If you have never tuned in to ESPN’s First Take that features host/moderator Cari Champion, analysts, Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless, then you are missing one of the best sports debate shows on Television. On yesterdays episode, guest analyst Rob Parker (a former Detroit columnist) took exception to superstar rookie quarterback Robert Griffin III saying, “For me, you don’t ever want to be defined by the color of your skin. You want to be defined by your work ethic, the person that you are, your character, your personality. That’s what I’ve tried to go out and do.I am an African-American in America. That will never change. But I don’t have to be defined by that.”Due to this statement, Rob Parker went on to have the following conversation with Cari Champion:
None of us can deny that their is a stigma placed on Black quarterbacks in the NFL: many think that black are great athletes but don’t possess the cerebral abilities to truly understand and execute all the duties of the position. In many people’s eyes, RGIII is the prototype that dispels that myth. He is an amazing athlete yet he possess deadly accuracy with pocket presence and most importantly, he is quite intelligent. RGII may possibly be not only the future of the Washington Redskins but also the future of the NFL franchise. With that being said, does Rob Parker need to lay off the rookie or does he have a point and does Robert Griffin III need to identify more with his “blackness” and shoulder the weight of moving the culture forward?
