Why Are So Many Athletes And The Folks Running The Game Losing Their Swagger?
Chicago Bears linebacker and pro bowler Lance Briggs had some esssplanin’ to do Tuesday after crashing his new, $350,000 Lamborghini Murcielago. Illinois police found the abandoned vehicle, which had hit a light pole and a concrete bridge support, alongside the Edens Expressway on the city's North Side around 3:15 a.m.
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After the crash, Briggs fled the scene, calling a tow truck and the police a few times which eventually ended up in multiple conflicting stories.
"When it happened, the first thing I did was, obviously, I panicked," Briggs said. "I didn't want there to be a big scene there. And so I left the scene. When I left, I called the tow truck. I also was startled, and I called to report that my car was stolen. Within probably 10 minutes, I called back and accepted responsibility for what I did because it was ridiculous in the first place."
This panic over the possibility of a big scene occurring there was a bit too little, too late. Briggs hoped against hope that a few drivers wouldn’t notice an extremely expensive and rare car sitting on top of a bridge support, wrapped around a light pole, as long as a 240 pound Black man wasn’t standing next to the carnage.
Naturally, everyone has to wonder if he was drinking, was on drugs, or was racing the vehicle that was built for speed. These details will probably never be known, but that doesn’t stop suspension-happy fans and observers from asking why the Bears or the NFL hasn’t acted on this bizarre story with some arbitrary banning for Briggs. He was already charged with leaving the scene of an accident, a misdemeanor, and was given traffic citations for failure to give immediate notice of an accident and improper lane usage, when he met with police on Monday afternoon.
He was released after posting $100 bond and is scheduled to appear Oct. 4 in court.
The bottom line is that Briggs finally did come out and take responsibility for the accident and will face the legal consequences that he should. Every time an NFL player does something that doesn’t agree with 100% of the population, a witch hunt sparks people’s need to see him lose his opportunity to do his job, which is completely unrelated to the incident.
The rules and punishments of the league are placed there for reasons, mostly to protect the perceived infallible integrity of sports, which then gets sullied by the most obvious people involved in the game.
As long as the commissioners of the major sports keep their attention on actual violations instead of the fear of public scrutiny targeted at the faces of the game, these players won’t have a fear of breathing and the fly-by-night populace opinion won’t get a sense of unwarranted control over their fate.
If NFL commissioner Roger Goodell runs the league in constant fear of the image its players could portray, he’ll overlook the real scandals that actually ruin their good name. Just ask David Stern.
Keep talking, it’s the only way they’ll ever hear you.--JJJ