.

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  2. All hand wringing aside, Steve, Dr.Mike, and Mitch will continue to be the loyal NFL fans that they always were. As long as people keep buying tickets, jerseys, and cable packages nothing will change. NFL fans are enablers...

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  3. Martin didn't earn starting Left Tackle. He was given the chance for left tackle this year after Jake Long was traded. Sucked at it. And was just recently moved to Right Tackle after Miami acquired McKinnie from the Ravens.

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  4. Question - Can anyone connect any dots for the 6 month span of time between this voicemail and Martin flipping spaghetti bowls in the cafeteria after getting punk'd the same way he apparently punked others, and then proceeded to Danica Patrick stomp off the grounds never to be seen again. Are we to believe this food tray incident happened because of a voice mail from 6 months ago? What happened between the two incidents, besides his demotion back to Right Tackle, and pics seen on Twitter & Instagram, etc, of them having good times?

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  5. Czabe, you are wrong about Obama. But you are right about everything else! Thanks for being on the side of civilization

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  6. I would like to see Martin handle everyone saying he should have "handled it like a man" like a man.

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  7. Does anybody besides me think that Mr. Incognito looks like Tommy Boy in the picture above?
    Seems like plenty of his former team members think he's a nozzle too.

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  8. I heard a brief interview today with a guy who used to be an assistant coach at Martin's high school (but did not coach Martin). He said the school 'coddled' students, and that football there was unlike football at virtually all other high schools in that you'd routinely have parents pull players from practice to study, go to a violin lesson, etc.. Not that that's a bad thing, but certainly it would indicate that Martin was possibly ill-prepared for life in a "normal" football locker room unfortunately.

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  9. Sorry Czabe its chick time in The N F L. Maybe Mr. Martin can call King Obama for help.

    Its funny to watch, read or listen to reporters and reporterettes on the TV, interwebs and print crying about this event as if they never saw or heard about these events...

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  10. ESPN once again pushing white on black. If this was two white guys or two black guys hazing, not a word would be said. Certainly, Stephen A. wouldn't be screaming at the screen nearly enough. ESPN owned by liberal ABC... nuff said. Liberalism 101 is that someone is at fault.

    This is high school mentality.

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  11. So I have the choice between Miami Dolphin players who overwhelmingly support Incognito or a sports radio personality who's closest brush to team sports appears to be playing high school golf. That and the letter of some MD who's argument is that Martin, like him, is just so much more intelligent than everyone else.....because he could have gone to Harvard.

    Sorry, but balls get busted in locker rooms. Happened to me in baseball locker rooms, happens to everyone. Get over it. You already have the NFL trying to girl-up this league with the stupid tackling rules. Now you want to police what goes on in the locker room. Get over it, ladies.

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