As the Truth sees it…

It is being reported that the St. Louis Rams reached an agreement with No. 1 overall pick Sam Bradford on a six-year, $78 million deal.
The deal contains $50 million of guarantees and has a max value of $86 million, according to ESPN.

First-Round Pick Signings

First-round picks are starting to sign. Here’s a breakdown of who’s under contract and who’s not. Blog

Last year, the Detroit Lions gave No. 1 overall pick Matthew Stafford a six-year deal that included $41.7 million in guaranteed money.

Dez Bryant caused quite a stir around the sport’s world Sunday. The rookie out of Oklahoma State passes on being hazed when fellow wide receiver Roy Williams told him to carry his pads after practice. Bryant decided that was not for him and spoke up about it.
“I’m not going to do it,” Bryant said. “I feel like I was drafted to play football, not carry another player’s pads. I just feel like I’m here to try to win a championship, not to carry no one else’s pads. It’s not disrespect or anything.”
This sign of disrespect didn’t sit well with many NFL veterans, who had to endure such ticky tack hazing during their rookie campaigns.
I think if it had been Miles Austin who had told Dez to carry his pads, he would have done it. But coming from where Miles came from, I don’t think he would ask. It’s normally arrogant primodonna who feel entitled that go all out on hazing. And Williams, a former Texas Longhorn, has had that entitled mentality since he arrived in Dallas.
A friend put it to me this way: “Roy might not be a Cowboy in a month. Dez will a Cowboy for at least 3 seasons. He doesn’t want to carry any scrubs’ pads, regardless of tradition. ”
If Bryant had just said “Forget Roy Williams. He’s a Longhorn and I’m not carrying his gear,” then he would be getting much less flack. I guarantee it.
Michael Kinney

First, former Dallas Cowboy coach Jimmy Johnson becomes a spokesman for EXTENZE and now he joins the tv show “Survivor” as a contestant. He must really not want to coach anymore.

I was one of those who fell into the trap. When I saw the initial story on Shirley Sherrod, I responded “that this shows that racism can come from anywhere.”
While that statement is still true, Sherrod was not at fault.
For those who may have missed the story of the day, Sherrod was forced to resign from her post with the Department of Agriculture after a video clip of her making a seemingly racist statement about not helping a white farmer to the best of her abilities was posted on a conservative website’s blog belonging to Andrew Breitbart.
Like me, the NAACP and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack overreacted. Instead of doing their due diligence, they reacted to the clip solely and didn’t do their homework. Without speaking to Sherrod, she said the White House asked her to hand in her resignation.
“They asked me to resign, and in fact they harassed me as I was driving back to the state office from West Point, Georgia, yesterday,” Sherrod told CNN.
However, Vilsack said it was his decision and his alone. But according to a White House official, President Barack Obama was briefed on the situation after Vilsack made his decision and reportedly supported the decision.
But this was before it was found out that the clip of Sherrod had been edited and her remarks were taken out of context. The entire video shows her telling the NAACP that she learned a lesson and that it’s not about race, but the have and have nots.
“I did not discriminate against [the farmer],” Sherrod said. “And, in fact, I went all out to frantically look for a lawyer at the last minute because the first lawyer we went to was not doing anything to really help him. In fact, that lawyer suggested they should just let the farm go.” She was able to find an attorney to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy to help the family stay on the farm.”
The NAACP admits they were snookered and has since apologized to Sherrod. But Vilsack said it doesn’t matter.
“This isn’t a situation where we are necessarily judgmental about the content of the statement, that’s not the issue here. I don’t believe this woman is a racist at all,” Vilsack said. “She’s a political appointee, and her job is basically to focus on job growth in Georgia, and I have deep concern about her ability to do her job without her judgments being second-guessed.”
What this does prove is that whenever people talk about race in America, instead of taking the time to listen and learn, we let emotions and fear take over our thought process. Sherrod’ boss and the White House allowed that to happen before finding out the entire story.
Hopefully, this can be rectified and Sherrod can get her job back. At the very least we can all learn from this and make it a teachable moment.
I know it has been for me.
Michael Kinney

I love the way people have changed their minds on George Steinbrenner now that he has passed on. Critics who used to say he was ruining baseball and buying World Series are now claiming he is the greatest owner in the history of sports.

I’m not saying they should drag his name through the mud, but at least  be honest. The fact that places around New York and other parts of the country are lowering their flags to half-staff is disrespectful to the people who actually mad this world a better place and didn’t get such an honor. He was a great owner and good for sports. But let’s not make him out to be a Saint.

When this entire NBA free agent summer began, I was disgusted with the way LeBron James had stolen all of the attention. For someone who has never won on any level, I was amazed he was getting so much attention.
However, as the days have rolled on, my disgust has moved from LBJ to much of the media outlets who have blown his team search frenzy to Brett Favre status of absurdness.
Yes, I am talking specifically about ESPN, who is giving LeBron a one-hour special tonight to announce his decision on what team he will sign with. I do not fault LBJ for wanting the attention. I may have done the same. But just as it has done with Favre, ESPN has sold its soul as a news organization and tilted even closer to being strictly an entertainment channel.
I will watch a portion of “The Decision,” as it is being billed, tonight. It’s newsworthy to find out where he is going and how that will affect the teams who have been competing for him. Especially if he heads to Miami to join Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh. But that is where my interest ends.
Yet, I’m sure the story will drag on throughout the summer and maybe even bleed into the start of football season. Hopefully then, we can get on with real action on the field, and not this fake drama off of it.