I noticed something troubling about myself today - a lot of my evalution of NFL players is based on race, and I didn't even know it until I saw a photo of New York Jets' rookie Tight End Dustin Keller.
You see, I never saw Keller play in college. All I saw of him was a highlight package on ESPN the day he was drafted. I couldn't see his face in the highlights. All I saw was a Purdue uniform, and skin a bit on the lighter side. I thought Keller was white. I instantly became critical of this pick. "Great," I thought. "Another stiff at Tight End." Doug Jolley and Kyle Brady came to mind - both are white. Sure, I saw Keller making some nice plays...but you can make any collegiate player look good in a highlight package, especially given a lot of mediocre competition. In the Big Ten's case, you have Indiana and Northwestern. ESPN's hosts tell us how athletic and talented he is. Whatever.
Fast forward to this morning. I saw an article on NJ.com about how Keller has signed his contract, and is ready for camp. The page contains a photo of Keller stretching. What's this I see? He's black. Suddenly I shifted my evaluation of him to a more positive one. I automatically thought of him as more athletic, having more upside, and as simply a better football player than when I thought he was white. Only then did I realize I was guilty of this preconceived notion that white players are not as good. Is there something wrong with me? Or is this simply a product of seeing too many Doug Jolleys and Kyle Bradys come around?
...Or should I just call Jimmy the Greek or Al Campanis and ask them what they think?
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3 comments:
HAHA . . . I can't tell whether or not you're racist, probably not. Sadly, the athetic stereotype regarding african-american individuals is true. More often than not, black athletes are the better athletes. Dustin, believe it or not, is biratial, mixed with black (dad) and white (mom). Seen as black or white, Dustin Keller is one of the most phenomenal athletes you'll ever see!
Bill, don't worry. You're only a racist if you give David Eckstein credit for being awesome at baseball.
Because he's not.
Seeing as how he is biracial, it will have to come down to how he drives a car. [Simpson's 1F10]
This certainly can't wait for mid-September.
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