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You get one NFL Truth today. Watching Chad Johnson and Larry Johnson undermine their respective head coaches, Marvin Lewis and Herm Edwards, on Sunday gave me a singular focus, forced me to contemplate an uncomfortable truth. 
African-American football players caught up in the rebellion and buffoonery of hip hop culture have given NFL owners and coaches a justifiable reason to whiten their rosters. That will be the legacy left by Chad, Larry and Tank Johnson, Pacman Jones, Terrell Owens, Michael Vick and all the other football bojanglers.

In terms of opportunity for American-born black athletes, they're going to leave the game in far worse shape than they found it.   It's already starting to happen. A little-publicized fact is that the Colts and the Patriots — the league's model franchises — are two of the whitest teams in the NFL. If you count rookie receiver Anthony Gonzalez, the Colts opened the season with an NFL-high 24 white players on their 53-man roster. Toss in linebacker Naivote Taulawakeiaho "Freddie" Keiaho and 47 percent of Tony Dungy's defending Super Bowl-champion roster is non-African-American. Bill Belichick's Patriots are nearly as white, boasting a 23-man non-African-American roster, counting linebacker Tiaina "Junior" Seau and backup quarterback Matt Gutierrez.

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ORIGINAL: The Article
I'm sure when we look up 10 years from now and 50 percent — rather than 70 percent — of NFL rosters are African-American, some Al Sharpton wannabe is going to blame the decline on a white-racist plot.
Race is not the determining factor when it comes to having a good or bad attitude. Culture is.
Hip hop is the dominant culture for black youth. In general, music, especially hip hop music, is rebellious for no good reason other than to make money. Rappers and rockers are not trying to fix problems. They create problems for attention.
That philosophy, attitude and behavior go against everything football coaches stand for. They're in a constant battle to squash rebellion, dissent and second opinions from their players.
What we're witnessing today are purposeless, selfish acts of buffoonery. Sensible people have grown tired of it. Football people are recognizing it doesn't contribute to a winning environment.

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ORIGINAL: Comments
Great article, it is true what Whitlock says and I think the BLEEP these players pull on the sidelines needs to stop, I wish I could get paid millions to act like a jerk and have a job that millions of others would do for millions less and enjoy the game for the game. These players need to remember why they play in the first place.

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ORIGINAL: Comments
It all starts in the over-exposure these players get in college and sometimes, high school. I'm still amazed that almost every community shows high school football games on TV. These players are thrust into the spotlight way too early. They have things handed to them that the Jim Brown's and Walter Payton's had to earn in the past. College Football is a joke. The money that TV feeds these programs is way out of hand. When NBC gave Notre Dame an exclusive contract, I stopped watching or caring. Teach these athletes the value of winning and losing and being a team player first, not how to get the most camera time.

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ORIGINAL: Comments
Touche, i think Whitlock hit the mark exactly. Its really been a developing issue for some time now, and what people see to be happening now is the results. Discipline is sacrificed for talent and talent is like a check waiting to be cashed for NFL teams. This type of discipline starts early. How many people notice the social changes as early as high school when football players already begin to set themselves apart from the rest. Its like a new breed, if your not a celebrity your an NFL player, meaning highly hip-hop influenced.

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ORIGINAL: Comments
Couldn't agree more. If a white person had written this article it would have been labeled racist. Though in this regaurd there have been many model black players such as Barry Sanders, & Earl Campbell. It seems to me that the black athlete is holding themselves back with all this shinanigans, and blaiming white America. These stupid players are setting the example for future black athletes, so I see no end in sight.

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A little-publicized fact is that the Colts and the Patriots — the league's model franchises — are two of the whitest teams in the NFL

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Now the players are despicable thugs and don't get a moment of my time.

The same thing is happening to the NFL and College Ball.

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ORIGINAL: KatyLied

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A little-publicized fact is that the Colts and the Patriots — the league's model franchises — are two of the whitest teams in the NFL

Wow, I didn't realize that.

"buffoonery"and "bojanglers" where did this article come from?

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ORIGINAL: KatyLied

Oh, Level, I meant it in a more rhetorical sense.  Not an actual who-wrote-this sense.  If the guy is just now figuring out that there are too many goofy criminals in the NFL, he's a bit late to the dance and has already missed the spiked punch.

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CINCINNATI - Chad Johnson says he won't draw excessive attention to himself Sunday. 
Quit laughing.

The Bengals wide receiver knows his flamboyance and demonstrative on-field antics are perceived as hurting his 1-4 team. So Johnson told FOXSports.com there will be none of his trademark theatrics if he scores Sunday against the visiting New York Jets.   "I'm all about fun and entertainment," Johnson said Friday. "But when you try to lump me in that category as selfish and all this other stuff, no. I've got to turn it into a positive.   "The only way to do that is out there on Sunday. Believe me, I am. No celebrations, no entertainment."