Athletes and Sports Figures Who Apologized for Inappropriate Jokes
A really good joke, even if it's edgy, is rarely something you have to apologize for, because laughter softens the edge. Laughter makes the punch line the focus, rather than the joke itself.
So when an athlete or other public sports figure is in a situation where they have to apologize for a joke being offensive, inappropriate or both—it's rarely a good joke. Jokes that depend on labels, or are made at the expense of someone else, are the stuff of hacks.
This isn't always the case, but funny usually transcends outrage.
For these people who work in sports, they decided to try to be funny or clever, but quickly found themselves apologizing for the result. The reality is, if part of your job entails representing an organization in public, jokes have much greater potential for failure than success.
These are athletes and sports figures who apologized for inappropriate jokes.
Houston Rockets GM Compares Himself to a Gynecologist
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Twitter has accomplished something quite remarkable, as it has been the source of countless, highly publicized celebrity social media faux pas, yet remains irresistible.
In the case of Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey, he waded into an unforced error when he solicited questions from fans on Twitter and provided an ill-advised answer to an unambiguously innocuous question. And it was the result of an acute case of "cleverness":
"No, it is like being a gynecologist, you don't get sick of it RT @chriswk14 does having a job in bball make you sick of watching it?
— Daryl Morey (@dmorey) January 14, 2015"
This, of course, did not play as well in public as it did in his head, so Morey offered an apology wrapped in a public relations lesson: "I had a tweet that was in bad taste. I’m going to leave the comedy to the professionals. I think I’m going to stick with my GM job."
Marvin Lewis Takes Jab at Johnny Manziel
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In the week leading up to the Cincinnati Bengals' encore divisional clash with the Cleveland Browns, head coach Marvin Lewis was being interviewed about the game on local radio station WLW-AM when the hosts asked about how the team might prepare for athletic rookie quarterback Johnny Manziel (who at 6" tall is considered short for a pro passer).
Lewis responded with: “You gotta go defend the offense. You don’t defend the player [...] Particularly a midget.”
As you would expect, his use of an offensive term didn't go unnoticed—despite the fact his words were broadcast over AM radio waves—and Lewis was criticized for his choice of words.
Hours later, Lewis issued this apology: "I apologize to Johnny and the Browns and all the fans. It was just a poor remark. I really didn’t mean anything by it."
CBS Sports' Seth Davis Is Worried About UFC's Influence
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Many concerns about UFC have been expressed that deserve consideration: the lack of a strong, competing MMA body, the violence of the sport, the legitimacy of the PED testing practices, among others.
But in 2012, CBS Sports hoops reporter Seth Davis took to Twitter (where else?) and offered his own unique concern: "Looking on news sites showing picture of two muscular bloody men in homoerotic fighting pose....Sorry, I'll never get this UFC thing. Maybe I'm a prude on this but I'm also a dad. I don't mind my sons watching boxing, but I wouldn't want them watching a UFC bout."
His tweet, which seemed to try keeping one foot in "joke" territory, while keeping the other in "serious" land, was convoluted enough that multiple conclusions can be drawn...none good. Regardless of the exact interpretation of his statement, it seems like a bad idea to attack a sport based on martial arts.
Credit Davis for at least offering an unequivocal apology in response to the backlash: “My tweets were stupid and thoughtless and you are right to call me out. Mea culpa.”
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Jacksonville Jaguars Mascot Makes Ebola Joke
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Team mascots don't make national headlines very often, but when they do, it's usually not for something positive. And in the case of Jaxson DeVille's badly timed (and just bad) joke during the Jaguars' game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on October 5, the reaction was definitively negative.
Played by Curtis Dvorak since the franchise's inception in '96, Jaxson DeVille decided to tweak Steelers fans with an improvised sign inspired by current events. Alluding to the deadly virus responsible for more than 8,500 deaths and the beloved symbol of the Steelers, Dvorak displayed a sign with the words "Towels carry Ebola."
The immediate reaction on social media panned both the choice of words as well as the joke itself, followed by the Jaguars issuing an official statement apologizing for DeVille's sign:
"Improvisation and humor have both been key elements to the character of Jaxson DeVille, especially when he performs at home games. On Sunday, the person who has played Jaxson DeVille over the past 20 seasons made an extremely poor decision in that regard. The team was unaware of this inappropriate sign, which was hand-made by Jaxson during the fourth quarter of yesterday’s game, until after it had been displayed. We are handling the matter internally and taking it very seriously. We extend our sincerest apologies to anyone who was offended.
