Good but bad might get ugly

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 04/09/2009 (5928 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Many, many moons ago, a football coach, while summing up the sorry state of his squad, came to the conclusion his outfit had “too many choirboys and not enough killers.”

His theory, held by most who wear the big headsets, goes something like this: Pro football is a violent game played by large men who are paid to put big-time hurt on their opponents. Oh sure, there is a certain amount of grace in a spectacular catch and a skill in deftly avoiding a would-be tackler, but this is primarily a contest featuring vicious collisions, spine-rattling tackles and the resulting snot bubbles, bruises and busted limbs.

Therefore, the more “killers” the better.

Maybe that’s why — indirectly, at least — the Winnipeg Blue Bombers were interested in the services of Adam (Pacman) Jones up until late Wednesday, even though the former NFL star had more red flags on his resumé than a Moscow May Day parade.

Oh sure, he’s hardly a candidate for the next cover of Choirboy Illustrated, but Jones — a 25-year-old cornerback/kick returner — is flat-out gifted.

And no matter how they spin it, every pro coach on the planet — be it Mike Kelly or Andy Reid, or Cal Murphy or Pinball Clemons before them — will always be enticed by talent first, character second.

That’s why a saint like Clemons was so willing to take a chance on so many sinners when he was the head coach of the Toronto Argonauts, feeling that he could give them the second chance that would lead them to redemption.

Occasionally, the goal of providing a haven for the wayward works (see: Mike Sellers), but more often it flames out miserably (hello, Onterrio Smith).

It’s also why Kelly and the Bombers took a chance on former Texas star Ramonce Taylor in training camp, only to have him apparently fall asleep in a team meeting after busting curfew the night before.

Hindsight

But here’s where it’s hard not to wonder if, given the benefit of hindsight, the Bombers haven’t learned a valuable lesson over the past few days and filed it away the next time a bad boy’s name comes up for discussion. You see, for all of Jones’ upside — and undoubtedly the coaching staff’s visions of him repeatedly tiptoeing through defenders on a punt return — there must have been the nagging concern that he would be about as welcome in the locker-room as dirt in a punch bowl.

And had they got a two-for-one bad-boy special and landed Charles Rogers as well — last jailed in March for violating his probation and once arrested after beating up the mother of four of his seven children — well, there would have been more need for a probation officer on staff than an offensive co-ordinator.

“I truly believe you have to look at each case individually,” Kelly explained Thursday.

“It took a lot watching what the (Philadelphia) Eagles did with Michael Vick, and certainly I have great respect for Andy Reid and his decision-making processes. Andy took that as a singular entity, looked at it and said, ‘This guy needs a second chance.’

“We looked at Adam and said, ‘Let’s see what this is really all about.’ Obviously, there’s a red flag up when 32 other (NFL) teams don’t do anything with a guy of his, particularly, punt-return talents. Those aren’t easy things to find.

“The red flag came up, but then we wanted to see why. Has the guy humbled? Does he realize this is an opportunity for him to rejuvenate his career? And does he respect this league and our team? You look at all those things and try to combine them together and then make your determination from there.”

Jones, based on the video evidence of his bizarre online chat posted earlier this week, gets a series of big, fat Fs on all the above.

But our point, then, is: Why bother with the Pacmans of the football world?

That’s not to say you run away from every player with a checkered past or a skeleton in his closet, but for every wack job who can’t figure out if he’s signing in the UFL or CFL, there are dozens of others just itching for a chance to play. Guys like the infectious Jonathan Hefney, an emerging star in the Bomber secondary. Or defensive lineman Dorian Smith, who leads the club in sacks.

Those are the players the Bombers should seek out from their database, slap on their negotiation list and chase after, contract in hand.

Resist the urge, we say, and purge the scourge.

ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca