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Plummer has to take off decal honoring Tillman

 

DENVER (AP) - Denver Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer must remove the No. 40 decal he's worn on the back of his helmet since training camp that honors former Arizona Cardinals teammate Pat Tillman.

 

Tillman, the former safety who walked away from the NFL to join the U.S. Army Rangers and fight in Afghanistan, was killed in action in April.

 

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said Wednesday the league's long-standing policy prohibits personal messages on uniforms or helmets. Violators could face fines of $5,000.

 

"We do that because we need a consistent rule. You can't just pick and choose and say one message is OK but another isn't. Where would you draw the line?" Aiello said.

 

The league has honored Tillman several times this year, including at the NFL draft, at the Hall of Fame induction ceremony in August, and on the second week of the season when all NFL players wore Tillman's number on their helmets.

 

"I want to honor Pat the best I can. I honor Pat every day, every game in my own private way," Plummer said. "I'm trying to get something done that won't infringe upon the NFL logo and uniform codes.

 

"I'm not going to fight the NFL," he said. "I'm looking for some kind of compromise."

 

Plummer and Tillman became close friends after playing together at Arizona State and later with the Cardinals. Plummer said he has been wearing a small No. 40 on the back of his helmet since training camp.

 

The Cardinals will display Tillman's number on their helmets every game this season, but individual players, such as Plummer, are not allowed to do so.

I don't personally care either way, but in this matter as long as it's small who cares?

 

Granted, Plummer makes enough that he could pay the fine every game (Chad Johnson does it every week for his shoes that break code).

 

Then again, I don't want players putting anything they want on their gear either. If someone had a Bush or Kerry sticker on their helmet the announcers would talk about that for 20 minutes and I'd probably be pretty mad something as stupid as one player's political affiliation could distract that much from the game. And, we get enough political rhetoric as it is, no need to hear it from Madden and Michaels.

The NFL is missing the forest for the trees here. Then again, the NFL also fined Kevin Mawae for making a cross on the middle of his facemask with tape. They need to quit being such stringent, uncompromising gestapos.

see the peyton manning situation in regard to wearing black shoes to honor johnny unitas a couple years back.

 

 

this isnt exactly shocking.

"omg he wants to honor his dead friend by putting a decal on his helmet!! he must be stopped!!"

 

the NFL is full of s***

Article

 

"We do that because we need a consistent rule. You can't just pick and choose and say one message is OK but another isn't. Where would you draw the line?" Aiello said.

 

 

I don't know, dude, but, like, tiny decals for dead soldiers would be a good place to start. f*** your line.

 

 

"If we let them honor fallen heroes...why, we'll soon have chaos! They'll want to honor the favorite Teletubby!"

Rules are rules for a reason

The NFL is missing the forest for the trees here. Then again, the NFL also fined Kevin Mawae for making a cross on the middle of his facemask with tape. They need to quit being such stringent, uncompromising gestapos.

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Yeah, but see, that makes sense. Players don't need to be displaying religious symbols on their helmets. I know religion is really important to a lot of people, but too see such a prominent display of a particular faith--in an arena that doesn't distinguish one faith from another--I think that would be enough to make a lot of people uncomfortable. Do I care? No. Do I know about a hundred Jewish people who would prefer that cross weren't there? I sure do.

 

Same for the Kerry/Bush scenario. We actually had at a Duke basketball game a bunch of students in the front row who were part of a Conservative group on campus, and they all wore the same "Crazies for Bush" (or something like that) T-shirts. People went apeshit about how politics and sports shouldn't mix.

 

On the other hand, I can't think of one person the Pat Tillman logo would offend, except maybe Saddam Hussein and a handful of terrorists.

The NFL is missing the forest for the trees here. Then again, the NFL also fined Kevin Mawae for making a cross on the middle of his facemask with tape. They need to quit being such stringent, uncompromising gestapos.

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Yeah, but see, that makes sense. Players don't need to be displaying religious symbols on their helmets. I know religion is really important to a lot of people, but too see such a prominent display of a particular faith--in an arena that doesn't distinguish one faith from another--I think that would be enough to make a lot of people uncomfortable. Do I care? No. Do I know about a hundred Jewish people who would prefer that cross weren't there? I sure do.

