Manny and T.O: Such Irony!

Few athletes rile up the boo-birds like Manny Ramirez and Terrell Owens. Justifiably so, few players have the talent and ability to perform in the clutch they do; however, at what cost? In a sports culture where winning appears to be everything and fans pay dearly to bestow their admiration on their teams' top performers, teams coddle their boorish babies rather than confront them. The NFL has faced the embarrassment of several teams noted for the constant stream of players in trouble with the law like the Cincinnati Bengals. Baseball is still wiping the pie off its collective face for the steroids fiasco.

So far, we are not aware of either of these players being arrested for getting in trouble at notorious nightspots or being accused of using performance enhancing drugs. Perhaps if they were involved, it would be easier to discuss the blight they represent on their respective sports.

What Manny and T.O. have in common is their absolute selfishness and ability to completely disrupt their teams by creating scenes on the field, in the locker room, and in the media which becomes such a distraction, their teams pay the cost. Manny has "dogged it" so many times even refusing to play. T.O. has constantly badmouthed his players and coaches and created scenes getting into spats with anyone in his way. His on the field antics set the stage for Chad Johnson, another such jerk. Owens' conduct is so disruptive he's destroyed team chemistry and put his quarterbacks and coaches on thin ice everywhere he's played since Steve Young left the 49'ers.

Regardless, they have been paid handsomely right toward the top of their professions. The ability to score on the field means the ability to score in the bank accounts.

This winter a curious thing happened. Manny Ramirez thought he could name his terms a multi-year deal of well over $25 million a year. There were no interested teams except the Dodgers who would only offer two years. Ramirez and his agent would not budge. It looked like MLB was prepared to let him walk until the Dodgers were able to bring the irritating slugger to terms pretty much on the Dodgers terms. Joe Torre will be responsible for what "Manny being Manny" means in Los Angeles in 2009.

Meanwhile, the Dallas Cowboys had enough. Owner, Jerry Jones, who collects football players like a nine year old boy collects bobble heads and trading cards, the same Jerry Jones who defended his clubhouse atmosphere and dismissed the whole issue of toxic team chemistry, had to face reality. Just as Pacman Jones had no place, he finally realized as long as Terrell Owens was the catalyst of the team's dreadful chemistry, playoff wins are out of the picture. The cost will be steep for Dallas, a $9 million salary cap hit. In a case that finally a stroke of sanity realized perhaps 9 million down the drain is addition through subtraction at least will be poised to assess its current condition and move forward. The way the team performed poorly and showed such disunity in some of its most embarrassing defeats including the pounding they took from the Baltimore Ravens made it clear the 2008 Dallas Cowboys were not a contending team even though they still had a chance for post season play after that definitive loss.

It's a sad commentary on sports today where some of its greatest stars are some of its biggest assholes. In one respect, this is nothing new. Ty Cobb was one of the most irritating bastards in organized sports' history. Still, things have gotten much more out of control in the last couple decades. Some of this is a product of the explosion of sports media where ESPN runs three networks 24 hours a day and every major market has its regional networks. Gossip and embarrassing episodes spread like wildfire with cell phone cameras and the Internet. Jimmy Piersall, among others, had infamous meltdowns in their time.

Regardless, Manny Ramirez and Terrell Owens have "pushed the envelope' to the extent we have not witnessed before and until the last few months, have gotten away with it.

Maybe it's just the bad economy that makes people more aware of the value of where money is being spent, but for whatever reason, there seems to be less tolerance developing toward the spoiled brats of the NFL and MLB. Roger Goddell has been quick to suspend players who tangle with the law. Even Bud Selig is proving must more disciplined in today's reality.

The buck truly stops with the fans and how the owners perceive the extent to which our diminishing patience could hit them in the pocket through fewer fans in the stands and lower TV ratings both of which help them establish their income. While fans decry the miserable behavior of other teams bad boys, there's a chance to dismiss and defend the thugs on their home field as long as they score.

It's time to demand better. The NBA might be out of reach with the likes of Alan Iverson and Stephen Marbury being rewarded for their insanity. Baseball and the NFL are on notice. This sports fan was delighted with the prospect that the season could have begun with no takers on Manny Ramirez. Surely, T.O. will wind up somewhere. Perhaps the Oakland Raiders would be divine justice for both.