Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

According to ESPN’s Mike Triplett, Vacarro said of Luck:

“Not deceptive. Just because he’s white doesn’t mean he’s deceptive. He’s actually a great athlete. He has all the tools that you ask for as a quarterback. Smart, big arm talent, can go through all his reads and he can run. So not deceptive, he’s actually athletic.”

As for Vacarro’s notion that race factors into Luck’s description, well, he’s right.

Vice Sports recorded the buzzwords ESPN analysts used during the 2015 NFL draft, and the findings were stunning.

“Only black players were described as: gifted, aggressive, explosive, raw, and freak. Only white players were described as: intelligent, cerebral, fundamentally, overachiever, technician, workmanlike, desire, and brilliant.”

Players aren’t always so direct about adjectives for opponents, but it’s actually kind of refreshing to see the hard-hitting Vacarro attack a dumb stereotype

Saints S talks Andrew Luck's so-called 'deceptive' speed | Yardbarker.com

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

Luck is white?

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

Interesting light on the hypocrisy of the political correctness of ESPN...

Wonder if their ombudsman would get a chance to address that issue?!?

Then again, after the guy publish an honest commentary, this happened

ESPN Pulls Ombudsman Blog That Praised Bill Simmons and Others for Holding NFL Accountable [UPDATE] | The Big Lead

and this was his last posting...

Serving sports fans through Journalism - Ombudsman - ESPN

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

I wonder if he can dunk, :neutral:.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

lmao in the world of political correctness they print this dribble.

ESPN the National Enquirer of sports journalism. If Archie Bunker was alive today this would be his only source for sporting news.

I never read their scouting reports any ways.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

KV is a deceptive safety. Ok just kidding but maybe only a little bit. His name has been awfully quiet this year.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

ESPN & ABC promote gambling.

Repeatedly and throughout programs targeting the 17-34yr demographic.

They're money whores like every other network.

"Disney", my azz....

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

I agree. Our social constructs and the way we perceive and judge situations are blatant to anybody who is attentive to human behavior. However, the black athletes do seem to be more physically gifted in the areas of speed and just flat out explosion. White players are susceptible to seemingly being more intelligent in due part because they're more likely to have been better educated throughout life. Intelligence is natural giftedness of the mind, which I think all races are pretty even at. We often confuse well educated with intelligence.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

.... or maybe they just pay attention in class more, #shrug.

"Why should we have to go to class if we came here to play FOOTBALL, we ain't come to play SCHOOL classes are POINTLESS," ~ Cardale Jones, OSU

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

Really? Black athletes are more physically gifted and whities are just better educated?

Education, regardless of where its from, is a choice. Even a "bad school" can give someone an education. If that person chooses not to give a rats ass about school and not pay attention then that is their choice. "Education" and the choice to be proactive in it has nothing to do with skin color and everything to do with attitude. People shouldn't get a pass because they chose not to pay attention and make school a priority, regardless of skin color or educational system.

I don't believe in excuses.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

It's not excuses. It's statistical fact. It's sociology. It's psychology. You can be intelligent and still not be well educated. To make a self righteous determination that outside factors should have no bearings on a person or peoples and one should be able to overcome all odds is pretty ridiculous. In the vast majority of cases, people DON'T overcome a life of poverty and poor education. Again, statistical fact. Family history, race, income, gender, sexual orientation, location, etc. They all play major and minor roles in the quality of one's life.

And when you're bored, find me the players with the best measurables in the NFL at every position. Give me the top 5 40 times, broad jumps, and vertical leaps at every position. All of them measure explosion.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

Jesus. Can we get back to football? #shutupandplayball

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

With some people it's all about playing the race card, #shrug. Those arguments about coming from poverty may have had some basis in fact back in the day, but most of these guys nowadays are coming from middle class or better families with the same or better advantages afforded them than their white brethren, but acknowledging that wouldn't be following "the narrative", :rolleyes:.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

Rez I respect your opinion but I don't agree. It just sounds like excuses to me. People can make something of themselves if they choose to. It may be harder for some than others but not impossible.

Just because someone grows up in the "hood" doesn't mean they have to bang. Just because someone has friends that do dope doesn't mean they have to do it. Just because someone goes to a lower end school doesn't mean they can't make their education a priority. And I'm sorry, the people getting college education is pretty good education. Better than what I can afford. I just don't like the excuses people make for underachieving in anything. My family was poor growing up. And all of us kids made something of ourselves and have been successful. It's about attitude. Not race. Anything else just sounds like an excuse to underachieve and to be lazy, not a reason.

