Rushen Jones (Vikes) should be shot in the head

[Guest MarvinisaLunatic]

Vermeil: Ex-Vandy star Jones should be shot for hit

 

Tennessean News Services

 

The final of four feisty scrimmages ended on an angry note as Kansas City Chiefs Coach Dick Vermeil suggested Vikings rookie and former Vanderbilt star Rushen Jones should be shot in the head for a damaging hit, the Saint Paul Pioneer Press reported.

 

During a passing scrimmage, Kansas City backup receiver Dameane Douglas appeared to severely damage his lower leg after a hit by Jones, the Vikings rookie free-agent cornerback. The extent of Douglas' injury was not known, but Vermeil said ''it was not good.''

 

While on the grass, Douglas said his leg was cracked.

 

Vermeil was furious with Jones. In the middle of an interview session after practice, Vermeil yelled at Vikings scout Kevin McCabe, who worked for Vermeil in St. Louis. Vermeil told McCabe the Vikings should take a shotgun to Jones and ''shoot him in the head.'' Jones was unavailable for comment, the newspaper said.

 

Douglas and his teammates immediately began to scream at Jones after the play. Douglas looked at Jones and Vikings cornerback Carey Scott and said, ''Which one of you (expletive) are going to pay my bills?''

 

Douglas and Jones got tangled, and Jones tackled Douglas as he made the 15-yard catch from former MTSU star Jonathan Quinn. Douglas' knees immediately buckled. Several neutral sideline observers thought Jones' play was aggressive but not malicious.

 

Scott was near the play, and said the hit was not dirty.

 

The play was one of several tense moments during the hard-hitting, two-day session at the Chiefs' training facility on the Wisconsin-River Falls campus. There were several skirmishes between the teams each day. Vermeil said Vikings Coach Mike Tice was trying to ''toughen up his defense,'' but he thought there shouldn't have been any hitting in the drill.

 

''Did you see any of our guys make a hit like that?'' Vermeil said. ''It can be controlled. . . . It takes the edge off the whole practice.''

 

Tice witnessed the play, and said it seemed both slipped on the grass, which was wet from rain. He declined further comment

 

Taking bets on the fine he'll get from the NFL/Chiefs. I say $50,000 minimum fine. Thats about the stupidest thing he could say given the current things happening in sports. I don't care if his player was paralyzed, for him to say that another player should be "Shot in the head" is just plain stupid, among other things.

[Guest razazteca]

What is stupid is that everything is taken out of context and rushed to the media for an instant sound byte.

[Guest MarvinisaLunatic]

What is stupid is that everything is taken out of context and rushed to the media for an instant sound byte.

How's it out of context? It might be one of those, in the heat of the moment type things, but he still said that another player should be shot in the head with a shotgun. That shouldn't be acceptable..

[Guest Vern Gagne]

We don't know if Vermeil actually said this, or like Razatecha said it was taken out of context. Considering the source is a nothing but a glorified Viking Newsletter. I'll continue to have my doubts.

[Guest razazteca]

Well the coach was extremely angry at the play and at that moment he could not control himself. Yes it was a unclassy thing to say in public but I doubt Coach Dick Vermeil will tell his players to be head hunters, if and when they play in the regular season.

 

I don't think Dick Vermeil is the kind of person to hold grudges, he might run the score up in a game but I doubt he would put a bounty on an opponet.

 

If this happened at a press conference, when the comment were 1st made then I would be worried.

Edited August 1, 2003 by razazteca