In light of all the attention the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals received for the bad blood displayed late in Saturday's wild-card playoff game, there is at least one NFL player who kills his opponents with kindness.
Several NFL cornerbacks described in an article published Wednesday by the Wall Street Journal just how nice Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald is on the field. Instead of colorfully describing how he's about to beat them on the field, Fitzgerald asks about their families.
At least one player said the polite talk throws him off his game, like a boxer expecting a punch but getting a high-five.
"He played against my brothers for years. He knew my whole family, so he asked about that," Atlanta Falcons cornerback Desmond Trufant told the Journal. "There was all this casual talk. I was thrown off. I'm trying to focus and he's being a real good dude."
Fitzgerald, 32, has never been one to brag. After Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman dealt payback to Cardinals second-year wide receiver John Brown for preseason comments about who could cover whom, another Cardinals receiver joked that Fitzgerald probably would have just said that Sherman is the best in the game and anyone is lucky to catch a ball against him.
"I'm just one of the guys, honestly," Fitzgerald said. "Guys talk crazy to me. I don't usually say anything. We're talking just regular."
To Fitzgerald, opposing players are not mortal enemies but fellow professionals who are all members of the same union.
"I'm not trying to hurt anybody or do anything malicious, but at the end of the day, I've got a family to feed, just like he does," Fitzgerald said. "We're going to go out there and we're going to give it our best, and the best man's going to win. But I think there's a professionalism you can take to it, and I just try to be respectful of the game and be respectful of the players that play it."
Lost in translation
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman spoke to the Calgary, Alberta, Chamber of Commerce on Monday on the need for a $900 million stadium project known as CalgaryNext to be built immediately. After Bettman's speech, Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi was quick to pump the brakes.
In late December, Nenshi made it clear that the project was just an idea and would take much consideration before becoming a reality.
"I'm having trouble understanding why there hasn't been further progress on CalgaryNext," Bettman said during his speech, according to CalgaryBuzz.com.
"I don't know why anyone would think this is surprising or news," Nenshi told the website after the speech. "This is the man's job. This is what he does. Perhaps in other cities that he has come to, the city councils have just written checks based on back-of-the-napkin proposals without any consultation to the public or without any analysis. That's not how we operate here.
"I know that Calgarians require very wealthy people from New York to come and tell us what we need to do in our community because they understand vibrancy better than we do."
Bettman requested a meeting with Nenshi on Tuesday, but was turned down.
Sports quiz
How long has Gary Bettman served as NHL Commissioner?
Answer
Nearly 23 years. Bettman took office on Feb. 1, 1993.
Sports on 01/15/2016