It’s time for a Sunday sports rant from the blog…
I have never been a fan of Warren Sapp. Even when he was a Raider, I couldn’t stand him. His mouth, his arrogance, and his taking the occasional play off annoyed me too much. When he wanted to be, Sapp was a monster, possibly the best pass-rushing DT of all time. But, especially as his career wound down—with the Raiders—Sapp seemed to play hard only when he wanted.
Since his retirement, Sapp has carved out a gig as an “analyst” for the NFL Network. I use the term loosely; it was Sapp who “broke” the story that Jeremy Shockey had been the person who told the NFL about the now infamous bounty program the Saints had under Coach Sean Payton and Defensive Coordinator Gregg Williams. It would have been a magnificent scoop were it not for the small problem that Shockey vehemently denied being the whistle-blower, an assertion that Sapp’s employer, the NFL, concurred with.
But what really stood out to me was Sapp standing on the moral high-ground and decrying Williams’ remarks as “the most heinous, egregious thing in the history of this game" and further added this gem “Not for one second would I sit in a room and listen to someone say, 'We're going to take out someone's ACL' without standing up and saying, 'What the hell are you talking about?' The way you play defense isn't about malice.”
Pardon me while I find Warren a pulpit big enough to store all his bulls(p)it.
Although he has yet to do so, one wonders if Sapp is set to join the legion of former players suing the league for brain injuries. Clearly, he is exhibiting some of the early signs, notably, memory loss. As this little gem from the NFL Network shows, Warren the Gentle had no problem hitting Chad Clifton even though as Sapp admits Clifton “wasn’t in the play.” Of course, nothing says “I play without malice” quite like “I saw a perfect opportunity to get me a lineman cause that’s the game we play.” But roll the clip for yourself, because only Warren the Gentle can do justice with his lustful recall of “taking my shot” and the throaty “YEAH MAN! You can’t even see me in the screen when I hit him!” The clip is here, Sapp starts preaching at the 1:07 mark. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgdlqNtbBAA
Sorry Warren. In the long line of “heinous, egregious” things in the game of football, Gregg Williams’ audio is pretty bad indeed, but it competes nicely blindsiding a defenceless player away from the play simply because “that’s the game you play.” Besides, in the “game you play” of life, there are worse things you can be. A deadbeat father would be one of them; at least Gregg Williams doesn’t owe over $700K in child support http://www.tmz.com/2012/02/06/warren-sapp-alimony-child-support/#.T4uIwquwxm0.
