[Redrum]

Wasn't feeling too much sympathy for the guy because:  a) He's a domer  b) He willingly participated in the source of his troubles  c)  Some of the parody and humor surrounding Te'o was wicked good and I'm as shallow as everyone else.

But now I genuinely think it's gone too far.  Yahoo News runs on its headline page:  "Can teams ask if Manti Te'o is gay? Depends on which teams are doing the asking."  The article then goes on to explain the legal and permissible limits to what teams can do to probe into a draftee's personal life.  But that is misdirection.  The whole reason it's up there is the name (and fame) of  Te'o and the frisson of speculating on his sexual orientation.  They can argue that he's a public figure.  They can argue that the larger subject is legit.  But what they're really doing is simultaneously leveraging off his public profile and posing a question that has no business being published as it is.  Because it's really about being gay and whether Manti Te'o is, indeed, gay.  By couching it as a question about whether teams can find out about his sexual orientation just gives Yahoo cover.

Why did they not put Matt Barkley there and discuss if teams can ask if he's gay?    Why not put Zach Ertz or  Robert Griffin III there and similarly speculate whether they're gay?  It's not a legitimate speculation for public publishing for those guys and Te'o.  So, the unthinkable has happened.  The Manti Te'o thing has jumped the shark.

The only redeeming aspect ?  It's on Yahoo News,  so hardly anybody will read it.

I'm posting the link reluctantly and hope you won't go to Yahoo.  http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nfl--can-nf...157625.htm

[Redrum]

Wasn't feeling too much sympathy for the guy because:  a) He's a domer  b) He willingly participated in the source of his troubles  c)  Some of the parody and humor surrounding Te'o was wicked good and I'm as shallow as everyone else.

But now I genuinely think it's gone too far.  Yahoo News runs on its headline page:  "Can teams ask if Manti Te'o is gay? Depends on which teams are doing the asking."  The article then goes on to explain the legal and permissible limits to what teams can do to probe into a draftee's personal life.  But that is misdirection.  The whole reason it's up there is the name (and fame) of  Te'o and the frisson of speculating on his sexual orientation.  They can argue that he's a public figure.  They can argue that the larger subject is legit.  But what they're really doing is simultaneously leveraging off his public profile and posing a question that has no business being published as it is.  Because it's really about being gay and whether Manti Te'o is, indeed, gay.  By couching it as a question about whether teams can find out about his sexual orientation just gives Yahoo cover.

Why did they not put Matt Barkley there and discuss if teams can ask if he's gay?    Why not put Zach Ertz or  Robert Griffin III there and similarly speculate whether they're gay?  It's not a legitimate speculation for public publishing for those guys and Te'o.  So, the unthinkable has happened.  The Manti Te'o thing has jumped the shark.

The only redeeming aspect ?  It's on Yahoo News,  so hardly anybody will read it.

I'm posting the link reluctantly and hope you won't go to Yahoo.  http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nfl--can-nf...157625.htm

[stupac2]

Supposedly some team (I think it was the Cardinals) asked DeCastro something so provocative that he nearly flipped the table, and after that took him off their board. (I don't remember what the question was.) The goal was to find out if he was a hothead, and question answered.

I would imagine that part of being a really good agent is preparing players adequate for the nearly abusive questioning, because it's going to be coming.

[stupac2]

Supposedly some team (I think it was the Cardinals) asked DeCastro something so provocative that he nearly flipped the table, and after that took him off their board. (I don't remember what the question was.) The goal was to find out if he was a hothead, and question answered.

I would imagine that part of being a really good agent is preparing players adequate for the nearly abusive questioning, because it's going to be coming.

[Farm93]

My questions?
You ran a 4.82!  Dude, that's slow, especially since you dropped some lbs which should have helped your 40 time and vert.  The NFL Networks team asked you what you were running at your training facility.  You told the NFL Networks team that you have been running "close to 4.7s.  4.6s."

Son, I know you are willing to believe almost anything and then say anything to avoid tough situations.  But here at (insert City or team Mascot) we expect honesty.  What days did you run in the 4.6s?  If we gave you 10 tries today, here at our facility, could you get a 4.6 something time today?

In the end I think an alarming pattern was revealed at the NFL Combine.  When faced with an embarrassing situation Te'o is prone to lie to avoid what might be embarrassing.  Even if the lie is rather easy to verify.  FWIW, I highly doubt Te'o has run in the 4.6s without a massive tailwind in the last 3 months.

But hey, I also thought it was impossible that any young mega-star football player would spend 5-8 hours per night talking to a "girl" he never met.  So what do I know.

[Farm93]

My questions?
You ran a 4.82!  Dude, that's slow, especially since you dropped some lbs which should have helped your 40 time and vert.  The NFL Networks team asked you what you were running at your training facility.  You told the NFL Networks team that you have been running "close to 4.7s.  4.6s."

Son, I know you are willing to believe almost anything and then say anything to avoid tough situations.  But here at (insert City or team Mascot) we expect honesty.  What days did you run in the 4.6s?  If we gave you 10 tries today, here at our facility, could you get a 4.6 something time today?

In the end I think an alarming pattern was revealed at the NFL Combine.  When faced with an embarrassing situation Te'o is prone to lie to avoid what might be embarrassing.  Even if the lie is rather easy to verify.  FWIW, I highly doubt Te'o has run in the 4.6s without a massive tailwind in the last 3 months.

But hey, I also thought it was impossible that any young mega-star football player would spend 5-8 hours per night talking to a "girl" he never met.  So what do I know.

[Kathy]

NFL is looking into it ...

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl...s/1951703/

[Kathy]

NFL is looking into it ...

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl...s/1951703/

[washingtonismoney]

Supposedly some team (I think it was the Cardinals) asked DeCastro something so provocative that he nearly flipped the table, and after that took him off their board.

