Richie Incognito Again? What the Hell NFL?
Yesterday I heard some very, very troubling NFL news, yet I am not shocked, which is a problem in and of itself. I heard that Richie Incognito was coming out of retirement, and he had signed with the Oakland Raiders.
I mean, what in the hell?! This is absolutely insane to me. I cannot believe that this steroid infused, racially insensitive bully gets what seems to be his one millionth chance, while Colin Kaepernick is still unsigned, and it seems like no team is even willing to give him a chance. The fact that a horrible human being like Richie Incognito gets yet another shot drives me up the wall. And, this isn't coming from a place of dislike for his college team, Nebraska. No, I am not a fan of the Nebraska, but I could care less that he went to school there. What makes me so angry is his off, and on field attitude, and the fact that he just keeps getting chance after chance after chance, no matter how awful his personal life gets.
Let’s break it down. We are talking about a guy that bullied a former teammate so much that he was contemplating suicide. Now, I know all about the former teammates misfortunes after leaving football, it is awful, but I feel like Incognito was the one who pushed him over the edge. He pulled the final straw. You then look at his on field stuff, he is out of control. He is just as liable to pull a guy's helmet off as he is to make a block. If someone on the line does something he doesn't like, he will ream that player out on the field, during the game. He is a head hunter. He throws illegal blocks. He is a dirty player playing a very violent sport. He is also a terrible racist. He has made it clear that he loves the current "president". He, I'm sure of it, wears confederate flag stuff. He is the epitome of a pick up truck driving hillbilly. He is just a miserable human being.
I know Incognito is trash from a personal encounter.
When the Rams were still in Saint Louis, my mom worked at a battered woman and children's center. She used to coordinate a 5k every year, we showed up to support her, and the Rams would send a player or two. One year they sent 2 guys, one of which was Incognito. The other guy they sent, his name escapes me at the moment, was also an offensive lineman, and he had previously played in Jacksonville with a high school friend of mine. I was very intrigued to talk to this gentleman because I wanted to know how my buddy was doing in the NFL. My mom brought me over to introduce me to the 2 guys, and upon hearing who they were, I said hello to Incognito, and then I kind of cornered the other guy because I wanted to talk about my friend. When I did this Incognito looked like he felt disrespected. He had this look of awe and anger on his face because he was supposed to be the big name at this event. First off, he was only there because he had just gotten in trouble for assault against women, and the Rams sent him to try and smooth things over. I'm sure he would've rather been anywhere else that day. Second, I could've cared less that he was there. I had zero interest in talking to him about anything. I know that the two of us have nothing in common, so why would I waste my breath on a person that would just upset me. That seemed like a waste of time to me. Third, he couldn't have been more of an asshole to everyone there that day. We are talking about people who do a very hard, very tough job, and Incognito just had this air of arrogance about him. He was, for lack of a better term, an asshole. I don't like to associate with people like that. So, my dislike for this move is so much more than just the college team he played for.
Richie Incognito is everything that is wrong with the NFL. He is the exact opposite of what the NFL should be going after. He is abusive and rude and arrogant and a clown and a bully and racist and just a bad, bad person. The fact that he is getting another chance, or that Chad Kelly, go look up stories about this monster if you want to be appalled, is getting another chance, but Colin Kaepernick has had to lose his career for a peaceful protest, I am getting to a point where I just can't do it with the NFL anymore. For the Raiders and Jon Gruden and Mike Mayock to think that this would be okay is astonishing to me. This is disgusting and despicable. If Roger Goodell wasn't such an awful commissioner, and a coward, I would hope that he would have vetoed this. Of course he didn't, and now I have to read stories about a horrible person.
This is bad, and the NFL is going to lose even more viewers. This is also a slap in Colin Kaepernick's face. He was a peaceful protester, and he has lost his career. Meanwhile, guys like Chad Kelly and freaking Richie Incognito continue to get signed. What a crock.
Ty
Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.
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