Sporting events have been getting quite political in 2014.
Just this week, prior to the Denver Broncos taking on the Cincinnati Bengals on “Monday Night Football,” Hall of Fame quarterback Steve Young raised some eyebrows when he used the word “dictator” in a sentence mentioning President Obama and an NFL quarterback.
Young, the former San Francisco quarterback who’s a direct descendant of Brigham Young, was asked how Denver quarterback Peyton Manning would deal with the disguises put forth by the Bengals’ defense.
“Watch for Peyton to speak to the nation, as the president of the United States would speak to the nation tonight,” said Young, now an ESPN analyst. “And tell them, ‘I am the dictator! I am the one that’s gonna take care of everything.”
Watch the video:
[jwplayer QRym1Ava]
The comment is getting plenty of reaction online.
“The truth hurts!” exclaimed Jim Roscovius.
“Good call ,Steve, good call,” said J.P. Schlader.
Justin Baragona of PoliticsUSA writes: “In all likelihood, Young was just trying to make some kind of football to real-life comparison, and it came off awkwardly awful. He probably wrote down some notes about Manning before the segment and knew he wanted to suggest that Manning is THE MAN for Denver, if not the NFL. Therefore, why not use the highest office in the land for his analogy?
“However, by him tossing out ‘dictator’ while discussing the presidency, it probably reveals a little bit about Young and his politics. Ask any red-blooded Republican what they think of President Obama, and the word dictator will be within the first five words you hear. While Young has generally stayed out of the fray politically, he is a devout Mormon and did speak at the Republican National Convention in 2000.”
But other politicos believe Baragona’s analysis is completely out of bounds.
Karl Leuba explained: “In this case Steve Young predicted that Peyton would declare himself dictator. Young said the president and Peyton would both speak. He did not say the president would call himself ‘The dictator,’ he said Peyton would call himself that. Justin Baragona gets a D-minus for reading comprehension.”
And Joe Smith noted, “Steve Young didn’t actually say that President Obama was a dictator. He never says that. He referred to Peyton Manning taking control of the field, though, as a dictator. Listen to the video. Listen to what he said. Steve Young may be a Republican, but it’s quite a liberal stretch to fabricate the supposition that he’s calling President Obama a dictator. He never ever says that statement.”
