James Harrison is football player through and through. He’s a menace on defence and I would bet that if he’s not on the field laying guys flat, Harrison isn’t a happy camper. The worst thing anyone could do is ask James Harrison why he’s mad. Too late.
James Harrison of the Pittsburgh Steelers doesn’t like NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, that’s no secret. Harrison’s hate for Goodell was only intensified after Goodell fined at total of 100K for illegal hits last season. At one point Harrison threatened to retire, feeling like the league and Goodell weren’t allowing him to play his game.
With the NFL Lockout in full swing, instead of making illegal hits on the field, Harrison is now taking his shots at the commissioner off the field. In an interview with Men’s Journal Magazine, Harrison ripped Goodell to shreds. After calling Goodell a puppet, a crook, the devil and used a gay slur, Harrison added possibly the quote of the year saying, “If that man was on fire and I had to piss to put him out, I wouldn’t do it. I hate him and will never respect him.”
Of course Harrison is entitled to his opinion, but the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Rooney family owners, which are one of the most respected owners in the league certainly can’t be pleased. And if the Steelers weren’t pleased with Harrison’s comments towards Goodell, they certainly won’t appreciate the shots Harrison took at his teammates, including Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger.
According to the interview in the August issue of Men’s Journal Magazine, Harrison called Rashard Mendenhall a “fumble machine” then proceeded to say about Roethlisberger, “Hey, at least throw a pick on their side of the field instead of asking the D to bail you out again. Or hand the ball off and stop trying to act like Peyton Manning. You ain’t that and you know it, man; you just get paid like he does.”
Those are more than strong words. Those are trade me words.
This type of banter from players just makes true NFL fans miss the game even more. There’s nothing like smack talk in the NFL, actually let me rephrase that, there’s nothing like smack talk in the NFL when there’s games to be played to force players to back it up. Enough of the NFL soap opera, these two sides need to get a deal done.
Again, another opportunity for sportsbooks to try and squeeze a little more juice out of the NFL with offerings on whether Harrison will be a Steeler next year, that is, if there is a next year.
