The Way I See It
In this The Way I See It, a look at another faux pas by Robert Griffin III, the tragedy surrounding Grant Wahl, and the Baker Mayfield redux.
Robert Griffin III
“People said that Jalen Hurts couldn’t get it done. He could not break from the pocket. He’s not the quarterback of the future. I think he proved all those jiggaboos wrong.”
Oh my goodness! Who is responsible for that horrible quote? Whoever it is, he (because women rarely get caught using slurs) is a colossal racist! Right? You could draw that conclusion, and it would be a reasonable one. Just kidding! You’d only draw that conclusion if you are a social warrior douchebag with authoritarian tendencies and a distaste for context.
The quote originated from the mouth of Robert Griffin III, a former first-round NFL QB and current ESPN analyst. In case you didn’t know, Griffin is a black man. A black man who has garnered a bit of a reputation for making outrageous on-air statements. A black man who is married to a white woman. Are you starting to get my point? The idea that Griffin is a racist seems to be highly unlikely.
Robert Griffin III: Closeted Racist?
Many people believe that only the targets of a remark decide if the statement is offensive. While there is a sliver of truth to that belief, it is largely incorrect. We all operate under the umbrella of a common language and, to a lesser degree, shared experiences. Even if something said is somehow deemed objectively offensive, it isn’t always worthy of severe retribution. Sometimes, it’s just a case of someone misspeaking or due to an honest misunderstanding.
Do you know how you can tell that this is a case of false outrage? Because mainstream, leftist news outlets are typing out “jigaboos” in their reporting of the incident:
Why is this important? Because it shows you that “jigaboos” probably isn’t all that offensive to very many people. When was the last time you saw “n*gger” or “c*on” spelled out in an article about the use of racial slurs? Exactly.
Griffin made a mistake and appropriately apologized for his on-air slip. This is one of those cases where something happened, resulting in bad PR, and he issued an apology. That should be the extent of the consequences for both Griffin and ESPN. Anything else is just manufactured outrage by professional muckrakers. End of story.
SPORTS GRUMBLINGS SPOTLIGHT
Breaking News – Brittney Griner, WNBA Superstar, Released! (sportsgrumblings.com)
Grant Wahl
To be honest, I didn’t know much about Grant Wahl. Considering his sports journalism career focused on college basketball and soccer, it’s little wonder he avoided my radar.
Unfortunately, Wahl came onto many people’s radar when he died while covering the World Cup in Qatar. People were upset, and it wasn’t the fact that he died at such a young age. As is seemingly the case with every newsworthy event, the conspiracy nuts entered the conversation.
Grant Wahl’s “Crime”
Wahl decided to make a political statement at the World Cup. He wore a t-shirt emblazoned with a soccer ball surrounded by a rainbow to the matches, supporting gay rights. One problem, though: homosexuality is illegal in Qatar. Really illegal.
Qatari law calls for a prison sentence of one to three years for “inducing or seducing a male or a female in any way to commit illegal or immoral actions.” It also calls for the same punishment for whoever is “instigating” or “seducing” a male to “commit sodomy.” In some cases, the interpretation of Sharia law can lead to the death penalty.
Wahl wore the t-shirt as a protest against Qatar’s anti-homosexuality laws, as well as the corruption of FIFA for awarding the World Cup to a nation with such a poor human rights record.
Initially denying Wahl entry to the stadium, World Cup officials later restored his access.
Conspiracy Time!
Grant Wahl’s wife announced the cause of her husband’s death: an aortic aneurysm. Eric Wahl also admitted that Qatari and World Cup officials tried to save his brother’s life, apparently recanting his accusations of foul play. The Left conspiracy rubes have mainly fallen silent. Unfortunately, being pro-LGBTQA+ did not cause Wahl’s death.
Have no fear, however! The Right conspiracy rubes stepped up, filling the conspiracy breach. It wasn’t shadowy Qatari Sharia enforcers that killed Grant Wahl. It was, you guessed it, the COVID vaccine! I’m sure that made Wahl’s wife, Céline Gounder, an infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist, feel much better. Always a silver lining in every conspiracy theory!
Stop it. A young man died, which is a tragedy. To have idiots use his death to push ridiculous conspiracy theories immediately is immoral. Show some compassion. If you can’t show compassion, at least exercise some restraint. All of you rubes are trading human dignity for a few clicks; I hope that trade works out for you.
Baker Mayfield
Did you think I’d somehow not talk about Baker Mayfield in this week’s column? Shame on you if you did!
In last week’s column, I told you that Mayfield represents a low-risk, high-reward bet by the Rams. His performance last week against the hapless Raiders is indicative of the essence of Mayfield.
On the one hand, the trick he pulled off– learning enough of the Rams playbook in 48 hours to essentially start the game against Las Vegas– was impressive. The fact that he pulled off a stunning 98-yard game-winning drive while still introducing himself to teammates in the huddle is legendary. On the other hand, his career has been flashes of brilliance mixed in with stretches of disappointment. A large chunk of that disappointment is attributed to poor coaching and injuries.
Can Mayfield find a home with the Rams and head coach Sean McVay as a starter or backup? I hope Mayfield can resurrect his career under the tutelage of McVay. Despite some of his antics, Mayfield is the type of player I can cheer. Not a superstar, but someone who will be successful in the right environment.
Subsequently, I look forward to seeing how the Rams’ bet unfolds both in the remainder of this season and in 2023.
