A House Divided: Infamous Intra-Team Feuds
It’s hard to be successful and win games when teammates are fighting with each other—not impossible, but hard.
Over the years in sports, there have been several instances of intra-team feuds. Some are as old as the Cubs’ last World Series, and others are as new as the 2014 Super Bowl.
Some animosity festered for years—Barry Bonds and Jeff Kent hardly spoke to each other. Shaq finally had to leave Los Angeles to get away from Kobe. Others are newer, budding feuds. Percy Harvin reportedly gave Golden Tate a black eye before the Super Bowl.
Whether it was on-field stuff, offensive comments, lawsuits or women troubles, something caused these teammates to dislike each other. Heck, Andy Cole hardly spoke to Teddy Sheringham for 15 years just because he wouldn’t shake his hand.
Let’s take a look at some of the more infamous teammate feuds in sports.
Honorable Mention: Jay Cutler vs. Brandon Marshall
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Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall are getting an honorable mention because they are generally regarded as friends. But friends can still fight with each other.
After the Bears lost to the Miami Dolphins in October 2014, tensions ran high in the postgame locker room. Sources suggested Marshall criticized Cutler in front of the team. Later when reporters entered the locker room, Marshall said, “We've got a great, great group of guys, and this is unacceptable. What did we put up, 14 points? Was it 14 points? That's unacceptable,” according to Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com.
Thurman Munson vs. Reggie Jackson
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Reggie Jackson didn’t exactly have a reputation for being easy to get along with back in his playing days.
The New York Yankees signed Jackson in 1977, and he promptly made a name for himself, blasting three home runs in one World Series game to earn the nickname “Mr. October.”
During that time, things were a little crazy in New York. Billy Martin didn’t get along with Jackson, George Steinbrenner didn’t get along with Martin and Jackson had a public feud with respected team captain Thurman Munson. No wonder history remembers that time as “The Bronx Zoo.”
Jackson reportedly told Robert Ward of Sport magazine in 1977 (via ESPN), “Munson thinks he can be the straw that stirs the drink, but he can only stir it bad.”
Jackson denies the quote to this day, but the damage was done.
Teddy Sheringham vs. Andy Cole
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Here are two guys who never spoke, all because one wouldn’t shake the other’s hand.
Teddy Sheringham and Andy Cole played together (quite well) with Manchester United. But in 2010, Cole wrote in The Independent (via Daily Mail), “I've just loathed him personally for 15 years.”
Why? According to Cole, the hatred dated back to 1995, when the two first played together for England. Cole said he was subbing into the game, and Sheringham neglected to shake his hand as he came onto the field.
“I was embarrassed. I was confused. And there you have it. From that moment on, I knew Sheringham was not for me,” he said.
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Golden Tate vs. Percy Harvin
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The Seattle Seahawks traded wide receiver Percy Harvin to the New York Jets in October 2014, a move that surprised many in the sports world.
Shortly after the trade, reports surfaced that Harvin was in a locker room altercation with teammate Golden Tate prior to the Super Bowl that resulted in a black eye for Tate. Harvin reportedly had a history of this type of behavior with teammates.
Jeff Gordon vs. Jimmie Johnson
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Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson both drive for Hendrick Motorsports. In fact, Gordon helped bring Johnson on board in 2002.
At that time, Gordon was top dog in NASCAR, but Johnson has enjoyed great success since, including five straight Sprint Cup championships. The two built up a competitive rivalry over the years that has sometimes led to animosity.
They’ve had heated moments on the track. In 2010, Johnson appeared to block Gordon down the backstretch at Talladega, but Johnson claimed this was a misjudged an attempt to draft. Gordon was later involved in a wreck, and he was not happy with his teammate.
At that time, Johnson told reporters (via Fox Sports) Rick Hendrick talked to both drivers and cautioned them not to allow their animosity to start “breaking apart the organization.”
Peyton Manning vs. Mike Vanderjagt
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Peyton Manning is not a guy you’d generally associate with the word “feud,” but there was certainly no love lost between him and former teammate Mike Vanderjagt.
According to Eric Adelson of Yahoo Sports, the Indianapolis Colts kicker told a Canadian television station in 2003 he didn’t feel Manning and head coach Tony Dungy were "fiery leaders."
