Earlier in the week, Miami Dolphins quarterback Teddy Bridgewater took to social media to speak on a growing issue that he’s seeing with athletes in today’s sports.
His post read:
Tired of seeing football players portray this tough guy image or pretend he’s a gangsta. You went to school, attended those classes and some even go their college degree. Now you might have 1.5% of professional football players that’s on that but the remaining 98.5% are only “football tough.”
So don’t wait till you inherit this legal money from the league to decide you want to be tougher portray a “street image” cause it’s kids that’s looking up to everything we do. Plus it’s someone sitting in a cell or posted in the hood who might’ve been just as hood as you that would advise you otherwise.
Kids don’t be fooled. You can play ball, do the right thing and they still gonna accept you. Look at me, I’m far from perfect but I chose the ball route but I still can go to the same hood and post up and it’s all love. I still keep the same 3 dudes around me. My people accept me for making all the right decisions and not falling victim or being tricked by the false image you see on IG from a lot of ball players.
Choose your path. Can’t do both though.
The message is a great one. Athletes shouldn’t be forced into acting one way because they think it’s what people around them want to see. Bridgewater is telling his peers to be themselves and that it’s acceptable to be a role model if you’re from a neighborhood that doesn’t have many.
This post caught the attention of a number of players across sports who shared it, including a number of his own teammates. It even came across Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James’ timeline, and “The King” shared it with his followers as well.
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