But let's bury this convo as I'm sure we will not see eye to eye.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

That is a most brilliant statement.
Educated, is simply someone who has received formal information, for better or worse. I am more than ever, questioning the information given the "educated," these days.

Intelligence is raw brain power, tapped, or untapped. You cannot measure it,
and it takes many forms, not just academic. Academics always insist they are the only intelligent beings. Many of them cannot change a tire.

Interesting idea presented and posted.
Lets dont let it become a needless, pointless, divisive fight, guys...
- just being preventive.

only 2 colors should matter to us. Black. and Gold.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

Say WHAT!!!! “Not deceptive. Just because he’s white doesn’t mean he’s deceptive. UM :popcorn:

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

A psychologist named Umar Johnson brought that assessment to my attention when he was discussing the racial biases of the IQ test. He gave an in depth history on the test and it's purpose, which I'll spare you the details of for another day. Basically, he spoke on how there's 4 parts to an IQ test. 3 of which are rooted in raw brain power, which Black children and White children are usually equivalent. The last part is reading comprehension related, which is directly tied to the education you've received thus far. Thats where the white children significantly edge out the black children. I've done a plethora of in depth research over the years in order to be able to conduct these conversations with knowledge and civility instead of anger. Glad to see you understand where I'm coming from.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

The Black middle class is not growing my brother. It's shrinking. 22% of Blacks live in poverty, second only to the Native Americans at 25%. That doesn't include the percentage who are lower class. African Americans only account for 2.4% of the wealth in this country, and less then 1% of the land. This is not a narrative. It is statistical fact. The initial post is about racial bias against a white player, in which I agreed that saying his speed is deceptive has racially biased undertones. I just gave my opinion on the topic at hand my friend.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

Of course, I respectfully disagee. I do greatly appreciate the elegance and tact of the response. Certainly no hard feelings. And I do agree that hardships know no color.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

When I play for new teams they always put me on the fastest player. It never works. I'm deceptively slow. :wink:

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

I've often admitted to the racial bias of pressing white receivers out of the lack of respect of their speed in high school. I wasn't proved wrong, but I rarely felt outclassed in speed at that level anyway.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

No, the original post was Vacarro commenting on how Luck is described as having deceptive speed because he's white with the underlying tone that he wouldn't be described that way if he was black, similar to how Isaiah Thomas (DET) once commented how if Larry Bird (BOS) were black, he'd be just another NBA player, and the buzzwords for black/white athletes used by ESPN analysts during the 2015 NFL Draft, #shrug. It is what it is.

When I see your stats and where you're from, I understand where we disagree. The black middle class is doing fine in Detroit, no better or worse then the white middle class, #shrug. I attended Detroit Public Schools, which are disproportionally black, and every kid had the same opportunity at an education and/or college that I did, and most probably more so, #shrug.

So, I look at it more from a personal responsibility point-of-view vs a national social issue point-of-view because I know plenty of people from disadvantaged backgrounds/poverty who through their own efforts did just fine and don't always buy into the narratives, #shrug.

I think it was kind of a stupid comment by Vacarro anyway and wonder would the media coverage been the same had Luck made similar comments about Vacarro. So what's Vacarro's point? Does he want to be known as "deceptive" because he feels it's a more flattering description or does he want Luck to be known as just another NFL player and not someone special?

I don't really care. :neutral:

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

The black middle class on a national level is not doing fine whatsoever. I'm speaking to a collective. If I look only at what I see and experience then I don't get the bigger picture. 52% of African Americans are either in poverty or lower class. 38% comprise the middle class. 8% are upper class. I can ramble off more and more statistics with the sources to back up my premise, but my point is using your own achievements as the bar for others is unrealistic and unempathetic. It's not an opinion, it's what the numbers and sociological studies say.

Re: Kenny Vacarro: People say Andrew Luck has deceptive speed because he’s white
 

Which has what to do with the original post, ie Vacarro's comments?

Your stats/numbers/studies are meaningless to me without links or references, so I really can only rely on personal experiences, #shrug. For all I know, you could be Danno's alter ego ... you guys have had similar posting styles in the past, :lol:. I'm not using my own achievements to gauge anything, just reflecting that while you try to paint the black community as impoverished and under privileged, I've seen it differently, and I am aware of the big picture as well, #shrug.

So I don't know what to tell ya', bro. You're an anonymous poster on a message board. You wanna' have a deep philosophical discussion on race and the state of black America, we're gonna' have to do it in person before I'm gonna' take you too serious, just sayin'. :neutral:.