Nothing rankles the commissars of the Kremlin at BSPN more than when one of its employees calls out a comrade. Even if the critique is done in satire, the gulag awaits the offender of such a crime against the state.

So when Joe read this morning that former Bucs receiver and current BSPN employee Meshawn Johnson called out an unnamed comrade, Joe surely is expecting a harsh sentence for Johnson no matter what Johnson says is accurate and warranted.

Seems as though Meshawn is upset with a BSPN draftnik (Todd McShay, Mel Kiper?) for knocking troubled diva-in-training wide receiver Dez Bryant, as Meshawn told former Bucs beat writer and current SI.com columnist Don Banks.

“It pisses me off to listen to some of these [draft analysts] talk about Dez,” Johnson told me Thursday. “I heard someone on the network I work at say his stock is going to be questioned because his mother was a former drug user or seller. Are you kidding me? Are you serious? Because his mom did that, therefore his stock will drop? I think anybody who judges him and who he is based on his family, it’s ridiculous. He’s getting hit with a lot of stuff that doesn’t have anything to do with who he is as an individual. It’s OK for Colt McCoy to hang out with the Manning family and work out with them, but as soon as Deion hangs out with Dez Bryant, it’s an issue. What kind of double standard is that?”

Well, to be honest, Prime Time’s relationship with many college players is under scrutiny because it appears Sanders may be crossing the line between tutoring and being a front for some agency (Under Armour?).

Had Bryant not lied to the NCAA about his relationship with Prime Time, no one would be discussing this issue. Joe understands where Meshawn is coming from but let’s not move the goalposts here.

Bryant lied/covered up his relationship with Sanders and paid the price. Unless Manning is trying to run some shady front as a conduit to a sports management firm, Meshawn’s argument is apples and oranges.

That written, Joe loves it when BSPN employees take potshots at each other.