A reporter asked Manning about Vanderjagt’s comments at the Pro Bowl that year. Manning told her, “I’m out at my third Pro Bowl. I’m about to go in and throw a touchdown to Jerry Rice, we're honoring the Hall of Fame, and we're talking about our idiot kicker who got liquored up and ran his mouth off.”
Whoa. Guess you shouldn’t tick off Peyton Manning.
Joe Tinker vs. Johnny Evers
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Tinker to Evers to Chance. This was a great double-play combo of the early 20th century Chicago Cubs. Joe Tinker, Johnny Evers and Frank Chance made up the Cubs infield, and their double play prowess inspired a now-famous poem, “Baseball’s Sad Lexicon,” written by Franklin Pierce Adams. All three were part of the Cubs' 1907 and 1908 World Series teams.
Despite their on-field success, Joe Tinker and Johnny Evers had a long-standing feud. According to Jeff Merron of ESPN, the two argued over cab fare in 1905 and proceed to avoid talking to each other for the next 33 years.
Wayne Bridge vs. John Terry
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Wayne Bridge and John Terry are both English footballers who played together for a time with Chelsea. Terry was England’s national team captain, but was forced to give up that title after a scandal. Turns out he had a relationship with Bridge’s ex.
Bridge later refused to shake Terry’s hand when their two teams, Chelsea and Manchester City, played each other. Bridge also told England’s coach he didn’t want to be considered for the national team since it meant being in the same room as Terry.
Terrell Owens vs. Donovan McNabb
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Terrell Owens—also not a guy known for his ability to play nice with others. He bounced around the NFL quite a bit during his career, but in 2004 and 2005, Owens was in Philadelphia with Donovan McNabb.
In 2005, Owens said in an interview with ESPN the Eagles would be better off with Brett Favre as their quarterback. McNabb took particular offense to the criticism, calling T.O.’s comments “black-on-black crime.” Other behavioral and contract issues took their toll, and the Eagles eventually released T.O.
McNabb tried to take the high road, but when rumors of Owen’s eventual departure swirled, he said (via ESPN), “Obviously it is tough losing a guy of his caliber, his ability, but I think we might be better off.”
Bill Romanowski vs. Marcus Williams
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So, a feud has to be pretty bad to both end a career and result in a lawsuit.
In 2003, Bill Romanowski punched his Oakland Raiders teammate Marcus Williams in the face during practice. The incident resulted in a broken eye socket, depression, memory loss and the end of Williams’ young career.
Williams sued Romanowski for millions in damages. In 2005, Williams was awarded $340,000 for medical bill and lost wages.
Gilbert Arenas vs. Javaris Crittenton
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Feuds are also bad when guns are involved.
Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton were teammates with the Washington Wizards in 2009. It was on Christmas Eve, 2009, when the two got into an argument over some gambling debt in the Wizards locker room and reportedly pulled guns on each other.
Since they pulled guns on each other, that meant, of course, they both had guns in the team locker room. Big no no. Both players were suspended for the remainder of the season, and both received probation for their crimes.
Kobe vs. Shaq
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This has to be one of the most famous intra-team feuds ever. Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal won three NBA championships together in Los Angeles (2000-02), and they got along for exactly zero of them.
Rumors about their many disagreements were all over the map—Kobe’s jersey sales to Shaq’s work ethic to Kobe’s tendency to, uh, have the ball a lot.
O’Neal was ultimately traded to Miami in 2004 after the situation continued to spiral.
Barry Bonds vs. Jeff Kent
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Barry Bonds and Jeff Kent were teammates on the San Francisco Giants from 1997-2002 and frequently hit next to each other in the lineup. During their time as teammates, Bonds and Kent amassed 454 home runs and 1,348 RBI between the two of them.
Despite their success, these two never got along and apparently barely spoke to each other. Kent told Sports Illustrated in 2002 (via The New York Times), “On the field, we’re fine, but, off the field, I don’t care about Barry and Barry doesn’t care about me. Or anybody.”
They two were involved in a pretty nasty dugout scuffle in 2002 during a game they lost to San Diego. The exact words that were used are unclear, but at some point Bonds shoved Kent and grabbed him by the neck.
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