Posted on 11/10/2016 7:59:53 AM PST by MeneMeneTekelUpharsin
"One of the greatest days of my life," a white offensive lineman from the AFC told B/R.
"Easily one of the worst days of my life," said a black offensive lineman, also from the AFC. "It's like my dog died. Worse." The reaction from NFL players to me in the wake of Donald Trump's election as the nation's 45th president was swift and long-lasting. It carried through election night, into the next morning, and throughout Wednesday. Over two dozen players expressed themselves in numerous complex thoughts, simple outbursts and heated arguments with me.
The general feeling among the six white players with whom B/R communicated was that the Trump election was good for the country and happened because Americans wanted change and a fixing of economic issues. In sharp contrast, eight black players I spoke with expressed the sentiment that the Trump election was one of the ugliest moments in American history and was about white America wanting to keep blacks, and other people of color, as one black player said, "in our place."
The comments from both groups of players were at times raw, angry, introspective and dizzying, even more so than for a similar Trump story I wrote before the election. In all my conversations, the most striking aspect was the difference in how black players and white players viewed Trump. It was as if they were talking about two different people, a phenomenon that likely mirrors the American electorate. Take, for example, how two white players felt the election of Trump would help bring players closer to fans and maybe even reverse the recent ratings decline.
"Trump is creating a more blue-collar America," said a special teams player, "and at its core, our sport is a blue-collar sport." Meanwhile, several black players expressed a different view of some fans. They felt those who voted for Trump would root for them on Sundays, but once the games ended, those fans wouldn't, as one player stated, "give them a bucket to piss in." Perhaps most importantly, players on both sides of the Trump aisle insist that NFL locker rooms remain divided over Trump and have seen that chasm grow in the wake of the election.
It's impossible to tell how accurate this view is, but it continues to be something mentioned to me. What's certain is I have never seen NFL players both so happy and infuriated at the same time. I've never seen players this fired up over anything that wasn't related to a work stoppage or Roger Goodell. There was definitely some locker room polarization when Barack Obama was first elected president in 2008, but the dynamics were different. The player base is approximately 70 percent black, and most of the black electorate backed Obama.
Exit polling by NBC this year showed that 89 percent of black voters were either concerned or scared if Trump were to win. My guess is those percentages would hold up, or be close, in NFL locker rooms. "If you voted for Trump," said one AFC offensive starter, "I don't trust you." "Black players are constantly playing the race card [when it comes to Trump]," a white NFC player said. "This election had nothing to do with race."
He wasn't alone in his views.
"Hillary Clinton was a terrible candidate," another white player said. "That's why she lost, not because of race." Other white players said Trump won because of the increase in Obamacare premiums and Supreme Court appointments. All of the white players, in fact, said Trump's election had nothing to do with race. White players who voted for Trump, or knew people who did, in fact, were furious with the notion they or Trump supporters were racist.
All of the black players, on the other hand, said Trump's election was mostly, if not all, about race. Several black players with whom B/R spoke saved some of their anger for Patriots coach Bill Belichick, who wrote a letter of support to Trump, who then read the letter at a rally on the eve of the election. Belichick defended writing the note, saying it wasn't politically motivated and was penned because Trump was a friend. But some of the black players I spoke with said they didn't understand how black players on the Patriots weren't enraged with Belichick. Or with Tom Brady, who Trump said supported his candidacy.
"Very disappointed in [Belichick]," one player said. "I thought he was better than that." (One aside: In my time covering the league, Belichick has been one of the most open-minded men I've ever known. Yet in various front offices around the league, there was surprise he so publicly endorsed Trump.) In the end, maybe everyone should heed the words of former NFL offensive lineman Damien Woody, who tweeted some pretty good advice this week: "Onward and upward America. Let's figure this thing called life out together for the betterment of our country."
You gotta drop the Soros-Podesta-Alinsky they are sexists and racists line of crap.
An apt description, that makes Trump’s smackdown all the sweeter. By the end of January 2017, I suspect there will be no indication that Barack Hussein Obama was ever born; the leftist drivel we’ve been subjected to for eight years will leave the political discourse for at least four years.
We have a lot of work to do...
Which one was the gay candidate? Linda?
I like how the writer feels the need to include an aside that Belichick is an open-minded person, with the implication being that a Trump supporter is guilty of being close-minded until proven otherwise.
