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Good behavior in professional athletes is important
By R.C. Weich III
An athlete is meant to be a role model and a proper citizen. Yet not all athletes follow this.
After hearing of the Minnesota Vikings’ alleged wild cruise on the lakes of Minnesota, it made me think of what it really means to don a professional uniform. It surely isn’t drunken debauchery.
It’s a gift, a rare occurrence for an athlete to be able to make it to the professional ranks. After years of hard work and practice, many don’t make it. So when a player finally does, he should think of it as a blessing.
The Vikings last week ruined their reputation as a football team. The team has an annual tradition that includes first-year Vikings and rookies taking the team out. This year one of the first-year Vikings decided to rent a cruise ship.
What happened on the cruise ship was sickening to professional sports. Public displays of sex and nudity were among the many wild events some said happened on the cruise. It was so sickening that the captain turned the ship around to the dock way before the cruise was set to end.
Is this what professional athletes want to be known as? Wild party animals who care nothing at all about their reputations as human beings? I think not.
Other athletes around the National Football League are shown teaching children how to read and helping out in the community. This group of individuals chose a different path.
Being a professional athlete brings forth responsibilities. Since the athlete is constantly in public eye, he should behave himself. The athlete is representing his team, his town and the state they play in.
Right now, Minnesota is embarrassed.
When a team is surrounded by all this off-field drama, it is hard for the team to perform on the field. This held true for the Vikings this weekend as they were annihilated by the Bears 28-3.
An athlete must spend time improving his game and stay away from the many temptations that arise during a season.
The Vikings will need to set forth an early curfew to keep their players out of trouble and their team from slumping.
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