"
Los Angeles Kings Guest Tweeter Makes a Rape Joke
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In Game 4 of the 2013 NHL Western Conference semifinals, the Los Angeles Kings' official Twitter account handed the keys over to guest tweeter Kevin Ryder (@thekevinryder) of KROQ-FM's Kevin and Bean Show.
Though 99 percent of Ryder's body of work could have been exemplary, one tweet made headlines: "Galiardi, gets a penalty for running over Quick. Power Play Kings. Kopitar just got sexually assaulted in front of Niemi."
Not long thereafter, the keys were ripped away from Ryder, the offending tweet deleted, and both the tweeter and master of the Twitter account were in damage control mode.
The Kings: "We apologize for the tweets that came from a guest of our organization. They were inappropriate and do not reflect the LA Kings."
Ryder: "My apology. I made a poor choice in the wording of my tweet. I wish I had used different words. If you were hurt by me, I'm sorry."
Philly Radio Host Revels in Devastating Knee Injury
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Philadelphia sports fans are known for being a particular passionate, if not vicious, bunch.
But, the callousness of ESPN 950 radio host Mike Missanelli's tweet moments after Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz suffered a devastating knee injury during the Sunday night game against the Eagles, proved too much for even most Eagles fans: “Hey Giants fans: Victor Cruz is over. Dance to that.”
The sadistic sentiment wasn't shared by his opponents on the field, who looked on emotionally, or really anyone but Missanelli.And when it became clear that his words were not received well by foe and friend alike, he deleted the tweet (which never "deletes" the problem itself) and offered up a lame excuse wrapped in a lukewarm apology:
“I apologize for the Cruz Tweet. I didn’t see that he got hurt on the play. Was outside the stadium and saw he dropped it (the ball) walking to my car. I just saw on big screen outside stadium that he dropped the pass,” he tweeted. “Didn’t see that he got hurt on play. My bad.”
Chicago Sportscaster Mark Giangreco Makes Light of Suicide
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Much of the criticism directed at embattled Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler is well-earned and the consternation of fans and the local sports media is well-deserved, but for as awesome as the sport may be, football is still football. And football isn't nearly as important as life and death, or the consequences associated with the stigma of mental illness.
Which is why WLS-TV sportscaster Mark Giangreco's segment on Cutler that aired in December is as inexplicable, as it is tasteless. In it, he uses the quarterback's last name as a pun, suggesting that the team "Cut him, or cut your wrists." Because, he's a bad quarterback and, you know, not getting rid of him is worthy of taking your own life. And, this idea survived the editorial process.
The pun failed and offended, leaving Giangreco to engage in the time-honored walk-back: “My remarks were inappropriate, and I deeply regret and apologize for this incident. I will be issuing an on-air apology in this evening’s newscast.”
Brad Ausmus Explains How He Deals with Losing
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There is no reason to assume or even speculate if Detroit Tigers manager Brad Ausmus beats his wife. Nothing about the body of his career and personal life indicates otherwise.
But, when he was asked last summer about how his "mood" is when he returns home on the heels of a losing streak, he said: "I beat my wife."
He walked it back immediately with a "just kidding," and it was an obvious—and obviously bad—joke, but it is a great example of a subject too timely, too charged that it simply can't be finessed into a conversation, especially with the media.
No one would consider his unfortunate "joke" to be an admission, but Ausmus still had to say this moments later: "I didn't want to make light of battered women. I didn't mean to make light of it, so I apologize if that offended anyone. Next question. Sorry."
PGA Golfer Sergio Garcia's Terrible (At Best) Joke About Tiger Woods
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Pro golf isn't known for being a hotbed of controversy, at least not by the standards of the other major sports. Which is why Sergio Garcia's answer to a question about Tiger Woods in 2012 is such a stark outlier in a game that usually calls a two-stroke penalty "controversial."
During the 2012 European Tour's players' awards dinner, Garcia was asked jokingly, in reference to the words he exchanged with Tiger Woods at that year's Players Championship, if he would invite Woods to dinner at the U.S. Open.
Garcia responded: "We will have him round every night. We will serve fried chicken."
OK. No blaming this on a hacked Twitter account, or words taken out of context. There's no need explaining why his words are racially charged, or what exactly he intended to mean if he sincerely chose his words without consideration of race.
But, Garcia apologized and offered a feckless excuse: "I apologise for any offence that may have been caused by my comment on stage during The European Tour Players' Awards dinner. I answered a question that was clearly made towards me as a joke with a silly remark, but in no way was the comment meant in a racist manner."
