They Should Have Hired John Lynch
February 8th, 2010
Former Bucs great and current (?) NFL Network analyst Warren Sapp is in hot water after getting arrested this weekend in Miami for allegedly slapping around his girlfriend of two years.
The result was that Sapp, who was in Miami as part of the NFL Network’s team covering the Super Bowl, was pulled from the network’s programming for the weekend. It may not be temporary.
The news provoked SI.com’s Peter King to suggest Sapp’s hiring was a mistake in the first place. In his must-read Monday Morning Quarterback column, King believes the NFL Network would have been better off hiring another former Bucs great, John Lynch, rather than Sapp.
I bet NFL Network folks wish they’d hired squeaky-clean John Lynch last year. Not a good weekend for Michael Irvin or Warren Sapp — and not a good weekend for the NFL shield when two of their own network analysts, on consecutive days, are in the news on rape and domestic-abuse allegations.
Joe knows that the major cable outlet in the Tampa Bay area, Out House Networks, pisses in the collective faces of sports fans daily by depriving football fans in a football crazed area like the Tampa Bay region the outstanding NFL Network. It instead forces schlock and insepid feces upon subscribers like every friggin’ shopping channel known to the free world along with Bay Sludge 9 (“First, weather on the nines — it’s the same as it was 10 minutes ago! — and when we return, a live report on the new swing set in the Brandon city park!”) so nutless football fans (read: women) in the area without the NFL Network may not know just how good Sapp really is on the air.
Sapp brings a unique and, in fact, intelligent voice to the NFL Network, something different than the standard ex-quarterback speak. Part of the reason the NFL Network is a daily must-watch for Joe and all real football fans (read: men) is thoughtful, colorful insight from people such as Sapp.
Granted, Sapp is not the most pleasant of people and even Joe had a little run-in with Sapp in the past — though it was more Sapp testing Joe and playing a joke on Joe. To be fair to Sapp, this weekend’s incident is something out of the blue. Unlike Irvin, Sapp had no track record on a police blotter, sans a couple of minor incidents with pot.
What the future holds for Sapp on the NFL Network is dicey. The NFL is all about image. The NFL Network took a chance on Irvin, hardly a man with a clean background. Irvin’s recent news item is a civil suit, not a criminal suit. Thus, he remained on the air this weekend.
How long the NFL Network sticks with Sapp will be interesting provided the charges stick. Having a guy on the air who, indirectly, represents the league, who has a rap for throwing around a woman in a hotel room, isn’t exactly something the NFL covets.
February 8th, 2010 at 11:43 am
This woman gets the NFL Network on DirectTV, though it is in the Triangle area of North Carolina. I love Warren Sapp’s insight on the NFL Network and had been enjoying it this past week from Miami prior to the Super Bowl. I was sad to see the incident took place. I can see it going either way, though it will be harder to watch Irvin on there now, if Sapp isn’t allowed to return, not only with Irvin’s track record but also the fact that I’ve always hated the Dallas Cowboys.
February 8th, 2010 at 12:00 pm
Rebecca Jill:
Sigh.
A lass after Joe’s heart!
Are you free next Sunday Rebecca Jill, or are you simply trying to tease Joe?
February 8th, 2010 at 12:28 pm
“football fans in a football crazed area like the Tampa Bay region”?
I disagree with the above quote JoeBucsFan. The area is vastly overated in its sports loyalty. RayJay averaged under 50K fans per home game this past season….lots of empty seats for an area you describe as “football crazed”. RayJay seats 65k.
And yes, I am a 13 year season tix holder making this observation. Face it, we live in a bandwagon community. If they win, they come, if they dont, they stay home….
February 8th, 2010 at 12:37 pm
Hi Sean:
Interesting subject. Joe was discussing this very point last night with some of his clients at The Venue.
No question this community is bandwagon. But it is first and foremost, a Bucs area in general, a football area specifically.
Joe believes being football crazed and buying tickets are two different animals. Look at how crowded bars and restaurants are on Bucs Sundays. Look at the TV ratings for Bucs games.
However, this hasn’t translated (lately) in tickets purchased for a number of reasons. First is, this local economy is in a shambles. Second, fans — and Joe is among them — have come to the conclusion that the football experience at the CITS isn’t such that it’s worth dropping, what, a couple of C-notes a game?
Five years ago, for example, many had the expendable income that going to the CITS was a virtual must. Now, with much less expendable income — provided people have jobs — along with HDTVs, cheap(er) beer with no lines at the fridge and no hassle getting to the bathroom, staying at home (or going to the local water hole) has become more of a viable option than going to the CITS.
Even Jerry Jones has noted the trend that people are preferring to stay home than go to NFL games.
$8 beers is enough to chase Joe away.
February 8th, 2010 at 4:56 pm
I agree Joe
Just because I don’t go to games doesn’t mean im not football crazed. It means I, like many people these days, only have so much disposable income. I would love to say I go to every home game but the fact is that I’m not going to spend what little extra money I have to go see the team get their tails kicked.
There is no rule that I’m aware of that says a person must sit and be miserable in the blazing hot sun at the stadium to be a fan of a team.
I can and do watch every game at home on TV without fail though. And when the Bucs lose I can drown my sorrow in a few beers and I don’t have to worry about driving home under the influence.
February 10th, 2010 at 10:08 am
The Glazer’s are lucky to have had 50,000 last year. They do not spend money. They put mediocre talent on the field. Their Coaching staff was/still is a joke. And no one gave them a chance at any wins. So why should we drop a couple of C-Notes to the Glazer’s when they aren’t dropping any cash in their own product?