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No need to drill Reed
I say that in all sincerity because Reed is a very good kicker for one, and because he's coming to Washington Crown Center at 6 p.m. today to help formally kick off this year's 2000 Turkeys campaign. Yes, too much was made about Reed's semi-recent run-in with Pittsburgh police, and not enough is made about charitable acts committed by guys such as Reed and Chris Hoke, who is also coming to the Crown Center tonight to help.
What Reed did the Sunday before last was not a capital offense, but you would have thought so by judging all the publicity the incident generated.
All he did was to loudly come to the aid of a teammate. OK, so it was highly irregular and unadvisable that he did so, but, still, he was looking after the best interests of a friend and teammate. Although tight end Matt Spaeth was cited for indecent exposure for urinating in public outside a North Side bar after the Steelers beat the Cleveland Browns, Reed apparently tried to intervene and was written up for disobeying an official order. Spaeth faces a hefty fine while Reed's case is yet unsettled. But he publicly apologized to the Steelers organization, the city, his coaches, teammate and the fans. He was embarrassed, although not as much as Spaeth.
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Remember what our old football coaches used to say about teamwork, specifically that "there is no I in team?" Well, there is no "stay in your car, sir" in team, either.
I'm not trying to make light of either man's behavior but, heck, we men have all done the same things at least once in our lives, haven't we?
As boys, especially small-town and country boys, we all grew up practically wee-weeing in the bushes and weeds. Oh, we'd go around a corner or behind some trees and turn our backs while we did what we were equipped to do so easily.
As we got older we came to understand the need for modesty, social graces and sanitation, but sometimes a man's got to do what a man's got to do, which is why Spaeth will pay a fine, as will anybody else who is caught, shall we say, red-handed?
And who among us hasn't exercised our right to remain silent when told to by authorities. It's like stand-up comic Ron White says in his Red Neck Comedy Tour routine about a brief encounter he had with an officer of the law: "I had the right to remain silent, but I lacked the ability."
That's about all that I have to say about Reed, other than he's one of the most accurate and reliable kickers in the NFL, as well as a valued teammate.
He's also a special man for coming out tonight to help formally kick off the 2000 Turkeys drive to raise money for the Greater Washington County Food Bank. More than 18,000 people receive monthly food assistance in this county, and he is 2000 Turkeys' teammate in that effort.
You can ask questions when you meet him and get his autograph, especially questions about kicking.
Byron Smialek's columns appear Tuesdays and Saturdays.
Not above the law : 10/27/2009
C'mon Byron, sports figures need to obey police and the laws no matter how talented they are and no matter how many turkeys they raise money for. Sports figures have a higher standard, not a lower one.
