In an interview with Matt Lauer to be shown on NBC’s Today Show, Brett Favre weighed in on what is now becoming refered to as Bullygate. Favre, one of the toughest players to have played the game, had difficulty accepting that Miami Dolphins tackle Jonathan Martin could have been bullied by teammates within his own locker room. "Pro football - bullying?" Favre said. "We're playing - it's the - toughest sport, most violent, not to mention you're men - some older than others. So it's not like a little 12-year-old on the playground. And I'm not defending or condone - I'm - all I'm saying is my initial reaction was a grown man that's 320 pounds is getting bullied?"
Favre reaction is a common one that has reverberated across the league the past two weeks. Some players, such as the Giants Antrel Rolle have suggested that Martin may be equally guilty for allowing himself to be bullied. Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor recently said “If you are that sensitive and weak minded, then find another profession... This is not golf. I don’t know how you bully a 350 pound player.”
These “men” are missing the point. Yes, Martin is big and strong. But he wasn’t being physically bullied. He was being browbeaten, tormented, persecuted and threatened, for almost two years, by “men” whom he was being asked to work with and trust. "Men" who were his team mates. Apparently Martin is a sensitive man. But being sensitive does not mean being incompetent.
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The NFL is doing an investigation to see if Martins allegations are accurate. Until both sides are heard no one really knows if Martin was truely bullied. However, the findings may go a long way towards enlighten people about the extent of bullying and how it effects the victims: young or old, meek or strong, man or woman. No, we are all not “Men”…
