I like Jason Taylor. He’s a football player for the Miami Dolphins of the NFL. He’s pretty good at what he does on the field. And I like him even more now for something he didn’t do off of the field.
Dolphins’ Taylor attacked in ‘hate crime’ road incident
I was pleased to read that Jason kept his cool throughout the incident, because let’s face it. If he had wanted to, he probably could have broken his opponent in two. Instead he demonstrated an intelligence and rational behaviour that, unfortunately, a lot of people don’t display. And I mean everyone–not just high-profile athletes.
Which is why I say that I shouldn’t be impressed, but I am.
Part of the reason I like the NFL so much is that character counts. While there will always be players with bad attitudes and egos, many of the team owners try very hard to reward upstanding character. Players who can’t buy into the team concept or who get in trouble off of the field are often shown the door.
In this past weekend’s draft, some college players who are considered the best talents at their position dropped due to character issues. Most of them still got picked, of course, but a player’s rank in the draft influences their compensation. Simply put, teams don’t want to risk big contracts on players who might be a headache to deal with.
Thank you, Jason, for providing such a strong reminder. Character counts, regardless of your status, salary, or lack thereof.
I enjoyed where they list the relative sizes of the two. I know my first thought whenever I look *up* at a man half again my size is to attack him.