Redskins Sign Larry Johnson

[Mc2guy]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

Definitely doesn't make it right.

If there's one thing I've learned in my nearly 15 years of covering pro sports it's to separate the player on the field from the person off the field. Ideally everyone is Charles Mann, a great player on the field and a better person off the field. But often times if you expect for your favorite player to be a great guy off the field (whether it's just being rude to being a thug/felon/what have you) you're going to be disappointed.

I guess it's just a matter of what you can tolerate. Are you rooting for the guy to get your team wins and are you willing to ignore what he does and how he represents your favorite team outside the game, or are you rooting for him as a player/person and won't accept anything less than the full package.

Your point is not lost on me. I am not looking for perfect people, there are none that I've ever met.

I guess I just have to draw the line somewhere, and LJ is it. I can handle a guy who makes juvenile mistakes or is even a real jerk off the field. I have no problem with petty jerks so long as their crimes are "victim-less." TO, or Romanowski come to mind. When I see, however, a series of repeated mistakes over time, disrespect for women, disrespect for teammates and coaches, and generally a nuisance to society, I take issue with that person being a part of the team I have been a lifelong fan of.

I am no boyscout, nor am I looking for the players to all be Kurt Warner types. There are certain things that just can't be ignored, and for me, this is one of them. Any man capable of beating or abusing a woman is a pathetic human and no one I want near the Redskins.

[Dirtbag59]

Only thing about LJ that stops me from freaking out is that he doesn't have a Chris Brown type incident. Other then that it's obvious that he's a POS, but not enough to boycott the team.

A Memo To Larry Johnson: Beating Up Girls=Bad | Bleacher Report

[Pocket$ $traight]

Originally Posted by Mc2guy

Your point is not lost on me. I am not looking for perfect people, there are none that I've ever met.

I guess I just have to draw the line somewhere, and LJ is it. I can handle a guy who makes juvenile mistakes or is even a real jerk off the field. I have no problem with petty jerks so long as their crimes are "victim-less." TO, or Romanowski come to mind. When I see, however, a series of repeated mistakes over time, disrespect for women, disrespect for teammates and coaches, and generally a nuisance to society, I take issue with that person being a part of the team I have been a lifelong fan of.

I am no boyscout, nor am I looking for the players to all be Kurt Warner types. There are certain things that just can't be ignored, and for me, this is one of them. Any man capable of beating or abusing a woman is a pathetic human and no one I want near the Redskins.

Well, the NFL is just like any segment of society. If you take a sample of 53 men there are going to be drug users, alcoholics, gamblers and unfortunately an abuser or abusers of women. It is just naive to think otherwise.

Like I said earlier, and I have no doubt that our coach and GM have told him, if he messes up he is out. I am not expecting any problems. Larry doesn't have very many stops left.

[SmootSmack]

Originally Posted by Mc2guy

Your point is not lost on me. I am not looking for perfect people, there are none that I've ever met.

I guess I just have to draw the line somewhere, and LJ is it. I can handle a guy who makes juvenile mistakes or is even a real jerk off the field. I have no problem with petty jerks so long as their crimes are "victim-less." TO, or Romanowski come to mind. When I see, however, a series of repeated mistakes over time, disrespect for women, disrespect for teammates and coaches, and generally a nuisance to society, I take issue with that person being a part of the team I have been a lifelong fan of.

I am no boyscout, nor am I looking for the players to all be Kurt Warner types. There are certain things that just can't be ignored, and for me, this is one of them. Any man capable of beating or abusing a woman is a pathetic human and no one I want near the Redskins.

So how do you plan on reconciling your differences here? What if we plays a critical role for us this season. What if we're down by 4 late in week 5 against the Giants and LJ breaks off a 25 yard rd for a TD to give us the lead and ultimately the win? Will you be cheering for the Redskins (and LJ) or not?

[Dirtbag59]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

So how do you plan on reconciling your differences here? What if we plays a critical role for us this season. What if we're down by 4 late in week 5 against the Giants and LJ breaks off a 25 yard rd for a TD to give us the lead and ultimately the win? Will you be cheering for the Redskins (and LJ) or not?

Personally I only care so much. By the time the Redskins are truly competitive again (like championship contenders), LJ will be all but useless and that could be in as little as two years though it will more then likely be 3 or 4. In the meantime we might have to settle for a "happy to be a playoff team" type attitude.

In the meantime, as I said before, the only way I can really reconcile this is to point to the fact that in terms of violence towards women, LJ's record is relatively tame. To my knowledge he has never outright hit a woman. Opting instead to spit, wave a gun, and yell verbal obscenities. Death threats are reserved for boyfriends of spitting targets.

One day all athletes will have the intangibles of Tim Tebow, and what a glorious day that will be. He truly is a savior.

[Longtimefan]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

So how do you plan on reconciling your differences here? What if we plays a critical role for us this season. What if we're down by 4 late in week 5 against the Giants and LJ breaks off a 25 yard rd for a TD to give us the lead and ultimately the win? Will you be cheering for the Redskins (and LJ) or not?

That question will definitely get your attention!..Larry Johnson's short term future is with the Redskins, and that which is past and gone is irrevocable, I'm only concerned with the three years he'll be here if he fulfills the contract.

I'm reminded of something you made mention of in an earlier post....we don't know that we're not rooting for players every sunday that share in Johnsons' transgressions. We should really be more concerned about what he does as a Redskin, only he has to live down his past. Dope users..Woman beaters in the HOF. Like someone mentioned earlier, this is the NFL not the boy scouts.

[Mc2guy]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

So how do you plan on reconciling your differences here? What if we plays a critical role for us this season. What if we're down by 4 late in week 5 against the Giants and LJ breaks off a 25 yard rd for a TD to give us the lead and ultimately the win? Will you be cheering for the Redskins (and LJ) or not?

It's a good question. I'll have to figure that out by the time the season roles around.

No matter what I end up deciding, it will certainly dampen my enthusiasm for the team if he plays a major role, and that is really the reason that the Skins should consider carefully picking up these bad character guys.

My wife, for example, won't watch ANY game with Mike Vick in it, including when the Skins play the Eagles. It's a dollars and cents thing...if she doesn't watch, buy a ticket, or put our kids in Skins gear, that's less money for the franchise, and she's not alone. This forum is really the minority of true-red-blooded fans who will forgive just about anything for a winning team. There are lots of "fair-weather" fans that don't pay attention to details, yet get turned off to the sport when they hear about players acting the fool and getting away with it.

Again, I'm not looking for a team of angels, just "normal" citizens who like all of us may make mistakes, but who respect their fortune and try hard on the field. As for the comment about "slice of society," while it may be true there are other abusers/thugs out there in society, I am not paying part of their salary by watching the team either. (BTW, I have the same opinion of any team that would employ Leonard Little, Donte Stallworth, or Brandon Marshall).