Gatorade Needles Superstar Athlete They Covet
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Game 1 of the 2014 NBA Finals offered one of the most memorable scenes of the entire series, when Miami Heat superstar LeBron James was seized with cramps and had to be carried off the court. Both the Heat and San Antonio Spurs had to contend with a sweltering arena after the air conditioning system broke down.
An unnamed employee for Gatorade took to the company's official Twitter account to needle James, who signed an endorsement deal with rival sports-drink-maker Powerade: “We were waiting on the sidelines, but he prefers to drink something else.”
And: "The person cramping wasn't our client. Our athletes can take the heat."
I'm no expert when it comes to business or marketing strategies, but it seems both in poor taste and dumb to single out James and rub his face in the fact he didn't sign a deal with Gatorade, because not signing him was your loss and you would die to have him as your client in the future.
Apparently, Gatorade agrees, as stated in an official release after the game: “Our apologies for our response to fans' tweets during [Thursday] night's Heat vs. Spurs game. We got caught up in the heat of the battle. As a longtime partner of the Miami Heat, we support the entire team.”
Wes Welker Alludes to Salacious Rex Ryan Rumor
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The Bill Belichick-enforced "Patriot Way" is a well-established part of sports culture. It's a coda that ensures that any time a New England Patriots player or coach is interviewed by the press, they basically nothing. The well-worn platitudes and lack of candor may make for a boring quote, but you can't argue with the results.
So, in 2011, when then-Patriot Wes Welker used a press conference as a platform for a thinly veiled joke about a scandalous Rex Ryan foot-fetish rumor, ahead of the team's clash with the division rival New York Jets, there was little doubt the veteran wideout had gone rogue.
Patriots head coach Belichick was not amused by the foot-focused presser, benching Welker for the team's first offensive possession.
As expected, he emerged contrite about the incident: “I’m not going to get into any details about it, but I don’t think it’s worth putting coach [Belichick] in that situation. So in a sense, I do regret it. ... As much as you might want to get enticed into that stuff, at the end of the day, it’s just not worth it.”
Chipper Jones Overestimates the Power of 'Just Kidding'
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In 2013, retired Atlanta Braves third basemen Chipper Jones used Twitter as a platform to weigh in on an issue important to many Americans: illegal immigration. And his tweet was as nuanced as it was funny, because he articulated his opinion through an attempted joke:
"Y'all think if they took all them gators they trap in Fla and La and put them in the Rio Grande, it wud stop the illegals from crossing? Jk
— Chipper Jones (@RealCJ10) June 8, 2013"
And, just in case you had your doubts, Jones tacked on the superfluous "jk" to denote that in the instance where a reader may find his words to be offensive, he's just kidding.
Surprisingly enough, the idea of men, women and children being deterred from crossing the border by roaming packs of U.S.-sponsored migrant alligators didn't sit well with a lot of people, so here you go:
"I realize that my tweet yest was offensive and distasteful. An attempt at humor was a terrible mistake. Please accept my heartfelt apology!
— Chipper Jones (@RealCJ10) June 9, 2013"
Dan Hampton's Broadcast for the Ages
13 of 14As if telling one cringe-inducing, apology-worthy joke on air was bad enough, NFL Hall of Fame defensive tackle Dan Hampton accomplished the feat of saying two on a 2010 episode of Pro Football Weekly's television show.
The first was in regard to the 2010 NFL season opener between the New Orleans Saints and Minnesota Vikings: “The Vikings need to go down there and hit that town like Katrina.”
The second offensive nugget came at the expense of the Dallas Cowboys: "The Cowboys think they are Clint Eastwood — they're more of the Brokeback variety if you know what I'm talking about."
Yikes!
And though he's in the Hall of Fame for his skills on the football field, rather than in front of the camera, Hampton was compelled to air an apology for both remarks: “Last week I made a couple of comments about Katrina and the gay community that not only embarrassed myself but the fine people here at Pro Football Weekly. I'm an idiot. And I am truly sorry if those comments, you know, offended any of our great and wonderful viewers.”
IOC Official Disses Williams Sisters with Sexist Joke
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Shamil Tarpischev, longtime head of Russia's Tennis Federation and ranking member of the IOC, found himself in hot water last October when he referred to U.S. women's tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams as the "Williams Brothers" on a television program.
As far as I can tell, he was either suggesting the No. 18 and No. 1 ranked female tennis players are either man-like, because their dominance over Russian female players (among others) is simply impossible for any non-Russian woman, or that they are actually men, masquerading as women.
Regardless of which is the case, or if Tarpischev was simply telling a lame, awful joke, as he contended in a written apology to the Williams sisters, it all seems to point to a man who can't handle two American sisters who are at the top, or near the top, of the sport.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
