Haynesworth: Just One Example of the NFL's Unfaithfulness

Albert Haynesworth signed with the Washington Redskins last season and was promised he’d be able to attack the quarterback. He was told that he would be given every opportunity to make plays in the 4-3 defense, whether it be at defensive tackle or at defensive end. Now, with new coaches Mike Shanahan and Jim Haslett implementing the 3-4 defense, Albert feels betrayed.

Does he have the right to be angry though?

Is Albert Haynesworth selfish? Yes, there’s no arguing that. But there’s this unwritten rule in the NFL where you have to be faithful to your franchise, your franchise doesn’t have to be faithful to you.

That’s a load of bullshit.

Last year, after their week five win over Kansas City, better known as Miles Austin’s breakout game, Patrick Crayton wasn’t even told he had been demoted to third wide receiver. It was just assumed he knew. That’s like you being outsold by some new guy at your sales job. And the next day when you show up to your shift, your boss looks at you funny. “You’ve been replaced by the new guy….what? I thought you knew!”

NFL Teams can cut you when they want (and only pay the bonuses, regardless of how long your contract was), they can bench you, they switch the scheme when they deem fit, and all of this has a big impact on the players’ livelihood.

This isn’t the NBA. There, when they hand you a contract, they mean it. You get a three-year deal with the Knicks, unless it’s bought out, you’re a Knick until otherwise told. DeAngelo Hall signed a seven-year contract with the Raiders in 2008…before they cut him seven weeks into the season, avoiding paying him a bonus that was going to be due in week eight.

Again, your franchise doesn’t have to be faithful to you.

Do you think a scheme has no effect on how you play? Or how much you’ll get paid?

“If you’re a star player, you’re a star, scheme has very little to do with it.” –Anonymous Friend of mine.

And a lot of people think that. I call those people; idiots.

Steve Young, NFL hall of famer, (you might’ve heard of him) was a Tampa Bay Buc before he was a Niner. Cedric Benson was a bust in Chicago before last year’s season with the Bengals. Kerry Collins took the Giants to the Superbowl after failing in Carolina, and then his downward spiral after leaving New York. Scheme matters people.

That’s why you see so many players holdout of minicamps. That’s the only leverage they have. Some have obviously outperformed their contracts. New York Jets’ Darrelle Revis is playing for about $1 million this year…the Redskins’ Carlos Rogers is getting $1.5 million….think about that for a second.

So all and all, Haynesworth is selfish, but someone has to take a stand against the unfaithfulness that the NFL teams display. The media likes to jump on the players for wanting more money, playing time, etc. Fact of the matter is, nobody jumps on these franchises for betraying them.