Well, not quite, but Mike Priefer might as well have said as much and demanded that punter Chris Kluwe refrain from eating, drinking, sleeping, walking, talking, and anything and everything else not requiring him to hold a football and/or punt it.
On Thursday, we were blessed with the wisdom that often flows from the mouths of NFL coaches who believe that they not only see the world correctly, but that others ought to see it the same way. Responding to questions about Kluwe's decision to rally support for Ray Guy's inclusion into the NFL Hall of Fame by wearing a small piece of tape on his uniform encouraging voters to give Guy their vote, Priefer said he was "getting tired of" Kluwe's antics. "He needs to focus on punting and holding," Priefer proclaimed.
Giving Priefer the perhaps underserved benefit of the doubt that he is not merely irritated that Kluwe's lobbying against a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in Minnesota helped defeat the measure, Priefer's statements nevertheless reflect an utter lack of awareness both that there is a larger world out there and that Kluwe's minimal gesture could hardly have been a distraction to the punter. No claim was made that Kluwe was constantly fussing over the tape or in any conceivable way distracted by the tape, but Priefer was certain that it was part of a greater distraction.
As a punter this season, Kluwe has been average. If that's not good enough for Priefer, the answer is not in identifying phantom distractions, but in getting his punter to work on his trade or find an alternative to his current punter. Complaining about Kluwe offering a harmless measure of support for a punter long undeservedly denied a spot in Canton merely because a bunch of meathead voters think that punters are not tough enough to be in the Hall of Fame? Please.
Up Next: Minnesota Set to Flood the Gaming Market to Boost Addiction and Pay Our Bills. Plus, other hallmark moments of good governance.
On Thursday, we were blessed with the wisdom that often flows from the mouths of NFL coaches who believe that they not only see the world correctly, but that others ought to see it the same way. Responding to questions about Kluwe's decision to rally support for Ray Guy's inclusion into the NFL Hall of Fame by wearing a small piece of tape on his uniform encouraging voters to give Guy their vote, Priefer said he was "getting tired of" Kluwe's antics. "He needs to focus on punting and holding," Priefer proclaimed.
Giving Priefer the perhaps underserved benefit of the doubt that he is not merely irritated that Kluwe's lobbying against a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in Minnesota helped defeat the measure, Priefer's statements nevertheless reflect an utter lack of awareness both that there is a larger world out there and that Kluwe's minimal gesture could hardly have been a distraction to the punter. No claim was made that Kluwe was constantly fussing over the tape or in any conceivable way distracted by the tape, but Priefer was certain that it was part of a greater distraction.
As a punter this season, Kluwe has been average. If that's not good enough for Priefer, the answer is not in identifying phantom distractions, but in getting his punter to work on his trade or find an alternative to his current punter. Complaining about Kluwe offering a harmless measure of support for a punter long undeservedly denied a spot in Canton merely because a bunch of meathead voters think that punters are not tough enough to be in the Hall of Fame? Please.
Up Next: Minnesota Set to Flood the Gaming Market to Boost Addiction and Pay Our Bills. Plus, other hallmark moments of good governance.
2 comments:
So Kluwe has the constitutiona right to speak his mind - but the coach does not. Hmmm.
CLG,
I don't understand your point. Priefer is just as welcome to express his opinions as is Kluwe. He is also equally subject to reaction to those opinions. INone of this, of course, has anything to do with constitutional rights--I assume you meant the constitutional right to speech protected against government overreach (a right, though not remotely implicated here, that is nowhere near absolute).
VG
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