Interesting.
We have two separate world in which Truth is a casualty and ostracizing is going on. WHY is the hatred of Whitey in sports socially acceptable?
Are we getting to the point where the hostile vibe is so palpable in the NFL locker room and now so tribal that we can expect brawls and violence IN that locker room? (we already see it on the field.)
Especially if that Pit Bull had just won his last fight in the Doggy Arena.
8-P
This is typical “race is everything” article. Any problem will last until a close game halftime ass - kicking by any good NFL coach!
They sure weren’t listening to Trump.
Trump pledged to work in black communities rebuilding the infrastructure, creating jobs, and improving education.
Trump said the democrat plans of the past had failed and that they should give him a shot at it. He asked for their trust.
He won in part because 8% of blacks believed him and voted for him, a huge loss of numbers for Hillary...who lost.
He will follow through. They gave their trust. A handshake is a deal with Trump.
Undocumented Football League sounds like fun!
Wish you were right...but the fear is that the Marxist Communitah Organizer has barely just begun his Anarchy-Movement on a grand scale.
Word is...BHO will continue his racist anti-White crusade afterward, daring the PTB to stop him from further dividing the nation by race, gender, sexual preference, class, economics -- this time as a private sh*t-stirring citizen (of Kenya/Indonesia/Never-Neverland.)
said a black offensive lineman, also from the AFC. “It’s like my dog died. Worse.
= = =
Who is he referring to?????
Wookie, or bo?
He’s done (and gone); when any of the MSNBCNN talking heads suggest he will lead the party going forward, the rest of the leftist/lib panels look at that them as though they have 2 heads. His “political capital” was just shown to be worthless counterfeits, and he has no more political power after the inauguration. White libs that bought him off have no more use for him other than to fetch them coffee (as BJ Clinton put it).
“It’s like my dog died. Worse.”
If that is Michael Vick saying that, it doesn’t mean too much.
The incessant chest pounding, taunting, crotch grabbing, posturing and players celebrating QB sacks when their team is losing badly began my alienation from the negro felon league some time ago. The endless injection of politics into the league by Goodell and the sports media alienated me even more. Kapperthug’s self serving looks a me antics and the black power fists have completely alienated me from the NFL and probably forever unless we undergo a sea change in our culture and the NFL returns to what it used to be.
Thanks for responding to my post.
Of course, the problem is that few things beat American football for spectacle and drama.
If it wasn’t for a relative handful of gutsy and disciplined white players, I would turn off the game entirely.
Peyton Manning was the biggest drawing card in a generation, a Jimmy Stewart in pads. Now, he he’s enjoying a well-earned retirement.
So many of my favorite players are down with injuries ... Danny Woodhead, Eric Decker, Tony Romo. The latter is particularly tough to take as the Cowboys have a rookie black QB who is playing very well ... although for how long, you have to wonder, as these quotabacks don’t have much staying power.
Oh that is so funny.
Sport talk radio and sports web sites like Bleacher Report and DeadSpin were in the tank for Hillary. I try to avoid them as much as possible.
Well, I never read them. Just found the article pointing out the unity Obama has brought us. That’s all.
It is a monumental mistake to underestimate, dismiss and discount this Communitah Organizer's resolve and influence to FUBAR the USA. Remember: Hussein is STILL the hood ornament and pied piper of hate for the 95% of the black demo who voted for him as well as white/off-white America. It is NOT a lukewarm support either.
As to this same white Liberal-Left who have supported this subversive for the last 8 years, they represent a sizable demo of an even larger, avenging RABIDLY MILITANT brainwashed anti-male, anti-white, anti-hetero, pro-illegal invasion lunatic, anarchist, academic, globalist, SJW, Islamist, Hollywood, wealthy corporate-type AND foreign $$$$ constituency.
No, 0bama is NOT disappearing any time soon. This narcissist has always has a Messiah-Complex and craves adulation and feeds off of the Left's anger and subversive energy. Communitah Organizing the movement to destroy, divide, and create enmity. He poses an existential threat to America. ESPECIALLY out of office. His "team" of moles has already been created, as has his Game Plan to sabotage this Republic, as well as the Trump Presidency.
I guess football players who have been deferred to, even pampered in one way or another, since they showed some talent in high school just lap up the democrat kool aid and don't bother to think because they've never had to.
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