They were the fastest kids in middle school
Who dusted classmates with all deliberate speed,
And somehow escaped the trope
Of ending up as a defensive back or wide receiver.
The football lifers have always reviled the running.
You pass, you don’t run.
You don’t dance when you score. You don’t run.
You hold your tongue. You definitely don’t run.
If you’re gonna run like that, you shouldn’t even be a quarterback.
If only they knew how much our survival has been based on running,
Or how often legs are involved in the actual playing of football;
Perhaps those anonymously sourced coaches and officials would win more.
They revile sending scouts to HBCUs,
Why else did Tarik Cohen and Robert Mathis fall so low on the Draft Board?
They revile seeing your locker room guest with the cornrows or dreadlocks.
They will pile on you like a fumble scrum, even if it’s not your fault,
Just ask Deshaun Watson and an East Texas superintendent,
Or Donovan McNabb, who gave Philly its first title game appearance in decades.
They didn’t give Warren Moon a chance,
So he left for Canada, like Underground Railroad runners.
They loathe Colin Kaepernick,
And would prefer his dying breath before a silent protest.
They never forgave Michael Vick,
But gave Riley Cooper a second and Ben Roethlisberger a third chance.
So go on brothers. Go on and run, and dance,
And run some more, and throw while running,
Just to upset them even more.
We know. Lord how we know.
And that’s why we’ll be rooting for you,
And that’s why I thank you.
