Mike Ditka says someone ought to "whack him in the head." National Football League Players Association Executive Director DeMaurice Smith says teams cannot have the free reign to bring personal insult during interviews. And, indeed, Miami Dolphins' general manager Jeff Ireland has apologized for asking new Dallas Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant if his mother was a prostitute.
But, I dunno, it just doesn't feel like that big of a deal. Does it?
You know Bryant's story. Doesn't have a relationship with his father. Mother had him at 15, sold drugs to provide for her family and spent 18 months locked up. Not your typical childhood or family environment, safe to say.
Can we all assume that personal influences affect professional performance? As in, when I was going through my divorce it was difficult to give a damn about subject-verb agreement. And as in, if your mom is arrested - or worse - it might wander into your mind come game day.
I see how Bryant would initially bristle at Ireland's question, but if the answer is "No" why not just say so and move on? Which, of course, Bryant did. The kid with the label of immaturity handled it with maturity.
I'd love to hear Bill Parcells' reaction, because you just know he rubber-stamped Ireland's question. But, of course, the Big Tuna is again a big chicken.
My takeaway is that while Ireland (as a potential employer) has the right to ask Bryant (the potential employee) any question he wants during an interview for a $10 million job, his wording was harsh and brusk. But again, won't the Cowboys' receiver hear things much worse on the field than "Yo momma wears Army boots"?
