Like him or not, Richard Sherman makes some really good points about Cooper vs Jackson and how the Eagles front office dealt with both situations. He also gives some interesting insight into the concept of friends/family. For the record, I'm a fan of Richard Sherman have been for years and I'm glad he's taken the opportunity to write on MMQB for a while now.
http://mmqb.si.com/2014/04/02/richard-sherman-desean-jackson/
As the only Eagles fan in here I am aware of .. and as a fan with connections on the inside .. I feel the need to address this.
To begin: I have been super critical of Eagles brass for most of my life. It's hard not to be, after Reggie White and Brian Westbrook lol. But from what I know of money dealings inside, I am NOT a fan. I do not look at Eagles dealings through kelly green tinted glasses. I am also a huge fan of Jackson's point scoring and stats, but NOT a fan of the man, since his rookie year haha. But bear with me.
I really don't get why everyone is obsessed with the gang stuff. With no definitive proof either way, and with years of evidence of Jackson having a bad 'tude and disrespecting his teammates and coaches, and caring only about himself and his salary, I don't understand why everyone is so sure that gang rumors are the main reason why he got cut. NO coach, anywhere, will cut a player solely over RUMORS of gang ties. I find it more plausible that Elvis is alive and on the Moon than a pro sports coach cutting a star player solely over a RUMOR. You have to believe he tried to sit down with this guy and talk to him. Repeatedly, and to no avail, from what all reports indicate.
Based on what I observed/heard/witnessed of Jackson since he got to this team, he's been a distraction. He's got a bad attitude, and he is largely focused on "ME" and "MONEY". Kelly showed at Oregon that he (mostly) won't tolerate distractions, whether you are a star or not. Andy Reid mostly put up with Jackson's crap, despite benching him once, but the rumors of Jackson's demise as an Eagle began during his rookie year. And it was almost a certainty that he was gone after this season. It's not news to those of us in the area, but apparently this is news to the entire world.
Re: Sherman's points, the key difference here is that Jackson was not willing to admit to a problem, and Cooper was. Shortly after the incident went public, Cooper immediately released a statement, and announced he was seeking help for his problem. He sat down with the coaches multiple times, apologized multiple times, held team meetings to address the issue and talk to his teammates upfront about it, and went to counseling. Jackson, on the other hand, has been spoken to numerous times through the years about his problems (not showing up to practices, coming late, skipping/being late to meetings, being cocky on the field, etc.) and refused to work with the staff to address them. He whined about his money every season, and he had the biggest mouth of anyone on the team. And NEWS FLASH: the gang rumors were out and about for a few years now (dating back to the death threats incident in 2011). That report on Friday (given its timline with the cut announcement) may have been the final straw, but Eagles staff had spoken to Jackson earlier in the week about what the report was alledging. He was also spoken to numerous times about who he kept company with (gang or not) through the seasons. The difference here is that one player admitted to his issues and addressed them, and one did not. Their situations are not comparable based on what got them in trouble, but the way they chose to acknowledge and handle the situations ARE.
I don't care if you are black, white, whatever. You are an employee of an organization. You do what your boss tells you, you play your heart out, and you keep your nose clean. Of course there are issues that come out. If you address them, power to you. If you don't, and you continue to screw up, be prepared to face repercussions. If Cooper says he wants to kill n*****s again (drunk or sober), you bet your ass he is getting cut. You can bet that if he hadn't taken the initiative to work through his issues, he would have been cut. In addition, Chip Kelly, unlike Andy Reid, was unwilling to deal with an unruly player shaking up the team chemistry he was been working to build, who refused to work with him, and so he made the (what I can only imagine was an incredibly difficult) decision to cut him. They also tried to trade him for MONTHS. The Raiders wouldn't even give up a 6th rounder for him (pre-Schaub trade) .. And it wasn't a secret to the league that he is a problem player.
I love Sherman's passion but I think he is looking at the story from surface value (as is most of sports media). He makes some great points about players coming from certain backgrounds, but he does not touch on the main reason the Eagles wanted to part ways with Jackson: the ATTITUDE and the failure to man up and address it.
He's got nobody to blame but himself.
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http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/...sean_jackson_needs_to_look_in_the_mirror.html
"Is there someone in his corner that can tell him what he needs to hear?" [Brian] Dawkins asked.
Dawkins, who was a teammate of Jackson's during the receiver's rookie season in 2008, said Jackson can't blame others for his release.
"It's about the-man-in-the-mirror principal," Dawkins said. "Why is it that [the Eagles] are willing to let me walk? Are there things in my character, things that I need to change going forward? It's good to have this chip on your shoulder. He has it now."
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The timing of the report coming out on Friday was suspicious, and nobody thought we would cut him unless it really came down to NOBODY wanting a trade .. but nobody did. He was spoken to numerous times about being a team player and having a better attitude. He didn't change a thing. He did his thing. Which is fine, but not every coach is gonna tolerate it. And apparently, Chip Kelly does not.
Lastly .. I sincerely hope for his sake that he matures, and that he is not involved in any suspicious activity (though apparently the LAPD is clamming otherwise, but I don't exactly trust them lol). He is a VERY gifted athlete. I wish it had worked out here but c'est la vie. He's behind enemy lines now
inkbiggrin:
The ONE thing that actually bothers me about all of this, however, is the Eagles' lack of a public statement about the matter. It was announced swiftly on Friday that he was cut, but nothing else since. Very odd. Suspicious, if you ask me. A few players commented but what they said was not indicative of missing Jackson. But I find it very odd (and kind of gut-less) that Eagles brass is silent on the matter :shake:
