“Trust me when I tell you, it’s going to be bad blood this year. You think the NFC East didn’t like each other before? This year right here? There’s going to be a lot of fines and maybe some suspensions. I’m going to be honest with you: This [expletive] is going to get really ugly. Because I do have a safety (D.J. Swearinger) that don’t give a [expletive] and I definitely don’t. And I know they don’t have that many people on the offense who do on their side…
I’m letting all hell break loose.” – Josh Norman
This is what the NFL Needs. Someone talking direct trash in the middle with the intentions of actually backing it up on the field. Football is a very aggressive sport. You have 22 Men on a field either trying to tackle someone, jam someone, obtain the ball, or just physically dominate their opponent. In a league where you can barely celebrate or talk trash in media filled settings, Josh Norman’s comments are good, really good.
Why The NFL Needs It
In a league where players are fined $25k+ for talking about refs after games, player behavior is more uptight compared to other eras. Teams importantly plant mics and even staff in lockers to pick locker room talk and another commentary from players. It’s smart, keep the players under control. The league is still facing issues with its concussion lawsuit, Roger Goodell is tortured on a weekly basis, and the gameplay varies from season to season (which is not good).
But Norman’s comments reveals what’s so great about Football: Trash Talk. Norman used his platform and talked and talked a good game while he was doing it. It’s almost June and training camp is around the corner, which means that fans are feeling their ears to league news more often. And since Norman is a top star at his position, he has the skill level and promo cutting ability to catch those ears.
“Did you hear” is a common quote used in football lore and talk around the country. His comments are a conversation starter and maybe a warning to his opponents. Fans of Norman or not, he’s a topic of thousands of sports conversations. He’s best for business.
What It Means for the NFC East
For the NFC East, this means that this is Game ON. The Redskins were learned from the playoff race by a rival and another rival has the Number 1 Seed in the whole league. And that other rival, the Eagles, loaded up this roster in the offseason. Josh Norman is laying his battle lines for the season. In the NFC division that has the most party, the NFC is home to furious fans and even more furious games. NFC East games are always competitive and tense from kickoff.
Norman who’s entering his 2nd year in the Divison is adding fuel to the fire. A fire that should be burning in the player hearts all year long and it can’t for some players. Free Agency moves players around every year and thy are now in rivalries that they weren’t in last season, which hurts the importance of the game for both sides.
Due to that, words in the media and trash talk is fueling rivalries nowadays. What Norman did was clean and it’s interesting. Adds some spotlight to already heated matchups on the 2017 Schedule.
More Players Should Take Note
