Two great quarterbacks, who have been able to become stars in the NFL, playing two entirely different ways.
The media set them up like this: Manning is old school. He plays the right way, and says the right things. He throws a touchdown and jogs off the field. Newton is new school. He is brash, cocky, and emotional. He throws a touchdown and dabs and dances.
Critics of Newton hate his behavior, and wished he could be as professional and as humble as Manning.
A lot of black folks will tell you all of that was nothing but racial code. Newton is the arrogant black guy, who once stole a laptop computer in college. Meanwhile, Manning is the humble, white guy. He is the model athlete. But is he?
Consider how many times you have heard about Newton’s theft of a computer in college, and compare it to the number of times you’ve heard about Peyton Manning’s sexual assault case.
Peyton Manning sexual assault?
I am sure that for a lot of you, this is probably the first time you heard Manning had sexual assault case. Therein lies the difference how some athletes are treated, compared to others.
A stunning, scathing, piece in the New York Daily News entitled (‘Peyton Manning’s Squeaky Clean Image Built On Lies’) and written by columnist Shaun King, shatters Manning’s All-American image to pieces. It details his relationship with the professor during his college days at the University of Tennessee 1994-98. King’s story is built on solid evidence from court records, that shed a totally different light on Manning, who as seen by many as the ‘All-American Athlete’, and has been an advertisers dream.
In 1996, Manning is accused of sexual assault by Dr. Jamie Naughright, who was the Director of Health and Wellness for men’s athletics at Tennessee.
Naughright reported Manning to the Sexual Assault Center, after he allegedly put his penis, testicles and rectum, in her facial area, as she was bending over to examine his foot. But the allegations, not surprisingly, did not go anywhere. Manning was/is beloved at Tennessee. There is no doubt in my mind that he could have run for governor in Tennessee then, and even now, and win. So, it is not surprising the story didn’t go anywhere while he was in Knoxville. Peyton, and his father, Archie, the NFL Hall of Fame quarterback, accused Naughright of sleeping with black athletes on campus.
What this really talks about is the double-standards that follow athletes. Amazingly, in 2003, USA Today actually had the 74-page court documents, and wrote all of two stories about it. But, again, no one really moved the story forward. It seemed very few people in the media were interested in taking down Peyton Manning, a media darling. You would think that Manning’s story would’ve been covered like Adrian Peterson’s child abuse story was covered. After all, they are both NFL superstars.
The only real difference is one is black, and one is white. Linked HERE is the New York Daily News article, which also include the court documents, and also a news report. Also linked is a video that offers more in depth information.
