Toby Gerhart

[Ambrose]

I don't recall Bettis ever being called one of the best of all time. Nor was he beyond criticism; I live in Pittsburgh and follow both the local and national sports media. I also watched Notre Dame a lot when Bettis went there and was impressed back then how a guy with his roly poly build was able to be such a good RB.

Bettis was a borderline Hall of Famer who made it mainly due to a long and productive career rather than because he was a dazzling ball carrier. My comment was in reference mainly to what both you and Ambrose wrote. Of course there's a Caste System, of course announcers are biased, and of course Bettis was a beneficiary of it. That's the point of this site is it not? But that doesn't mean he was a talentless bum who was lined up in the backfield for so many years simply because he was a black body. Bettis played a long time, was rarely injured and consistently produced -- moved the chains on third and short, ate up clock, scored a lot of touchdowns, was an asset to an offense. And yes, he was a popular teammate and player in the Caste NFL. Unlike a lot of his contemporaries, he is affable and friendly, including with the public.

Again, to never say anything positive about black athletes doesn't do our cause any good. Even with the Caste System, the NFL isn't going to have featured backs that play for 13 years unless they are doing a lot of things right. You're right that Bettis had a 3.9 yards per carry average in his career -- so did another running back in Canton, John Riggins, another power back known for his durability and long career, who finished with about 2,300 fewer yards than Jerome Bettis.

Sneaky wrote:
Smith, Byner, Bettis were all given tons of years to rumble and fumble around, but they had the right "color" to be allowed to do so

I wrote:
Especially Bettis. They even nicknamed him "the bus" if I recall correctly? He was slow and shiftless but the mistral show must go on...↑

We're highlighting that very good players like Gerhart are not working while slow, shiftless players of that other race, examples given, can play and play so more, while the NFL plays along with the so-called deficiencies that the Great race players don't have all the while it is intrinsically present in them.

The big, white,durable back is not playing anymore (Alstott the last?).
The big, white, elusive back is not playing anymore.
The average size, white, elusive back is not playing anymore.
The average size, white, elusive, durable, back is not playing anymore.

So just what back can play in the NFL? The one the same color as these letters.They keep this up long enough the white interest in the league is going to be as empty as the page behind the letters.

 

[Don Wassall]

Sneaky wrote:
Smith, Byner, Bettis were all given tons of years to rumble and fumble around, but they had the right "color" to be allowed to do so

I wrote:
Especially Bettis. They even nicknamed him "the bus" if I recall correctly? He was slow and shiftless but the mistral show must go on...↑

We're highlighting that very good players like Gerhart are not working while slow, shiftless players of that other race, examples given, can play and play so more, while the NFL plays along with the so-called deficiencies that the Great race players don't have all the while it is intrinsically present in them.

The big, white,durable back is not playing anymore (Alstott the last?).
The big, white, elusive back is not playing anymore.
The average size, white, elusive back is not playing anymore.
The average size, white, elusive, durable, back is not playing anymore.

So just what back can play in the NFL? The one the same color as these letters.They keep this up long enough the white interest in the league is going to be as empty as the page behind the letters.

Do you think you're telling me something I don't know? Seriously? Last time I checked, I founded this site and named it CASTE FOOTBALL.

I'll state my point one more time, slowly, and then I'm done trying, at least for this thread. A basic convention when arguing or discussing is to present the side you disagree with in the most positive light and then critique it. In this case that would be something along the lines of the old "About Us" feature of the previous site: "We realize that blacks make good athletes and good football players, but capable White players are being held back because of the Caste System," and then go on to explain the Caste System in detail as it applies to football.

Maintaining that Hall of Fame black football players didn't have a single redeeming virtue while playing is not the way to go about convincing someone of the existence of the Caste System. Not the average fan, and certainly not me. It sounds like bitter grapes, a bunch of dead-end "White supremacists" who can't get over blacks dominating football and other sports. It plays right into the hands of our opponents. Repeat: It plays right into the hands of the supporters of the Caste System.

The fact that Whites are being discriminated against doesn't change the reality that some blacks can play, and would play very well in any era no matter how color blind the field of play is. Not to acknowledge that is foolish and diminishes the many legitimate arguments and evidence that we present here.

Talentless?

 

[Don Wassall]

Interesting that two posters continue to troll this thread (not referring to Ambrose here, two other posters). It's now locked.