West Virginia Mountaineers quarterback Geno Smith has received subjective criticism from the media that could impact his livelihood. Is it warranted or just another bashing of a black quarterback? Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

By P.J. Root

Special to Lombardiave.com

There are topics that are inherently difficult to broach in our society and in sports – namely the NFL – even as the world becomes more tolerant.

However, two major topics continue to raise their heads – the stigmas of both black quarterbacks and homosexuality in the game of football.

An overwhelming abundance of criticism directed toward black quarterbacks, in addition to the evolving culture change have polarized the league on multiples levels.

Each expanding discussion has turned ugly , oftentimes underhanded, or in some cases blatant concerning both topics in either approval of stereotypes or prejudice of sexual preference.

Rush Limbaugh

Lighting-rod radio host, Rush Limbaugh, years ago dove into the unspoken ideal that African-Americans cannot grasp the quarterback position.

“I think what we’ve had here is a little social concern,” Limbaugh said on ESPN in 2003. “I think the media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well.”

The quarterback Limbaugh was singling out happened to be Donovan McNabb.

Was it based on McNabb’s merit as a mobile and efficient playmaker? Was it based on his Pro Bowls or consistent performances in the brutal NFC East?

No.

It was based on the color of his skin.

McNabb would eventually lead the Philadelphia Eagles to the NFC Championship that very year, and eventually the Super Bowl, yet these words cheapening McNabb’s achievements have lingered.

Cam Newton.
John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

These evaluations have become combative concerning attitude with black quarterbacks, especially by Nolan Nawrocki of Pro Football Weekly.

“Very disingenuous — has a fake smile,” Nawrocki wrote. “Comes off as very scripted and has a selfish, me-first makeup.”

There has been a sophomore slump,  but Cam Newton has ignited a franchise by having the ability to create yards through a haymaker arm and punishing feet. None which was mentioned by Nawrocki for the future NFL and Offensive Rookie of the Year.

When speaking of West Virginia’s first round draft prospect Geno Smith, Nawrocki continues down the same path of assessment.

“Nonchalant field presence,” Nawrocki wrote.  ”Does not command respect from teammates and cannot inspire.”

Pretty bleak there – almost brutal.

Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel further expressed viewpoints from unnamed scouts that Redskins QB Griffin  had a “selfish streak,” and questioned the Baylor star’s interpersonal skills.

Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III
Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports

Was Griffin selfish when hobbling against the Seahawks in the dead marshes of FedEx Field? Battling through constant stabbing pain, Griffin ignored his own security up until his knee finally buckled in his final game of last season. The image of Griffin grasping his lineman’s hand and screaming in pain, fulfilled every cliché about leaving every ounce of one’s self on the field.

Not to mention he was Rookie of the Year.

White quarterbacks, in comparison, have received far less scrutiny in a majority of cases. Jay Cutler of the Chicago Bears, for starters, is not the warmest or best postured of field generals in the league.

Just ask the Chicago offensive line if Cutler exudes selfish, aloof or communication deficiencies. Better yet, ask future Hall of Famer John Lynch. ESPN columnist Rick Reilly wrote that Lynch was forced to hurl Cutler’s phone jut to receive the basic pleasantry of Cutler’s eye contact.

Even Brett Favre in his rowdy early days never encountered the microscopic lens applied to his black counterparts. Stories of late nights, and hung-over mornings are legend around the city of Green Bay, yet stories, if they were written were buried in the hinterlands of newspapers, barely reaching the light of day.

Jay Cutler is known for being aloof.
Raymond T. Rivard photograph

Cutler and Favre may have been scrutinized for their actions, but those criticisms came long after the draft, instead of during the period of time where every action could and does bring calamitous consequences for future income.

Sometimes skill and personality is not even considered when critiquing a minority QB. Take former ESPN commentator Rod Parker, and his comments about Redskins QB Robert Griffin III.

“Is he a (black) brother, or is he a cornball brother,” Parker said on ESPN First Take. “He’s not one of us.”

The sound byte originated around Griffin’s fiancé, (who happens to be white) which was evidence enough for Parker that Griffin did not fulfill the unwritten requirements of being an African American.

Parker is black.

The level of criticism and constant barrage of commentary creates mirroring parallels to the struggle of a gay teammate in football. Instead of pundits screaming from soapboxes, the passive-aggressive attitude of silent slights and clamped mouths have been just as loud as any publicized denouncement.

New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski. Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports

The collective mindset of NFL locker rooms can be seen between the lines in commonly abbreviated answers meant to settle the minds of future investments or advocacy groups. Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski illuminates the majority in his recent interview with ESPN.

“Everyone has their own ways to live their life,” Gronkowski said. “…as long as he’s respecting me, keeping distance … I’ll respect him back.”

When referring to distance, what is Gronkowski alluding to? Personal distance? Sexual distance? Emotional distance?  Does the distance apply to QB Tom Brady?

No one is looking for Freudian discoveries from Gronkowski, but when keeping distance is applied to a team member in a sport which demands constant contact and participation, toleration is not enough (e.g. Terrell Owens).

Maybe Gronkowski wanted the distance that Notre Dame Linebacker Manti Te’o wanted when asked if he was gay.

“Faaaarrrrrrr from it.”

Two players known for doing the dirty work on their respective teams, linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo and punter Chris Kluwe, have advanced social awareness of acceptance and understanding of gay players. Both players going as far as becoming involved with overturning California’s Proposition 8, which prohibits same-sex marriage.

Yet, players who also participate in similar advocacy are not as passionate or willing to share their image with the homosexual community as are Ayanbadejo and Kluwe.

