News: NFL Network suspends Brian Baldinger for suggesting bounty on Zeke

[LandryFan]

I think it's ridiculous and just another example of the punishment not fitting the crime for the NFL.

He didn't say anything worth not earning a paycheck for half a year.

I agree. But again, a person in his position has to be mindful of his words. Words are everything in the sports commentator business, especially when you're employed by the league, itself. He got screwed, but he also could easily have avoided it by choosing better words.

 

[DeaconMoss]

 

[CATCH17]

if Brian Baldinger is severely financially damaged for not receiving a paycheck for 6 months, he has more prominent issues than his irresponsible comments and subsequent suspension

it's hilarious that some of you actually have sympathy for this clown

I would have sympathy for any man or woman that got suspended without pay for half a year for something so stupid.

 

[theebs]

whether he was "in character" or speaking from his own opinion is irrelevant

not to me. I listen to sports radio all the time. The ticket makes fun of everyone, judging from baldingers punishment Gordon should have been fired years ago here in Dallas on the ticket. The fan does these exact things to other teams and players all the time.

its a foolish punishment. They should have just made him apologize and warned him.

 

[Stash]

Undeserving and over the top. He was doing a character, a pretend version of jim schwartz and what he should say.

The ticket here in Dallas makes fun of everyone and does the same thing every single day, there are subtle differences but its essentially the same.

Do they work for a league being sued for billions of dollars over player safety?

Do they advocate "bounties" or "taking people out"?

You were wrong then and you're wrong now.

 

[Doomsay]

6 months! Wow!

He's basically gone for the entire football season. I'm willing to bet that's the end of his career on NFL Network.

Hopefully!

 

[Stash]

I would have sympathy for any man or woman that got suspended without pay for half a year for something so stupid.

He said it of his own free (and stupid) will. He has freedom of speech and employers have freedom to discipline their employees.

 

[theebs]

Do they work for a league being sued for billions of dollars over player safety?

Do they advocate "bounties" or "taking people out"?

You were wrong then and you're wrong now.

I think you are wrong and being overly sensitive. This was him doing a character on philly radio during Dallas week.

Rick Walker who works for the Commanders and is part of their radio broadcast had a video saying beat Dallas or die before the game in week 2. Thats just as dumb as baldinger doing a character.

 

[Oh_Canada]

Sure but the punishment doesn't fit the crime..


Just more proof of how soft our society is.

Advocating injuring players as a member of the media owned by the owners of the league is an agrevious mistake and should have been punished. It has zero to do with being "soft". If your boss told a coworker that he should "knee cap" would you be fine with it?

 

[Reality]

So he deserves to be suspended without pay for 6 months for a stupid comment?

I do not think it was worthy of a 6 month suspension. If he said it on live TV in a heavily watched game, then maybe I could see the NFL needing to set an example, less so for the moral reasons and more so for PR reasons. The suspension should have been more like 2-4 weeks in my opinion.

That said, I think the NFL probably believed they had to go with something like 6 months specifically because of the Saints bountygate suspensions being 1 year.

 

[Clove]

hahaha, finally something good. This isn't 1989 anymore, no more bounties and crap like that.

 

[Cowboys22]

Daaaaaang.


I think that is absolutely ridiculous to suspend the guy from his job for that long. He didn't say anything that bad.

You are looking at "his job" all wrong. His job is not a normal job that you get hired for, show up every day, and collect your paycheck on payday. He is an on air talent with a contract. That contract has 100's of clauses that he must adhere to. You do know that the NFL Network is owned by the NFL don't you? So here you have an NFL employee basically encouraging a team to do something that is 100% against league rules and the exact thing the league spent tons of money in lawyers fees trying to uphold and got tons of bad press from a team doing this exact thing. He's lucky he wasn't fired on the spot. They probably would have but some clause in his contract saved him as 6 months without pay was the most they could do. Its not ridiculous at all.

 

[slick325]

6 months???? Wow!

 

[Stash]

I think you are wrong and being overly sensitive. This was him doing a character on philly radio during Dallas week.

Really? What was his "character"'s name? What was the "role" he was playing? I listened to it and there were never any disclaimers to anything he said. He was being himself - an idiot. An idiot pandering to a lowlife fanbase.

Rick Walker who works for the Commanders and is part of their radio broadcast had a video saying beat Dallas or die before the game in week 2. Thats just as dumb as baldinger doing a character.

Does Rick Walker work for the NFL? Again, no he doesn't. A fact you continue to try to ignore. The rest of us aren't. And Walker didn't advocate killing someone else, did he? He didn't use the word "bounty", did he?

Your bad examples to try to justify Baldinger's stupidity don't fit.

 

[phildadon86]

So he deserves to be suspended without pay for 6 months for a stupid comment?

We got a cap penalty for spending in an uncapped year........

 

[65fastback2plus2]

I do not think it was worthy of a 6 month suspension. If he said in on live TV in a heavily watched game, then maybe I could see the NFL needing to set an example, less so for the moral reasons and more so for PR reasons. The suspension should have been more like 2-4 weeks in my opinion.

That said, I think the NFL probably believed they had to go with something like 6 months specifically because of the Saints bountygate suspensions being 1 year.

ya, 2-4 weeks tops

 

[Direwolf63]

not to me. I listen to sports radio all the time. The ticket makes fun of everyone, judging from baldingers punishment Gordon should have been fired years ago here in Dallas on the ticket. The fan does these exact things to other teams and players all the time.

its a foolish punishment. They should have just made him apologize and warned him.

Do they work for the NFL?

The league has serious liability issues regarding concussions and general player safety issues. They cannot have someone employed by them speaking openly about injuring other players and bounties and the like. The NFL could be liable if something happened to Elliott because of a cheap shot or whatever. I wouls submit that lawyers working for the NFL had a lot to do with what happened to Baldinger.

 

[theebs]

Really? What was his "character"'s name? What was the "role" he was playing? I listened to it and there were never any disclaimers to anything he said. He was being himself - an idiot. An idiot pandering to a lowlife fanbase.



Does Rick Walker work for the NFL? Again, no he doesn't. A fact you continue to try to ignore. The rest of us aren't. And Walker didn't advocate killing someone else, did he? He didn't use the word "bounty", did he?

Your bad examples to try to justify Baldinger's stupidity don't fit.

his character as he was requested to play was If you were jim schwartz how would you motivate your defense, give us the pep talk you would give them. That was the character, Jim schwartz giving a motivational speech.

Rick walker works for the Commanders. He said beat dallas or die. Implying violence and he was not doing any character.

 

[mattjames2010]

Again, nuance is dead. Outrage culture at it's finest.

 

[theebs]

Do they work for the NFL?

nope. But what baldinger did on the radio had nothing to do with his TV work.