Sports

What Do You REALLY Want To Hear?

/ CBS Texas

105.3 THE FAN -- On the night of the NCAA championship in Arlington, two former athletes became villains in the towns in which they competed.

Former Dallas Cowboy Marcus Spears tweeted this after seeing Tony Romo and Jason Witten in the owners box of Jerry Jones at AT&T Stadium.

Spears joined "New School" Tuesday morning to explain his tweet.

"You understand in this league that your star players are going to have things come their way that most guys don't," said Spears. "I'm not benign to think that. I've had opportunities that some guys didn't have…The team aspect has always been first to me. That's just the bottom line. I don't know if it sends the right message when your head coach is hanging out with one particular guy."

What an interesting, VALID take. If your boss kept inviting the same three employees in your office over for dinner or a weekend ride on his boat, would you not care? Would you just pretend he/she wasn't playing favorites in your workplace? I know it would bother me. It's only human nature to want to be included or recognized by your boss/employer.

Spears continued, "When you're building a team, when you've got a team concept — as many young guys as the Cowboys have on the team right now — I just felt like it would have been a good situation for all of them to try to get together and hang out and build that team camaraderie with the guys."

What could possibly be wrong with anything Marcus Spears had to say there?

Is it so unreasonable for two or three teammates to be jealous or resentful of Romo, Garrett and Witten's private club? Is it crazy to wonder if the right guard or nickel corner ever feels left out while sitting home on the couch, never getting a phone call to hang-out? Is it unreasonable for teammates to wonder why they're not cool enough to ever receive an invite to one of Jerry's VIP parties?

How is ANY of that unreasonable??

Yet, even after posing a reasonable question and opinion, Marcus Spears was destroyed on social media.

 "You're trying to break-up the Cowboys"

"You're only bitter cause you weren't there"

"You were a bust, so your opinion doesn't matter"

1) Spears wasn't a "bust."

2) Which one is currently employed as an NFL analyst- Dan Marino or Trent Dilfer? Exactly. Playing accomplishments mean jack when it comes to providing analysis.

And of course, Spears received the always convenient (and ignorant) claim that he was racist -- get a life.

The second athlete under siege was Rex Chapman, former Kentucky hoops player and current Wildcats analyst. Before Kentucky's loss to UCONN, Chapman tweeted this about John Calipari's basketball future:

You should've seen the Wildcat reaction on Twitter.

"F U traitor!!!"

"You're a disgrace to Big Blue Nation"

"Why would you do this to us BEFORE the game?!?"

Here's a little newsflash for Kentucky fans: Chapman's job isn't to help you win or lose. It was on the court from 1986-1988, but no longer. Local fans reacted to a report as if Chapman had taken a hacksaw to the leg of Julius Randle before tip-off. Will those same fans recognize or apologize if Calipari leaves for LA, proving Chapman right? I doubt it.

Is it so unreasonable to think that Calipari wants NBA redemption after failing with the Nets? Is it unreasonable to think one of the biggest names in college basketball would be attracted to one of the biggest brands in the entire world? Is it unreasonable to think the weight of having to win the title EVERY YEAR has begun to weigh on Calipari? Of course not.

That brings us to the big question of the day: What do you REALLY want to hear when it comes to your favorite team?

Do you want the bland, generic ass-kisser who always tells you the sky is blue? Or do you want the insight from someone who may sometimes deliver the uncomfortable truth about the team you love? I don't know about you, but if the clothes I put on Saturday night look stupid, I want my girlfriend to tell me.

The harsh truth outweighs living in a fantasy world where I think I'm dressing like Tom Brady.

It irritates the hell out of me when fans attack former Cowboys wide receiver Jesse Holley for his opinions on the star.

"You're not only a has-been, but a never was!"

"You're a hater because no one will hire you anymore!"

"You think you can run your mouth after making ONE play your entire career!"

There seems to be an unwritten law that no former player can ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER criticize their former team. Read that sentence again and tell me how ludicrous that sounds. Personally, I want to learn the game from analysts. I realize he's hated, but I LEARN every Sunday night from Cris Collinsworth. I LEARN from Charles Barkley and Doug Collins. I LEARN from Babe Laufenberg, Mike Bacsik, Bryan Broaddus and Jesse Holley. If you choose to ignore great information because you're unable to separate the old jersey from the new talking head, you're only robbing yourself.

One more thing about what Marcus Spears had to say. It's not like we're nit-picking a 13-3 or 12-4 football team. No, they're 8-8 despite ALLLL this talent. Wouldn't that lead you to believe SOMETHING is missing?

Maybe we continue to misjudge the talent, or maybe there are other factors that I don't know, FORMER PLAYERS may know a little about? Do you think Spears just decided to wake up Monday morning and face the scathing wrath of DFW for 24 hours? The guy did spend eight years with America's Team, as a teammate of Romo AND Witten!! I don't know if he's right or wrong about possible resentment from teammates, but I know i'll listen when he tries to suggest something about a migraine-causing, roller-coaster ride of a football team that no one can figure out.

So, which do you want? Do you want the sugar-coated, local homer to keep covering up the truth because it allows us to avoid the warts of reality? Or....do you want the truth, even if it doesn't feel as good?

I think you know where I stand. Whatever you end up deciding, just try and remember -- be reasonable.

(©2014 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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