There seems to be an endless stream of idiotic things professional
athletes do. I guess if you put a bunch of young men together, give
them a boat-load of money and lots of free time, what can you expect?
When beautiful women, the media and the luxuries of life are thrown at
them, their cockiness and stupidity are only amplified. Here are my
top ten, but of course there are lots more. However, we must always
remember, they are only human too.

1. Me Make Good Play!
Ever see NFL players beat their chest like a gorilla after they just
made a good play? I guess it's a Tarzan thing or something, but they
look kinda ridiculous. Maybe if I was out there on the field and I was
a 170-pound kicker watching a defensive lineman beating his chest
after a sack, I may be a little intimidated, but overall, they look
really silly doing it. (I attended a professional all-women's football
game this year and saw a 350-pound woman do this, which was
particularly scary.)

2. The God Factor, Part I
I hate it when players point up to Heaven and thank God after a good
play too. Bear in mind however, that I am not criticizing religion or
anyone for having faith in God. But this just looks lame. It happens a
lot in MLB for some reason. A strikeout will cause Pedro Martinez to
do the chest-touch and double-index-finger-point to God as if he and
God were chatting earlier about possible pitching strategies in the
locker room, and the strategy they chose together worked, so he had to
personally thank God using his direct line.

3. The God Factor, Part II
Locker rooms, sidelines, dugouts, bullpens, and court sides are often
full of praying men. One question: "If you are praying to win, and
your opponent is praying to win, who does God choose?

4. Bad Boys, Bad Boys, Whatcha Gonna Do When They Come For You?
Why do pro jocks get arrested for drug and/or gun possession so much?
Of course, lots of people do this one unfortunately, we just happen to
hear about the famous athletes who do. C'mon guys, keep the drugs at
home, stop driving while high, and for crying out loud, stop packin'!
You don't need a gun. Who's going to harm you? You're six six and
weigh 275 pounds!

5. It Wasn't Me!
Telling Congress you don't do steroids, then getting caught doing
steroids is pretty dumb. I loved watching the clips where Rafael
Palmero sat pointing a finger at the Congressional hearing stating
with disgust and confidence, "I do not take steroids." And then the
next clip showing him apologizing profusely for taking steroids.

6. I Love You To Death
Murdering ex-lovers doesn't happen very often fortunately, but my list
wouldn't be complete without at least mentioning O.J.

7. Rabbits
It seems that there are a lot of NBA players out there who use the
phrase, "My baby's mom" a little too often. And there's too many pro
athletes' offspring introducing their buddies as "My brother from
another mother." Ever hear of a condom?

8. How Much Bling Bling Do You Need!?
It's fascinating to watch professional athletes blow through all their
millions in their first year or two and then have nothing left at
retirement, which is usually only a few years later. How many
fifty-year-olds are still playing pro sports? Not many (minus golfers
of course, who will drag their canes and oxygen tanks with them on the
fairway). So why don't pro athletes save a couple of bucks?

9. Love My Hog
It's not too smart to get injured off the job when you're a pro
athlete. Cleveland Browns Kellen Winslow Jr. crashed his motorcycle
recently and will now miss the 2005 NFL season. Jay Williams, a
number one draft pick of the Chicago Bulls, also got into a motorcycle
accident and has not played since. What's with motorcycles anyhow?
Talk about killing the goose that lays the golden eggs.

10. "When You Come To a Fork in the Road, Take It" – Yogi Berra
Saying really dumb things in the media seems to be a particularly easy
thing to do if you're a professional athlete. I looked in a lot of
places online to come up with a good list here. My problem was that
there were so many good ones, I wasn't sure which ones to pick. But
here are a few gems:
a. Paul Hamm, Gymnast: "I owe a lot to my parents, especially my
mother and father."
b. Baseball player Tito Fuentes, after getting hit by a pitch:
"They shouldn't throw at me. I'm the father of five or six kids."
c. Football coach Ray Malavasi: "I don't care what the tape says.
I didn't say it."
d. Baseball player Dizzy Dean, after a 1-0 game: "The game was
closer than the score indicated."
e. Boxing Analyst: "Sure there have been injuries, and even some
deaths in boxing, but none of them really that serious."
f. Soccer commentator: "Julian Dicks is everywhere. It's like
they've got eleven Dicks on the field."
g. Bill Cowher, Pittsburgh Steelers coach: "We're not attempting
to circumcise rules."
h. Jim Wohford: "Ninety percent of the game is half mental."
i. Joe Theismann: "Nobody in football should be called a genius.
A genius is a guy like Norman Einstein."
j. Charles Shackleford of the NCSU basketball team: "Left hand,
right hand, it doesn't matter. I'm amphibious."
k. Shaquille O'Neal, on his lack of championships: "I've won at
every level, except college and pro."

As I already asked before, what can we expect from professional
athletes? They often reflect society as a whole. Too much time, money
and fame at a really young age can augment stupidity, simple as that.
We all say and do dumb things, but thankfully, we don't have
microphones and video cameras pointed at us all the time. As Norman
Einstein used to say, "Really smart athletes stay away from problems
because they can predict the future with their ESPN."

Jason OConnor owns and operates Oak Web Works, LLC and also runs
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