No Matter How Bad the PR, Talent is King in Sports

By Brian Van Norman on | | Comments (1) | Twitter Digg Reddit StumbleUpon Delicious Share

Randy Moss As I’ve watched the recent drama with Randy Moss unfold—for those of you not sports minded, Moss has been released/traded by two different football teams this season for having a less-than-stellar attitude—I can’t help but think that no matter how much of a distraction a player is for a team or a sport, if he has talent and can put butts in seats, he’ll always find work.

Moss isn’t even one of the worst offenders that come to mind. As much of a pain as he may have been for his teams, he’s not that big of a problem. Over the 25+ years I’ve been a sports fan, three athletes stick out in my mind as being a pure PR nightmare for their sport. Yet, they were all given one or more chances to come back.Michael Vick

  1. Michael Vick – convicted of torturing and brutally killing dozens of dogs, this felon was the mastermind behind a dog-fighting ring in Virginia. Yet, after serving less than two years in jail, Vick was released and subsequently rewarded with a hefty paycheck from the Philadelphia Eagles. 
  2. Mike Tyson – the youngest boxer to win the WBC, WBA and IBF heavyweight titles, Tyson has become nothing more than a huge black eye on the sport of boxing. Convicted Mike Tysonof sexual harassment – in which he served three years in prison – he was welcomed back to the open arms of the boxing community. What does Tyson do next? He bites off a piece of Evander Holyfield’s ear. Even after this, Tyson was allowed to continue boxing.
  3. Steve Howe – many of you might not know this name, but Howe was the poster child for athletes and second chances in the 1980s. An All-Star, World Series champion and Rookie of the Year, Howe was suspended seven times during his 17-year Major League Baseball career for drug-related issues. Steve Howe

I could go on and on about players burning bridges, doing despicable acts or who just aren’t good people in general. But would it change your thoughts on them or the sport they play? Would you be any less inclined to watch or go to a game? I’m not sure I would.

It seems the bigger the PR mess a player is, the more we, as fans, are attracted to them. But there has to come a point when the “any PR is good PR” notion just doesn’t hold weight.

So when you’re cheering on your favorite team this weekend, ponder this question: When is too much, too much? This is what we mean by Never Stop Challenging, so dig deep. We’d love to hear what your tipping point is.

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Comments

  1. David R's avatar

    David R

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    There's no question that we put athletes, the "heroes" of our favorite sports, on pedestals. And we're always fascinated when they fall. But our love for the sport transcends the discretions of a few. Ultimately, for sports fans, what athletes do on the field will always outweigh what they do off of it. And we know that these "scoundrels" will be long gone while our love for the sport continues. So, we'll continue to watch them, and even root for them, as long as they entertain us and help get the "W". For the true sports fan, there will likely never be "too much". The only thing that could push a fan to the tipping point would be discovering that an entire team or an entire league was doing something to harm the integrity, or fun, of the sport. And even then, as we've seen after strikes, lockouts and drug scandals, the fans still come back.

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