Concha: Tony Dungy Right on Sam, But Apparently Has No Right to Share Opinion
In a league with no shortage of egos, bad apples and even criminals, Tony Dungy has always been one of the good guys.
A role model.
A mentor to players who find trouble in need of redemption.
And now, simply for sharing his honest perspective on whether he would draft the NFL’s first openly gay player… Dungy (a former Super Bowl winning coach and currently an NBC Sports analyst) is now a pariah. A homophobe. Another toilet bug to the Twitter mob and to those who claim tolerance in supporting gay rights only to be completely intolerant towards anyone who voices an opposing view or anything that resembles not being in lock-step with the desired narrative.
Since it’s 2014, before continuing this commentary I’m now obligated to state my position on gay marriage and the movement in general (to avoid being placed in the same shame corner Dungy is sitting in now).
As written more than a few times in this space, if two people are happy and want to get married, more power to them. I have gay friends, attended a gay wedding. One of my former bosses–an executive producer–is gay. We’re in contact to this day. And in complete candor, working in New York and being in the broadcast and news business for much of my adult life, working with and/or being friends with homosexuals is so common, it no longer even gets a second thought.
Many reading this my age and younger would likely agree that this is the basic sentiment: Nobody cares. It’s why Robin Roberts and Anderson Cooper can come out of the closet and generate a ripple smaller than one seen if skipping a pebble across the Hudson River.
No-body cares.
And that’s a good thing if equality is the ultimate goal. Does homophobia still exist? Yes. But those who think this way are finding themselves in a shrinking minority by the day.
Now back to our regularly scheduled column…
Was Tony Dungy wrong in stating he wouldn’t bring a Michael Sam onto his team because of the distractions it would cause? Let’s take the gay aspect out of this and replace Sam with, say… Tim Tebow. You remember #15: he of deep religious beliefs who got roundly mocked for them by sports media, news media and late night hosts alike. The former Heisman winner—despite marginal talent… the kind needed to truly succeed at the NFL level—still managed to win a playoff game during his rookie season despite very pedestrian numbers (46.5 percent completion percentage, just 12 passing TDs in 14 games played). And when the Broncos landed the great Peyton Manning that offseason, Tebow was sent packing to New York in a trade with the Jets.
At the time, many members of the New York media absolutely hated the move, stating under no uncertain terms that Tebow would be the distraction to end all distractions. No matter… ESPN almost created another network (ESPN8 or something) just to cover the backup quarterback’s every move 24/7. But more importantly, Tebow simply didn’t have the talent to make such a move worth it to Rex Ryan and the Jets. He was promptly released after one season and hasn’t played since because he simply isn’t good enough and no team wants to deal with the media headache… even his hometown, attendance-and-winning-challenged Jacksonville Jaguars.
So if Dungy was asked about adding Tebow to his roster (if he was still coaching), and he gave the same response around one subpar player not being worth the hassle of a media frenzy, would we even hear a peep? But since it’s Sam and there’s a gay element involved, almost everyone jumps to the assumption that Dungy must be making a derogatory, homophobic statement.
If we’re talking Terrell Owens—a great distraction in his own right during his prime—or Randy Moss (SEE: Owens, Terrell, distraction) at his peak, sometimes the risk is outdone by the reward. But in the case of Tebow and Sam, we’re not talking about the kind of players who bring much in the ROI department on the field.
I know what you’re saying: Sam hasn’t even played one down in the NFL yet, so how do I know what kind of impact he’ll have? And more in line with the context of the column, how do we know he’ll be a distraction?
To answer the first question, simply look at the NFL combine he had before the draft. His 40-yard dash time was horrible (4.91- well below average at his position among draftees). Speed is everything in the NFL. Size is important too. Sam—at least on the professional level—has neither… which is the real reason why his draft stock dropped so precipitously before draft day.
Second question: Will he be a distraction, per Dungy’s opinion?
Answer: Yes.
Why? Because Sam already has contradicted his own statement around his mission heading into the up and coming season:
“You know, people — the media, of course — are going to make a big deal out of it. It is a big deal, but, you know, I’m just — I have a job to do. My job is to try and play in the NFL. Nothing else.”
But Sam’s ill-advised choice to consent to Oprah Winfrey‘s OWN network doing a reality show on him shortly after making the statement above refutes everything Sam declared. As stated in a previous column, if it’s only about playing in the NFL and nothing else, that “nothing else” of cameras following his every move would make his chances of actually making the St. Louis Rams roster considerably more difficult. And know this: Rookies—particularly 7th round draft picks that routinely get cut before the season—don’t get their own reality show. Life is tough enough being a fresh new face on the team, and players and coaches alike will not take kindly to any rookie—gay or not—putting himself over the team. Making himself the focus.
A few days after the criticism came hard and fast, Sam wisely backed out of the Oprah/OWN deal. But the damage was done in terms of trust among teammates and the Rams front office (Sam had told them right before the draft he had no plans for any kind of show). To that end, it appears he does plan on doing more than just being another rookie trying to win a roster spot.
To Michael Sam, this is just as much about making a social statement as it is helping St. Louis win.
That’s his right and he’s welcome to it.
But Dungy also has the right to look at the situation and share his opinion as well, which he did in a measured and respectful tone.
Except—because of the self-proclaimed tolerant who are anything but based on the vitriolic reaction we’re now seeing—he’s absolutely not welcome to it…
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>>Follow Joe Concha on Twitter @JoeConchaTV
This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.