Ahmad Brooks of the 49ers and Isaac Sopoaga now of the Eagles appeared in a viral video for the “It Gets Better Project” combatting bullying. When asked about how important the message was for LGBT kids, Brooks and Sopoaga denounced their participation.

San Francisco 49ers nose tackle Isaac Sopoaga.
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

“I didn’t make any video,” Brooks said. “It was an anti-bullying video, not a gay video.”

Sopoaga simply said he was never there.

Well, Sopoaga and Brooks were there, and so was teammate Donte Whitner.

“The San Francisco 49ers are proud to join itgetsbetter.org to let all LGBT teens know that it gets better,” Whitner says in the same video. “On behalf of the entire 49ers organization, we are on your side. And we promise: It gets better.”

The two stigmas attached to each subject create interesting conversations. On one hand African Americans are past the “Jackie Robinson” barrier, meaning that the acceptance in the league is real. Homosexuals have reached that barrier, but will the community have to encounter the same baseless criticisms the African American QBs are currently encountering?

Menander once wrote,  “Conscience is a God to all mortals.”

Here is to hoping the NFL and its’ affiliates believe.

Donald Driver looks toward his future away from football.
Raymond T. Rivard photograph

Being a fan of the Green Bay Packers means more than rooting for your team.

It represents a deep connection to all things Green and Gold. It is about the relationships that we build with the men who battle on the frozen tundra every Sunday (and Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays, too). One of our favorites has decided to call it a career.  Donald Driver, arguably, one of the greatest wide receivers to play for the Packers is doing something very few players ever do, finish with the team with which they began.

Twenty-fours hours after the initial announcement, many fans are on an emotional roller coaster – happy for the man, yet sad to see it end.  But as with anything in life there comes a time when all things end.  I have spent as much time as possible reading everything that I have seen about Donald Driver and there is no way for me to be impartial in my thoughts or words when I think back about what he has given Packers Nation and what we feel for him.

Vince would have had great things to say about Donald Driver.

So I decided that it would be better to find out what others have to say about Donald Driver retiring.  So I hooked up the  old Texas Instrument computer and routed it through my flux capacitor, via the 1967 olive green electric mixer I got at a yard sale and was able to reopen the worm hole in my basement.  I figured it was time to see what others have to say about Donald Driver.

My first stop was the office of one Vincent Thomas Lombardi.  I asked the Coach what he thought of Donald retiring and the career that he had.  Lombardi replied, “Teamwork is what Donald Driver was all about.  He did not play the game for individual glory.  He did it because he loved his team and his community.”

I then asked Coach Lombardi if he could give any advice  to Donald what would it be.  Coach then took a deep breath and looked across at his chalkboard littered with X’s and O’s and answered, “After the cheers have died down and the stadium is empty, after the headlines have been written and after you are back in the quiet of your room and the championship ring has been placed on the dresser and all the pomp and fanfare have faded, the enduring things that are left are the dedication to excellence, the dedication to victory, and the dedication to doing with our lives the very best we can to make the world a better place in which to live.  It is these things that I see Donald succeeding at.”

After thanking Coach Lombardi for his time, I decided that it would be interesting to get a more worldly view on our favorite receiver so I zapped over to the Shandong peninsula in northeastern China to speak with Master Kongfuzi (Confucius).

What would Confucius have said about Donald Driver?

I asked the Master what he thought about Donald Driver and he said, “A superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions.”  But was the time right for Driver to retire was a question that many people were wondering and I implored him for his wisdom.  Confucius said, “If you look into your own heart, and you find nothing wrong there, what is there to worry about? What is there to fear?”

Finally, the Great Master imparted these final thoughts about what waited for Donald, “The superior man cannot be known in little matters, but he may be entrusted with great concerns.”

So it was evident that two of the greatest minds, Lombardi and Confucius saw great things for Donald as he moves forward in his post-football career. But I needed  another perspective, one more in step with Donald the Dancer.  So I located the great Fred Astaire.

I asked him what he thought of Donald’s dancing and what the future might hold for him and he replied, “He was just simply wonderful, the way he danced on the field and off it.  He danced beautifully, learned beautifully.  He was very adept at whatever he did on the dance floor, really in fine form.  I would love to do a picture with him.”

No doubt, President Barack Obama would have to bring in a reference to the Chicago Bears when complimenting Donald Driver.

So I felt pretty good that those of the past saw Donald in the same light we saw him in but what about some of our contemporaries, what did they think about Donald retiring.  So I touched base with the Commander in Chief, President Obama.  I asked him what his feelings were about Donald ending his career and he said, “I’m just gonna come out and say it,” this hurts a little bit. This is a hard thing for a Bears fan to do. It doesn’t hurt as much as the NFC championship game hurt, but it still hurts to say I am going to miss that man, his play on the field and his dancing off of it.

Wanting to be partisan, I then sought out Rush Limbaugh for his thoughts and he had this to say about Donald, “Wouldn’t it be great if our country had standards as high as Donald Driver’s?” So it was obvious that Rush felt the love we all feel for Donald.

So I finished up my jaunt across time and space and returned home.  It was evident that Donald Driver is  more than a football player.  He is one of those rare types who transcends those boundaries that separate us as individuals.  He has worked for the greater good of the community and he has elevated those around him.

Really nothing more can be said about the man that has not already been written, except that when it came time to call it a career, he did not think about himself or his team.  Rather, he thought of the people that supported him and loved him and wanted to do it right for them.  He thought of us, the fans and for that we can only say, “Thank you.  Thank you for being Donald Driver, football player, dancer and our friend.”