Post by Guvmintcheeze on Sept 10, 2015 6:17:40 GMT
Brandon Marshall stirs it up on TV; should the New York Jets care?
Rich Cimini, ESPN Staff Writer
Six days a week, Brandon Marshall is a football player for the New York Jets. On Tuesday, he changes jobs, becoming a studio analyst for Showtime's "Inside the NFL." He's starting on his second career during his first, and it'll be fascinating to see how he handles it because he's venturing into potentially dangerous territory. The lines between TV personality and player could get blurred.
Marshall made news on Tuesday night, saying "a lot of players" in the league believe the NFL is influenced by race when it comes to disciplining players. "The race card," he said on the air. He made the remarks during a panel discussion about Tom Brady and Deflategate.
Yep, Marshall began his new TV season with a splash, which probably made his producers happy. He gets paid to be provocative. His "important role" on the show, he explained on the air, is to express how players across the league feel about certain issues. He apparently is the show's current-player correspondent, kind of the way Matt Harvey is the New York bureau chief of the Players' Tribune.
But will his TV role create a distraction for the Jets?
Todd Bowles said he had an "in-depth" conversation with Marshall about his remarks, but the Jets coach insisted he wasn't bothered by them. No issue, no distraction, he said. Bowles said his only concern is that he wants Marshall to "be smarter" when discussing sensitive issues in a public forum.
It's interesting, though, because Marshall threw himself into the Deflategate controversy. His teammates have been tight-lipped when asked about the Brady decision. It's obvious, at least to me, they've been instructed to focus their thoughts on the team and the upcoming game, ignoring everything else. The team has adopted a similar policy with regard to the Geno Smith locker-room altercation. That's what good teams do; they block out the outside noise.
Then Marshall goes on a national cable show and stirs up the debate. I suppose he can say he was just doing his job, reporting on what he learned from talking to players "across the states." Unwittingly, he pulled the Jets into the conversation because you have to think some of those opinions on Brady were culled from conversations in the Jets' locker room.
This is a slippery slope for Bowles. On one hand, Marshall is doing this on his own time, but he's a representative of the Jets when he's on the air. If other players are staying mum on Deflategate, should he be treated differently? I asked Bowles if he was bothered by it.
"No, I'm not," he said matter-of-factly.
Marshall's Showtime gig was a source of tension within the Chicago Bears' organization last season, mostly because of the time commitment. He traveled to New York to shoot it, fueling chatter about whether he was committed to the team. Obviously, the travel no longer is an issue. This year, he has a home-field advantage. It's probably one of the reasons why he wanted to be traded to the Jets.
This was only one show, and he's not likely to tackle sensitive subjects every week. Nevertheless, it's a tricky spot for all parties. This won't be the last time this subject comes up.
Rich Cimini, ESPN Staff Writer
Six days a week, Brandon Marshall is a football player for the New York Jets. On Tuesday, he changes jobs, becoming a studio analyst for Showtime's "Inside the NFL." He's starting on his second career during his first, and it'll be fascinating to see how he handles it because he's venturing into potentially dangerous territory. The lines between TV personality and player could get blurred.
Marshall made news on Tuesday night, saying "a lot of players" in the league believe the NFL is influenced by race when it comes to disciplining players. "The race card," he said on the air. He made the remarks during a panel discussion about Tom Brady and Deflategate.
Yep, Marshall began his new TV season with a splash, which probably made his producers happy. He gets paid to be provocative. His "important role" on the show, he explained on the air, is to express how players across the league feel about certain issues. He apparently is the show's current-player correspondent, kind of the way Matt Harvey is the New York bureau chief of the Players' Tribune.
But will his TV role create a distraction for the Jets?
Todd Bowles said he had an "in-depth" conversation with Marshall about his remarks, but the Jets coach insisted he wasn't bothered by them. No issue, no distraction, he said. Bowles said his only concern is that he wants Marshall to "be smarter" when discussing sensitive issues in a public forum.
It's interesting, though, because Marshall threw himself into the Deflategate controversy. His teammates have been tight-lipped when asked about the Brady decision. It's obvious, at least to me, they've been instructed to focus their thoughts on the team and the upcoming game, ignoring everything else. The team has adopted a similar policy with regard to the Geno Smith locker-room altercation. That's what good teams do; they block out the outside noise.
Then Marshall goes on a national cable show and stirs up the debate. I suppose he can say he was just doing his job, reporting on what he learned from talking to players "across the states." Unwittingly, he pulled the Jets into the conversation because you have to think some of those opinions on Brady were culled from conversations in the Jets' locker room.
This is a slippery slope for Bowles. On one hand, Marshall is doing this on his own time, but he's a representative of the Jets when he's on the air. If other players are staying mum on Deflategate, should he be treated differently? I asked Bowles if he was bothered by it.
"No, I'm not," he said matter-of-factly.
Marshall's Showtime gig was a source of tension within the Chicago Bears' organization last season, mostly because of the time commitment. He traveled to New York to shoot it, fueling chatter about whether he was committed to the team. Obviously, the travel no longer is an issue. This year, he has a home-field advantage. It's probably one of the reasons why he wanted to be traded to the Jets.
This was only one show, and he's not likely to tackle sensitive subjects every week. Nevertheless, it's a tricky spot for all parties. This won't be the last time this subject comes up.