RSS Roundtable: Tiger, Big Ben, and Morality in Sports Part I

With all of the news surrounding Tiger Woods and Ben Roethlisberger, we thought it would be a perfect time to get back to the roundtable to hit the hard issues and talk about the character issue of sports. How do recent events with Tiger's return and another Big Ben accusation make us view morality and character in sports? Is the coverage and attitudes towards these athletes appropriate? Should we expect our athletes to be role models? Only RSS tells you like it really is. Here's Part 1 of 2...

What did you make of the Masters? Should the character of Tiger and Phil enter into the story?

Y2: Of course it should. While the history books won't show how many times Tiger cursed on the course or how often Phil helped an old lady cross the street, in the present character matters - especially for Tiger, who presented himself as a brand and was proven to not live up to that crafted image. He said he was going to be a new person on the course and ended up to be the same surly Tiger after finishing 4th.

Y1: If you missed the character issue (not presenting Phil vs Tiger as good vs evil) then you were watching something else or wanted to see something else. Tiger's character is the biggest sports story of the year and to be unwilling to make that part of the story in contrast to the guy who won being met by his cancer stricken wife is being blind to what is going on.

BY: Should it? No. Did it? Yes. Tiger said he'd try to cut back on his on-course swearing, but isn't that part of Tiger when he's playing? His raw enthusiasm and drive is incomparable. Besides, everyone knows about the character issues going into the tournament. It does seem a bit odd how Amy shows up at the point in time when Phil won; maybe the Masters wants to show their winner is a wholesome family man?

Y2: It seemed rushed together. Like the Masters people realized, oh crap, Phil's sick wife is here and he's gonna win, let's trot her out and make a Kodak moment.

Y1: Maybe it was a little put together as some have suggested, but it was a real scene, heck they showed a tear running down Phil's face. We don't see that kind of moment in sports often. But, to completely ignore that part of the story (which I highlighted in a column earlier this week) is ludicrous.

Y2: I don't doubt the feelings were real, but the Masters and CBS were all too eager to hitch their wagon to it.

BY: Exactly. They were pushing it hard.

Y2: It wasn't a story in the buildup, until Phil was going to beat Tiger. If Tiger wins, the story is the redemption of Tiger.

Do you guys agree with Mike Wilbon's sentiment that it was "lazy" and "lame" and poor journalism to draw the contrast between Tiger and Phil and the morality issue?

Because something is obviously a story doesn't mean it's lazy. Even if it was contrived by the Masters it's true. But it does show the fickle nature of the media.

Lazy more than lame. You could do that in any sport really. There would be no contrasting if Phil finished 50th and Tiger 4th. Only by Phil winning was it good for golf, or a victory for women everywhere as Rick Reilly moronically stated.

I think to call it lazy is misguided at best and utterly stupid and ignorant at its worst. Journalists are supposed to report stories - Tiger's fall from grace has been on par with steroids as the biggest sports story of the decade. To not enter that into the equation during his comeback tournament and focus exclusively on his on-course performance amidst the scenes that unfolded would be insanity.

All week we heard nothing about Tiger's misdeeds though. Nothing about the trauma he put his family through, the disappointment he caused his millions of fans and kids who saw him as a role model. The story was all the warm receptions before Phil won. Then, when a perceived good guy wins, Tiger gets thrown right back under the bus.

You know why we heard nothing about his misdeeds? Because CBS are the little nerds of sports television who are too scared to tell the real story.

What was lazy was pretending Tiger was coming back from some mysterious adversity instead of his own transgressions.

I think the TV coverage was more the suffocating control that Augusta has over what is covered or not at Augusta. But, let's not kid ourselves - the network's and sports media's bread is buttered with Tiger Woods. They've always been his biggest cheerleaders.

Why shouldn't the networks be his biggest cheerleaders? He's increased PGA ratings on his own and brought more noterity and money to the tour than anyone ever. If there was no Tiger the PGA would be neck and neck with MLS and poker.

So going forward, should Tiger's morality and character remain in the spotlight, or should it be cast aside now that he's back to playing tournament golf?

It shouldn't but will. Only when he starts winning again will people forget about what he did to Elin.

But in the TMZ/National Enquirer world I don't know if it will ever go away. Even this week a huge story was his behavior on the course. There were videos of him swearing all over the blogosphere - you never would have seen that before the scandal dropped.

I do think the Tiger story will have legs unlike any other sports scandal seen before because the celeb media has caught onto it. He'll certainly be placed under a bigger microscope than before... and let's face it, he got a pass for his poor on-course behavior because of his performance, and people still considered him a role model because of his image. Now that his facade has been broken, he's open for more scrutiny in every aspect of his life.

Let's shift to Ben Roethlisberger and Santonio Holmes - should character issues take on a different form in a team sport?

No. And this is where Goodell deserves some credit, because football players no longer get a pass for being knuckleheads because they play a violent game.

It depends on who the player is. I think we clearly saw a difference and procedure and punishment depending who you were on the Steelers. Roethlisberger is still on the team and the Super Bowl MVP is gone for a 5th Round pick.

Agreed Yohey. Because Big Ben is a franchise QB, he's going to get a lot more chances and a longer leash than Holmes, no matter how many MVP's he's won. It shows an incredible double standard, but that's the reality of the situation... in spite of the absolutely terrible light that the new reports put him in.

