Quarterback sneaker

Redman's tribute elevates hightops to a new level

I've seen the NFL take some mighty unpopular positions, but few match this latest one regarding Peyton Manning and the black hightop shoes. Briefly, Manning wanted to honor the memory of John Unitas by wearing old-style black hightops. The league's policy is that a team must declare its shoe color before the season and then stick to it, to present a uniform appearance. Manning asked the league for permission to wear the special shoes and was denied. Somehow a potential fine of $25,000 was mentioned. I don't know where that number came from. He obeyed the league's policy and didn't wear the black shoes, "so as not to cause a distraction on the team," he said.

Meanwhile, in Baltimore, Ravens' quarterback Chris Redman didn't ask anyone for permission. He just wore the black hightops to honor Unitas, with whom he had been very close. I assume he'll be fined, and this is a guy who makes about one-thirtieth the salary Manning does.

The league comes off very badly in this, so badly that I had to call someone in the NFL office to hear its side of it. I spoke to Greg Aiello, vice president of public relations. Briefly, the points he made were these:

The rule was on the books to prevent a haphazard appearance. When Walter Payton died, some players, mostly black, had wanted to wear some reminders or mementos and, rightly or wrongly, had been denied. So how would it look if the league granted a white player (Manning) something that had been denied black players?

The $25,000 figure was much too high. Something like $5,000 would be closer, although the exact number would have to be determined. Redman will get a low fine, a slap-on-the-wrist type of thing. Manning would have had to pay more, "because he had asked us first and had been denied."

Off the record, another NFL guy told me, "When Manning asked for permission, everyone in our office cringed. The feeling was, 'Don't ask. Just do it, like Redman did.'"

Well, I don't go along with the NFL position on denying any hint of individuality. Pete Rozelle always was firm in his desire to keep all product endorsements off the players' uniforms, to avoid, as he said, "turning them into billboards." But as soon as he died, out came the Nike swooshes, then Reebok. Morality takes a back seat if there's money to be made.

"Apples and oranges," Aiello said. "One's business, the other's personal."

I'm not so sure. And how would I handle this whole thing, if I were making decisions for the NFL? On an individual basis for each case. Let them make their Walter Payton or John Unitas statement, if it's done in a dignified manner.

But the whole Manning incident gives me a creepy feeling. I've always liked Peyton and thought he was a fine fellow, but as my anonymous league guy said, why did he have to go and ask? Does a shoplifter walk into a store and ask the manager for permission to hoist a wristwatch? So he had it both ways. He's a good guy for wanting to make the gesture, and a good guy again for obeying the league's ruling.

Distraction to his team? Don't make me laugh. Is a guy going to miss a block or drop a pass because he's concerned with Peyton's shoes? Who cares?

Nope, Chris Redman is my hero in this whole thing, and I remember an incident in the 1970's involving Jimmy Johnson, the great 49ers cornerback. For some reason he always liked to pull his stockings up as far as he could. The Niners' stockings were red with two white stripes down the side, and he had them pulled up so far that the stripes were hidden under the kneepad area of his pants. During warmups a league official came down to the field and told Johnson he'd be fined if the stripes didn't show. Everyone was panicking on the Niners' sidelines, but J.J. calmly went over to the trainer, had him cut four strips of tape, attached two to the side of each of his stockings and played the game without further harassment. A quick thinker. Maybe that's why he's in the Hall of Fame.

Weird call by Steve Spurrier Monday night. End of the first half, his Redskins are down to the Eagles, 20-7, his offense is falling apart and his defense can't stop anybody. Time to get into the locker room and regroup, right? But with a fourth-and-10 on the Philly 40, the Skins go for it, and Shane Matthews, who has missed on two of his last three passes and has a bad shoulder, throws another incomplete, giving the Eagles the ball with 56 seconds left, just enough time for a field goal at the whistle.

I guess some people would call this bold coaching. To me it's just silly.

What do you do with a No. 1 draft choice who clearly can't cut it? On a crucial third-and-inches against the Rams, the Giants' 253-pound Ron Dayne, their top draft of two years ago, pussyfooted into the hole ... well, not even toward the hole. He had a hole on the right side but didn't see it. Pussyfooted instead into the heart of the defense, flinched, turned his shoulder and got stopped for a loss. You could get free agents off the street who'd give a better effort than that. What kind of a message does this send to the team when they watch the game films? This is the third year in a row they've been making excuses for this guy, but he flatly can't play. It's too bad. He's a nice guy and very sensitive and no one wants to hurt his feelings, but geez, if he'd have been a free agent he wouldn't have made it through his first training camp. The biggest myth in pro football, or any type of football, or sports in general for that matter, is that everyone gets treated equally.

Rams fans started their booing early on Sunday. They booed a timeout in the third quarter. It hasn't taken them long to get nasty -- and arrogant ... I really dug Kordell Stewart's answer to a dumb question before the Sunday nighter against the Raiders. "How do you put last week's performance behind you?" ESPN's Suzy Kolber asked him. "By playing tonight," he said. ... The best individual performance I've seen this season was turned in by the 49ers' weakside linebacker, Jamie Winborn, against the Giants. ... The Panthers finally have figured out what to do with their high-priced defensive tackle, Sean Gilbert. Don't start him, but bring him in on pass-rush downs. Should have been done a long time ago, but part-timers don't get the big bucks. ... Here's another switch that's paying off. Mike Tice switched 270-pound Jimmy Kleinsasser from an H-back in motion to a downline tight end, and he's just been killing people from that position. At times he caves in a complete side. Best blocking tight end in years.

Madden and Michaels set a record for earliest loss of attention span Monday night. By the first drive of the third quarter they were into anecdotes about how Steve Mariucci met Andy Reed, ignoring the live action. ... Twelve of the Redskins' 16 completions Monday night went for fewer than 10 yards. Is this just the so-called West Coast Offense with a big dose of Spurrier hype? ... Dolphins' backup QB Ray Lucas on that same WCO: "I hate it. It's boring, it's dull. If you're any kind of quarterback at all, you want to get the ball downfield."

Jerry Rice and Tim Brown have had great careers, granted. But they're no longer downfield threats, they're eight-to-10-yard threats. So why do I see defenses still giving them a big cushion and letting them catch balls underneath? If I were setting up a defense against the Raiders, I'd have my corners clamp on Rice and Brown tightly and take my chances deep. ... Mike Martz got a lot of heat for neglecting to kick what could have been the tying field goal against Denver in Week 1 and going for the TD, only to have the pass fall incomplete. You have to understand that that's his style, the bold approach the players buy into. Was there anything more illogical than what he did at the end of Super Bowl XXIV against the Titans, going for the bomb and giving the Titans' offense enough time to launch a serious drive instead of working the clock and protecting a worn-out defense? "Bold, daring, unpredictable, that's what we love about his approach," tight end Ernie Conwell said at the time. So why am I in Martz's corner, while I ripped Spurrier for something similar? Because Martz has Warner and Spurrier has Matthews. ... Quick thought: The last three Super Bowl winners have all been led by low-priced quarterbacks, Kurt Warner, Trent Dilfer, Tom Brady. ... If ESPN doesn't stop running its sideline interviews through the live action, I won't be responsible for my own live actions.

Sports Illustrated senior writer Paul Zimmerman covers the NFL beat for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com. To send a question to Dr. Z's Mailbag, click here.

The opinions expressed here are solely those of the writer.

 

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