Well, the process meant the legendarily successful Arizona Cardinals didn't draft him, while the perpetual, almost 59er-esque losers Steelers did. A clear sign of the efficacy of such questions. Clearly.

[washingtonismoney]

Supposedly some team (I think it was the Cardinals) asked DeCastro something so provocative that he nearly flipped the table, and after that took him off their board.

Well, the process meant the legendarily successful Arizona Cardinals didn't draft him, while the perpetual, almost 59er-esque losers Steelers did. A clear sign of the efficacy of such questions. Clearly.

[stupac2]

Well, the process meant the legendarily successful Arizona Cardinals didn't draft him, while the perpetual, almost 59er-esque losers Steelers did. A clear sign of the efficacy of such questions. Clearly.

I was never endorsing the efficacy of the idea, just relating a story about a player we all know. Hard to say for certain what the relationship is between those types of interrogation methods and player success, but my guess would be that it's far too dependent on other things to be meaningful.

[stupac2]

Well, the process meant the legendarily successful Arizona Cardinals didn't draft him, while the perpetual, almost 59er-esque losers Steelers did. A clear sign of the efficacy of such questions. Clearly.

I was never endorsing the efficacy of the idea, just relating a story about a player we all know. Hard to say for certain what the relationship is between those types of interrogation methods and player success, but my guess would be that it's far too dependent on other things to be meaningful.

[cardfan09]

Obviously a wise decision by the Cardinals
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1mkVwZ6_H4

[cardfan09]

Obviously a wise decision by the Cardinals
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1mkVwZ6_H4

[washingtonismoney]

I was never endorsing the efficacy of the idea, just relating a story about a player we all know.

Not saying you were, just an opportunity to make a joke. And a point. While causation is difficult here, it seems to me people who think long about this sort of thing are overthinking. I mean, duh, David DeCastro. Taking him off your board because he didn't like your stupid question is stupid.

[washingtonismoney]

I was never endorsing the efficacy of the idea, just relating a story about a player we all know.

Not saying you were, just an opportunity to make a joke. And a point. While causation is difficult here, it seems to me people who think long about this sort of thing are overthinking. I mean, duh, David DeCastro. Taking him off your board because he didn't like your stupid question is stupid.

[Kathy]

Actually, we don't know what they were up to, or even know the question interviewers asked DeCastro. All that's been related here is a story that "Supposedly some team (I think it was the Cardinals) asked DeCastro something so provocative that he nearly flipped the table, and after that took him off their board."

These interviews are conducted in private. Did a team's interviewers actually ask Te'o point blank about his sexual preference, or is this merely conjecture from the fake girlfriend story that just won't go away (and, the cynic in me wonders, maybe a little more publicity leaking & whining by those in the Te'o camp)? The ProFootballTalk.com report implies an inference, as an "elephant in the room" usually is an unspoken issue hanging in the air that people avoid discussing or acknowledging. So is this just Florio's perception?

There was a report from ProFootballTalk.com's Mike Florio, speaking on The Dan Patrick Show, saying the "elephant in the room" was teams' desire to know if Te'o was gay and if his relationship with Lennay Kekua, who didn't exist, was some form of cover-up for his sexuality."

The comments by the Colorado player, Nick Kasa, set me to wondering ... stories claim Kasa was asked if he was a heterosexual, but Kasa's quote indicates a more roundabout line of questioning:

“They ask you like, ‘Do you have a girlfriend?’  Are you married?’  Do you like girls?’” Kasa told ESPN Radio Denver on Tuesday.  “Those kinds of things, and you know it was just kind of weird.  But they would ask you with a straight face, and it’s a pretty weird experience altogether.”

When I edit copy such as this, I want the reporter to state exactly what was said. Reporters aren't mind readers -- just give me the facts, and keep your undocumented perceptions to yourself.

[Kathy]

Actually, we don't know what they were up to, or even know the question interviewers asked DeCastro. All that's been related here is a story that "Supposedly some team (I think it was the Cardinals) asked DeCastro something so provocative that he nearly flipped the table, and after that took him off their board."

These interviews are conducted in private. Did a team's interviewers actually ask Te'o point blank about his sexual preference, or is this merely conjecture from the fake girlfriend story that just won't go away (and, the cynic in me wonders, maybe a little more publicity leaking & whining by those in the Te'o camp)? The ProFootballTalk.com report implies an inference, as an "elephant in the room" usually is an unspoken issue hanging in the air that people avoid discussing or acknowledging. So is this just Florio's perception?

There was a report from ProFootballTalk.com's Mike Florio, speaking on The Dan Patrick Show, saying the "elephant in the room" was teams' desire to know if Te'o was gay and if his relationship with Lennay Kekua, who didn't exist, was some form of cover-up for his sexuality."

The comments by the Colorado player, Nick Kasa, set me to wondering ... stories claim Kasa was asked if he was a heterosexual, but Kasa's quote indicates a more roundabout line of questioning:

“They ask you like, ‘Do you have a girlfriend?’  Are you married?’  Do you like girls?’” Kasa told ESPN Radio Denver on Tuesday.  “Those kinds of things, and you know it was just kind of weird.  But they would ask you with a straight face, and it’s a pretty weird experience altogether.”

When I edit copy such as this, I want the reporter to state exactly what was said. Reporters aren't mind readers -- just give me the facts, and keep your undocumented perceptions to yourself.

[fullmetal]

Why would anyone ask an anger-provoking question to a 6'6" offensive guard?  The kind of person who represents a really shoddy NFL team, I suppose.

[fullmetal]

Why would anyone ask an anger-provoking question to a 6'6" offensive guard?  The kind of person who represents a really shoddy NFL team, I suppose.