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Good points, G.
I'm in complete agreement about the level of commonly seen fan behavior. It falls into a category far worse than Sherman's. I can certainly pontificate on that subject, if you wish. But the thread was about Sherman's behavior not fan's. And Sherman's was indeed something, if I might respectably disagree with you.
It may have been great theater, but it was (IMHO) cheap and ugly. Were it not, do you think he would have tried to back-track as quickly as he did?
I had a terrible temper on the golf course as a young man. But the fact that I was a nice guy elsewhere did not excuse my on-course behavior. I was wrong, and when I was called out......they were right. Boorish behavior is still boorish behavior.
And to the millions of young athletes watching, Sherman became a boorish role model of (IMHO) exactly the wrong things. Sherman can now visit numerous children's hospitals or record PSA's about the evils of drug use, but what most people (especially young people) will remember and emulate will be the moments we now debate.
It certainly means something. I fear that the efforts to contextualize his actions ("Hey, it was in the heat of the battle. They shouldn't have stuck a camera in his face. He's a nice guy") are doomed to failure simply because such behavior can't be limited, as it is copied, to just that context.
If it is OK for Sherman, why not the college DB....or the high school one? Or, even worse, the 4th grader on "Friday Night Tykes."
What Sherman and Crabtree exchange among themselves, on the field, is somewhat outside this discussion. I don't know what went on there. It's hard to comment on it, therefore.
I think Pete Carroll is a cutting edge coach.....maybe THE cutting edge coach in professional sports. Not because of his X and O prowess, mind you, but because of the culture he's tried to establish in Seattle. His is the new paradigm...or will be, I think.
If you've not read this article, you must. It was in the September 2nd edition of ESPN: The Magazine. It is exceptional. I made both my daughters read it. One is 15, a sophomore, and totally in love with basketball. The other is 18, a senior, and a 2nd Team All-State Volleyball player. I felt this article was so important they HAD to read it.
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/9581925/seattle-seahawks-use-unusual-t...
It begins like this: "IT'S DIFFERENT HERE," Pete Carroll says. "Have you noticed?"
For the Seahawks' sake, I wish Richard Sherman hadn't dinged up that image. But he did. I can't excuse my club-throwing as a young man. It was wrong and made me look like a complete idiot. I'm fortunate I didn't have a TV camera stuck in my face. I can't excuse Sherman's behavior either. It was wrong, "thuggish" and exemplifies the worst of sports.
In the end, I think one of the reasons I enjoy baseball so much is because you see so little of this compared to other big-time professional team sports.
I suppose that's the dinosaur in me coming out.
moe