Why can't Colin find a job?
It's not a matter of black and white
These are tough ones.
There are lots of moving parts. First, I'm very prejudiced against that team that wears the ugly uniforms from the Bay Area.
That being stated, CK was a freak like Bobby Douglas, Staubach, Elway, Rockin' Randall and Mike Vick.
He relied on his great legs and his world-class speed to unscrew screw-ups on a team that perfectly suited his style and, especially, his attitude. But it cost him his health. Concussions, mangled legs, finally, doctors put a rod to hold one of them together. Suddenly, he was running a 5-second 40 without his cutting abilities.
He was never a great passer and didn't have the chance to develop, or maybe a reason to. I read even before the Kneel Down issue that his injuries and the cost of keeping him probably nixed his chance to stay on with that Reddish-Gold roadkill team near Oakland. In fact, that is, in part, why he felt the need to make a statement since he believed it might be his last chance to do so on such a large stage.
The timing was perfect - for him. (Here is the part we all need to remember 10, 20, 30 years from now) We are in the 1960s all over again but I see a lot of confusion and plain ignorance. (Social Media didn't make us stupid, it exposed our stupidity) Anyway, with both sides tugging away from one another and Fake News and Bernie and Trump and a 15-year f-ing war and screwed up jobs and... what do we really expect? Everybody has to blame someone else. (Which is exactly what the 1% wants)
So there we were, beating Hell out of each other. We've got wounded vets coming home. We have a generation of Viet Nam Vets who are dying or still recuperating. (You want to protest something? How about the impact the Viet Nam war had on the poor youth of America?) So there are probably lots of people like me: Born to an immigrant, living next door to two families black as coal, in a town that was VERY diverse and mostly blue collar, three brothers drafted, two KIA, one suicide.
I also grew up during the emergence of the NFL Films, the two league sparring then joining. During Viet Nam and Watergate, and all the GD assassinations and violence (JFK, RFK, MLK, Wallace, Kent State, Charlie Manson, Altamont, riots in LA, Detroit, Chicago, my brothers, my sisters, drugs, pollution) it was an Apocalypse.
But, dammit, on weekends, we had our football. High school, college, NFL. It was a brief and needed respite from all that Armageddon. It was Barstow-Victor Valley. It was USC-Ohio State. It was Rams-40Whiners. And they even added Al, Don and Howard on Monday nights! ("47 Seconds left. Browns lead 24-21...and the ball is intercepted. And there is one dejected Joe Namath." I still get goose bumps)
And just when I couldn't love it any more, the Bills and Giants met at the start of the first Iraq war. Both teams wore Red-White-and-Blue. Whitney Houston belted out the best rendition of the Anthem anyone ever heard - then or since. And the jets flew over, and grown men had tears rolling down their cheeks because for a few hours we were really one country watching a stupid game. It is still my favorite Super Bowl and one of my top sports experiences. (Frazier-Ali l and III will never be topped)
So here I am, an older dude, with a life like a roller-coaster, who values dedication and sincerity above everything. A cynical man, who doesn't believe in much anymore, and spent his whole life watching people prove over and over again how ignoble we are as a Human Race.
I know, for sure, the sincerest person in the world is a person in a foxhole. Especially this last group, none of whom were drafted. There are there to protect us. Wrong or right. Agree or disagree. THEY believe that and they are willing to kill and be killed for it. A feeling I only have for my wife and kids. (And lately, not the kids so much.)
So I stand up for anyone and everyone abused by cops, regardless of color, but knowing black men get the brunt of it. And I'm ready for this game, and the anthem is playing, and the cameras pan over to this guy kneeling down. Is he hurt, sick, confused? No, we are told, he is protesting police brutality and supporting Black Lives Matter.
I'm torn. If he had done this before or after the game, or even the anthem, I'd support him. But doing it WHEN he did it, made me and many others feel like it was misguided and poorly timed - an attack on veterans and not against bad cops.
We all know what happened after that. To blame this ONLY on race is too simple. To not blame it on race at all is also too simple. To blame it on money is a significant part of it. The NFL lost revenues this year, the first time since the 50s. CK is damaged goods - physically, socially and financially.
Even without the controversy, how much would a GM risk on him? Especially when you have so many other marginal QBs who can warm a bench and throw practice balls? I believe when our country can work through issues like this, we will be the kind of country and race we want to be and should be.
I have said before: As humans, we are at our worst when things are bad. But when things are at their worst, we are at our best.
How much worse can it get?
