Column Archive

The NFL Concussion Deal: Rotten From All Sides

There is no other way to put it but the NFL is Rollo Tomasi. The NFL always gets away with it. Evidence abounds that the NFL has been running a concussion assembly line for decades. But now that it has settled its high-profile concussion lawsuit with 4,500 ex-player plaintiffs for $765 million, there will be no discovery process.

How Roger Goodell Is Breaking Bad

This past August, sports blogs were littered with articles drawing parallels between different aspects of the athletic world and the television program Breaking Bad. I felt it myself following a weekend of decoding the NFL’s pitiless settlement of the class action concussion lawsuit of 4,500 former players and then, taking a break from the legalese, hearing a particularly poignant lament on Sunday’s episode from Breaking Bad’s star-crossed Jesse Pinkman.

‘I’m Johnny Manziel, and You’re Not.’

The NCAA mandated that Texas A&M’s Heisman-winning quarterback Johnny Manziel had to give a speech detailing all the life lessons he learned during his scandal-plagued summer. Here is a fictional accounting of what he might say.

ESPN Journalists Speak Out on Concussion Documentary

ESPN is the New York Yankees of sports journalism and, as with the Yankees, whether you love them or hate them, they have become a central axis upon which much of the sports world spins. That’s why an industry-wide earthquake was felt last week when The New York Times reported that the World Wide Leader in Sports had abruptly pulled out of a fifteen-month partnership with PBS’s Frontline to produce a documentary about head injuries in the National Football League. I spoke to some of  ESPN's best journalists who vent about their feelings on the situation.

Why Banning Russia from the Olympics is a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Idea

There are few people in the sports world I respect more than Cyd Zeigler the founder of the website Outsports, which deals with the sporting lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender athletes. I tweeted Mr. Zeigler's excellent article titled “Don’t Boycott Olympics Ban Russia From Competing Instead” precisely because it was incisive and made me think. I do however feel that on principle I need to state that I strongly disagree with his central premise.

Alex Rodriguez and the Pink Elephant in the room

Almost all the suspended players are from the Dominican Republic. This isn't coincidence or happenstance. It's the set-up of our globalized National Pastime in the 21st century.

Alex Rodriguez & "The Best Interests of the Game"

As a profoundly unsympathetic player faces an unprecedented suspension, the Major League Baseball Players Association needs to ask, "What would Marvin Miller do?"

On Vultures and Red Wings: Billionaire Gets New Sports Arena in Bankrupt Detroit

The headline juxtaposition boggles the mind. You have, on one day, “Detroit Files Largest Municipal Bankruptcy in History.” Then on the next, you have “Detroit Plans to Pay For New Red Wings Hockey Arena Despite Bankruptcy.”

Is the NFL Really Stupid Enough to Hire 'Gang Tattoo Experts' to Examine Players?

Call it football’s worst idea since helmets without face guards and the ten-dollar beer.

Down Goes Ryan Braun... with an Assist from his Union

Ryan Braun's suspension for the remainder of 2013 strongly signals thenew reality that pits the MLBPA and the owners against those on the field who are tainted by accusations of PED use.