 

Same for the Kerry/Bush scenario. We actually had at a Duke basketball game a bunch of students in the front row who were part of a Conservative group on campus, and they all wore the same "Crazies for Bush" (or something like that) T-shirts. People went apeshit about how politics and sports shouldn't mix.

 

On the other hand, I can't think of one person the Pat Tillman logo would offend, except maybe Saddam Hussein and a handful of terrorists.

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Jewish people are uncomfortable about seeing the Cross? If anyone it should be Christians who don't do what they're supposed to. Just because I can see Ray Lewis' cross tattoo on his bicep doesn't mean that he should have it taped up. Then again, anything not made for the NFL by Reebok might as well have a picture of an aborted baby because the NFL just hates it.

they can't pick and choose? Why not? Why not have some sort of system where it can be deemed "legal" or "not legal". It's an effing uniform for crying out loud. A uniform's purpose: to distinguish b/t the 2 teams playing.

I think a uniform is to show, uh, uniformity between the respective teams.

meh. rules are rules

You guys act like these rules were handed down from on high along with the Ten Commandments.

 

When rules suck, they need to be changed. All they need to do is write in a special clause that says in special circumstances players may appeal to the league office to be allowed to put something extra on their uniform or helmet. This isn't that hard. They can call it the Pat Tillman clause.

This situation is almost identical to the one MLB is facing right now. The NFL made every NFL player wear the Pat Tillman decal on their helmets during opening week but made them take it off after week 1. MLB made every MLB player wear an American flag patch on their hats for games on 9/11/04 and some players chose to keep the American flag patches on their helmets and were fined for it, one of the players on the RedSox, I can't remember who it was but I THINK it was Derek Lowe came out and criticized major league baseball in the press for it.

 

These rules are a disgrace.

You guys act like these rules were handed down from on high along with the Ten Commandments.

 

When rules suck, they need to be changed. All they need to do is write in a special clause that says in special circumstances players may appeal to the league office to be allowed to put something extra on their uniform or helmet. This isn't that hard. They can call it the Pat Tillman clause.

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No because then you get people who have close family members who die and have something 'celebrating' their lives and you get all sorts of other things that everyone would say that NFL sucks for not allowing it. IT IS A UNIFORM. RULES ARE RULES. I don't care if you want to support someone who has died. It is your uniform and unless the NFL mandates that each person wear the number then no one should be allowed to.

If the NFL says its okay to wear some things on your uniform which is not part of it, it will only be a matter of time before guys are like "Yo, I got dis hea deal wif dem Nike In-coportaion, a'ight? They want me to put dis hea sticka on mah helmet, dat kewl, ya'll? "

wow Plummer wants to leave a sticker on that celebrates a former teammate in both the NFL and NCAA, and a national hero

 

I hope he leaves it on all year.

No because then you get people who have close family members who die and have something 'celebrating' their lives and you get all sorts of other things that everyone would say that NFL sucks for not allowing it. IT IS A UNIFORM. RULES ARE RULES. I don't care if you want to support someone who has died. It is your uniform and unless the NFL mandates that each person wear the number then no one should be allowed to.

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Everytime someone says "rules are rules", it makes me shudder. It's like a rule has never been changed in the history of rules.

 

By the way, ever play Monopoly? Follow all the rules? Nobody follows the damn rules. We change them all around.

 

Of course, Monopoly isn't the NFL. If someone's immediate family member dies, and a player wants to put the person's initials on his helmet (something small, of course) then I don't have a problem with that.

 

Whatever, though. I think it's a no-brainer to let Plummer wear the decal, but ultimately whether he does or not isn't going to have any effect on anything ever.

If the NFL says its okay to wear some things on your uniform which is not part of it, it will only be a matter of time before guys are like "Yo, I got dis hea deal wif dem Nike In-coportaion, a'ight? They want me to put dis hea sticka on mah helmet, dat kewl, ya'll? "

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Ugh, I'm sure the NFL couldn't rule on a case-by-case basis.

 

 

:plain

pat tillman was a former member of the NFL fraternity.

 

 

 

someone's brother from the hood has no ties to the NFL.

 

 

 

different cases 100%.

 

 

use logic.

