Dolphins’ Channing Crowder Says He’ll Keep On Using His Helmet To Hit

Added on Oct 20, 2010 by Jason Kearney in

NFL

There are few sports more competitive than NFL football, and that’s true even when it comes to stupid comments by pro football players. In the wake of James Harrison’s threat to retire rather than not hurt opponents for a mere $13 million a year, he’s been one-upped when it comes to a stupid response to the NFL’s new crackdown on helmet to helmet hits. Miami Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder has said that he’s going to keep using his helmet, NFL rules be damned.

“If I get a chance to knock somebody out, I’m going to knock them out and take what they give me. They give me a helmet, I’m going to use it.”

Crowder is obviously unaware that the helmet is intended to protect his brain, though in his case that’s probably not a huge issue. After reading this quote, I’m sure that’s not a big issue with him:

“If I’m knocked out, I don’t know where I’m at, I can’t say my name, now I can’t play football. If I get hit in the head and black out for a second and now I get back up dizzy, OK, I’m ready to go.”

He went on to suggest that the league is ‘making a big deal about nothing’–and presumably to him head injuries and decreased cognitive abilities aren’t something to worry about:

“They want to save the receivers and quarterbacks because they sell all the jerseys. They don’t give a damn at all about defensive players because we don’t sell as many jerseys as them. If they want to change football to a graceful sport, change it all the way to a graceful sport. Don’t try to save the quarterbacks and receivers because they make the money, which that’s what they’re doing.”

Not really sure what’s the stupidest part of Crowder’s diatribe, though his sudden realization that the NFL a money making operation is definitely the front runner. It’s like the scene in the classic film ‘The Jerk’ where Steve Martin gets ‘smartened up’ by the carny and finally realizes that the ‘Guess Your Weight’ game is ‘a profit deal’. We won’t even get into the ineffectiveness of a guy trying to portray himself as a victim of the class struggle when he’s pulling down $6.5 million per.

Crowder’s take is the latest permutation of the frequently heard yet sorely mistaken notion that players have a constitutional right to compete in the NFL. And how dumb do you have to be to go public with an announcement that you’re going to be breaking rules going forward? This is like LeBron James holding a press conference to announce that he’s going to be traveling and double dribbling all season long even if it is against the rules. It’s like calling the cops and telling them to keep an eye on you because you may commit a crime in the future. Of course this is a guy that was shocked to find out that they speak English in London, so what do you expect?

Note to Crowder–pro football isn’t ‘war’ or ‘combat’. It isn’t a ‘street fight’. It’s a sport–a tough sport, but a sport nonetheless. It’s also a business in which you’re a partner and an employee. If the NFL prospers, you benefit. If people decide they don’t want to support the NFL because they don’t like watching players carted off on a board every week, it hurts you. The league may not sell as much gear with ‘Channing Crowder’ on the back as with ‘Peyton Manning’ or ‘Ron Mexico’ but that $6.5 million per you bank is a by-product of the continuing popularity of the NFL. So shut up, play fair and for the love of God if you *are* going to break the rules don’t telegraph it like this. If they taught you anything at the University of Florida it was that.