But, it's not like this was Santonio Holmes' first run-in either. It's also hard to say which offense was worse or who "deserves" more punishment and accountability. They both screwed up.

It is fascinating though to hear how those character issues "affect the locker room" and that Big Ben might lose his leadership mantle, placed his career in jeopardy, etc.... when the same media does its best to remove any relation between Tiger's character and on-course performance.

Those are two completely different areas with Ben and Tiger. In football you need the other players to trust you. If they don't than the team won't perform as good as it could and you won't win. However, Tiger only has to worry about himself on the course. You don't need to be concerned with the conduct of others in golf, just yourself.

In all honesty though, golf needs Tiger a lot more than the NFL needs Big Ben. If Big Ben continues to act like a spoiled frat boy instead of the face of one of the league's premier franchises, he'll be dumped because nobody in the NFL is above the shield. Meanwhile, Tiger has to be protected to some degree because if the country turns its back on Tiger, it turns its back on the sport of golf at the same time.

I think that's it. Since Big Ben is the face of a team, franchise, and city that identifies with him, character becomes a much bigger issue in a team sport than in an individual sport. Tiger has no home fan base to answer to.

As with everything else, winning cures all. If the Steelers win then character issues go out the door, but if they start losing you'll see the Big Ben leadership questions start to rise again.

Coming up in Part II we'll take a look at some more tough questions regarding character in sports as we shift to focus more on Ben Roethlisberger, Santonio Holmes, Dez Bryant and many more hard-hitting topics. Bye for now...

For Whom The Bell Tolls, Big Ben

As a Browns fan I gleefully watch the downfall of any AFC North foe, on and off the field. The dilemma Ben Roethlisberger is in brings an added spice which makes it all extra nice, and yet, it's sad and makes me hate him just that much more.

It makes one wonder what went wrong as we take a look at his past:

2001-2003: Ben was at the helm of the Miami (OH) Redhawk offense, mounting a near 4:1 TD/INT differential and leading the Redhawks to a #10 ranking and GMAC Bowl victory over the Louisville Cardinals. Most of all, Ben began to garner serious recognition as the best QB amongst the lot in the 2004 NFL Draft.

2004: Ben was selected with the 11th overall pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers. The plan was to be Carson Palmer-esque; have the QB sit behind a servicable veteran to learn for the first season, then turn the reigns over to him in 2005. Lady luck had a different plan though for Ben, as Tommy Maddox suffered an injury in Week 2 and Ben had to play, and he did, quite well the rest of the season (15-0, AFC Championship appearance). Ben was NFL ROY and the future was so bright, as Timbuk3 said, he had to wear shades.

2005: Super Bowl victory, making him the yougest QB in Super Bowl history.

The precipitous descent:

-2006: Motorcycle accident where he wasn't wearing a helmet because, "it is just more free to ride without a helmet". He was later cited with not wearing a helmet and having proper certification.

- 2009: Lake Tahoe Hotel sexual assault charges. The jist of this charge was that, allegedly, Ben called down to have the woman come up to fix his TV. When she arrived up to his room the TV was fine. When she tried to leave, he blocked her, grabbed her and "had his way with her". There were conflicting accounts relating to the consent of the matter but it made many wonder why Ben put himself in those situations.

-2009: Locker room questions concerning his toughness after being held out of a game for a concussion.

2010: Ben is accused, again, of sexual assault of a 20-year old in a Georgia bar restroom. The true facts are not known since the DA is not prosecuting the case any further, but Ben did admit to some "contact" with the woman, whatever that may mean. It was said there wasn't enough DNA evidence to link Ben to the woman. Whatever may have happened, it has elicited a response from Mike Tomlin, stating he is very concerned about Ben and the franchise as well as a meeting with Don Roger. Ben most assuredly will be suspended for his 2nd run in with the law, at worst 4 games.

This issue runs deeper than 2 occurences of misconduct by Ben Roethlisberger. It speaks volumes to the immaturity and stupidity of this kid, and yes, I said kid. He is the face of the Steelers, a revered franchise due to the likes of Mean Joe Green, Terry Bradshaw, Jerome Bettis and current guys like Troy Polamalu and Hines Ward. He is 28 years old and needs to realize that if you are under scrutiny for one sexual misconduct accusation that having another is not going to help. He should have realized that he needs to stay away from that scene after Lake Tahoe, but he didn't. He is an arrogant child who does not have any common sense. He put his career in jeopardy climbing on that motorcycle, he put his career in jeopardy with Lake Tahoe; now, he is doing it after the Georgia inquiry.

I had little respect for Ben after the motorcycle accident when he was arrogant and unapologetic about it. I lost even more after Lake Tahoe - and now it is gone. Ben is nothing but a prick who has a lot of growing up to do. If you wear a Roethlisberger jersey, you must realize what that says about you, the fan. You are helping a POS make more money then he deserves; you are saying to everyone else that you have no sense of what Ben is doing to your favorite team; you are someone who I will laugh at, saying to myself that you are incredibly ignorant and oblivious (on top of being a Steeler fan). Ben was blessed with a great opportunity to be a Steeler; one of the NFL's greatest and storied franchises. It is just a shame that his name is going to be next to people the likes of Terry Bradshaw in the record books. Too bad you can't have an "*" next to Ben's name, because he fits the first syllable of asterisk perfectly...