If the NFL says its okay to wear some things on your uniform which is not part of it, it will only be a matter of time before guys are like "Yo, I got dis hea deal wif dem Nike In-coportaion, a'ight? They want me to put dis hea sticka on mah helmet, dat kewl, ya'll? "

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Ugh, I'm sure the NFL couldn't rule on a case-by-case basis.

 

 

:plain

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That would be time consuming to go to court over it one a case by case basis, so they decide to just write off all exceptions across the board.

If the NFL says its okay to wear some things on your uniform which is not part of it, it will only be a matter of time before guys are like "Yo, I got dis hea deal wif dem Nike In-coportaion, a'ight? They want me to put dis hea sticka on mah helmet, dat kewl, ya'll? "

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Ugh, I'm sure the NFL couldn't rule on a case-by-case basis.

 

 

:plain

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That would be time consuming to go to court over it one a case by case basis, so they decide to just write off all exceptions across the board.

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They don't go to court. They probably have their own appeals committee and could do it during the week. Someone to represent the player and someone to represent the league. They do it with suspensions and fines, why not something else?

If the NFL says its okay to wear some things on your uniform which is not part of it, it will only be a matter of time before guys are like "Yo, I got dis hea deal wif dem Nike In-coportaion, a'ight?? They want me to put dis hea sticka on mah helmet, dat kewl, ya'll? "

578823[/snapback]

 

Ugh, I'm sure the NFL couldn't rule on a case-by-case basis.

 

 

:plain

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That would be time consuming to go to court over it one a case by case basis, so they decide to just write off all exceptions across the board.

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They could employ one guy with a little extra time on his hands, and pay him like $30,000 for his efforts. The player sends in an appeal, and the guy decides. And that's it. The stakes aren't high enough to warrant creating some kind of court or whatever. Just one guy. He reads a sheet of paper and decides.

espn.com

 

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has written a letter to the NFL urging the league to reconsider its plan to fine Denver Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer for honoring Pat Tillman.

 

McCain said he can't believe that Plummer is facing a fine for wearing a sticker with Tillman's number on his helmet during Sunday's game. The players were teammates at Arizona State and with the Arizona Cardinals.

 

Tillman walked away from the Cardinals and the NFL to join the Army Rangers. He was killed in action in April in Afghanistan.

 

McCain sent a letter NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue on Wednesday and said he also would call him. He said he's going to try to convince Tagliabue that it's outrageous to prevent Plummer from wearing the sticker with Tillman's No. 40.

 

The text from McCain's letter:

 

"I am writing to urge you to reconsider your decision to prevent Jake Plummer, quarterback for the Denver Broncos, and a former Arizona Cardinal and friend of Pat Tillman's, from wearing Mr. Tillman's number on his helmet in memory of this fallen hero. In making your decision, I fear you have sent a message that League policy is more important than memorials to those who have sacrificed their lives for us.

 

"When Pat left the National Football League, he set aside the comforts that he enjoyed as a professional athlete and answered a higher calling of duty to his country. His decision exemplified patriotism and a commitment to a common cause. Pat Tillman left this world as a protector of our freedoms, the same freedoms that your League enjoys each Sunday. He died so that we as Americans can enjoy our way of life and express ourselves in the way that Jake Plummer now seeks to express himself.

 

"While I understand that it is a policy of your League to disallow any player from varying in his apparel so as to protect the image and uniformity of the League, this seems more a fixation with the letter of the law. An observance of the spirit of the law would yield an acknowledgment that Plummer's act is not one of selfishness, or an attempt to draw attention to himself at the expense of other players, but rather a humble tribute to a fallen hero and friend.

 

"America is at war, a war that has cost our nation many of our finest citizens. We must celebrate, not ignore, the commitment to duty and sacrifice of our fallen, particularly those who served when they were not called.

 

"Once again, I urge you to reconsider your decision."

As a fan of baseball, I really can't see the NFL's point of view on this. Yes, a uniform is a uniform, but the helmet is that person's individual piece of headgear. Baseball players write numbers on their hats all the time commemorating a player who has been injured or died, and this is no different. Players know that anything else they can write it on the bottom of the bill or inside where no one can see it, but the numbers on the caps MLB has no problem with. The NFL shouldn't either.