Jack Tatum of thuh Oakland Raiduhs.......dead at 61

[macaroni tony]

Simultaneously my favorite, most feared, and most loathed football player of all time. Thoughts and prayers go out to his family.
(BTW did you notice? The thread title was supposed to be read in an Al Davis voice).

http://www.postbulletin.com/newsmana...?z=22&a=463004

[5StringBlues]

Aw man,Tatum was pretty awesome,even when he was with the Oilers.



RIP Jack

[macaroni tony]

I've always wanted to get a Tatum jersey, but never did....guess I will now

[basstotheface]

I miss the Oilers.

[Mad Russian]

He showed no remorse to the guy he paralyzed with a dirty hit. No remorse for him.

[blendermassacre]

Originally Posted by Mad Russian

He showed no remorse to the guy he paralyzed with a dirty hit. No remorse for him.

This is uncalled for. You don't know how he felt inside.

Respect for the dead is obviously out of style.

[macaroni tony]

Originally Posted by blendermassacre

Respect for the dead is obviously out of style.

Correctamundo, Mr. Massacre, sir.

Football lost a prolific figure, polarizing though he may be. I don't think he would want anyone to feel sorry for him, but proper condolences are in order for his friends and family.

[blendermassacre]

I played football for 12 years out of the nearly 24 I've been alive. I can tell you that hits happen, legal and otherwise. You train, day in and day out making your body do things that it wasn't designed to do. Your headspace during a game isn't "I'm going to purposefully paralyze someone", it's "I'm going to make this tackle". I made , what would have been, a game saving tackle in a huge game in highschool (if our punt returner didn't fumble in the endzone). On the 5 yard line, Jenks Highschool (if you don't know about them http://jenkstrojanfootball.com. They're a huge highschool that has better facilities than a lot of colleges, as did my highschool) ran the ball. I dove left and grabbed the runner by whatever I could, which happened to be his face mask. I pulled him to the ground by his face. No penalty was called, and thank god, he was fine. It could have been bad, especially after seeing the tape.

I, however, didn't feel bad. I did the best I could in the presented situation.

People who haven't ever played the game don't know what it's like. "arm chair" quarterbacking is a huge pet peeve of mine. Understanding the game is one thing, knowing, quite another.

[Mad Russian]

Originally Posted by blendermassacre

I played football for 12 years out of the nearly 24 I've been alive. I can tell you that hits happen, legal and otherwise. You train, day in and day out making your body do things that it wasn't designed to do. Your headspace during a game isn't "I'm going to purposefully paralyze someone", it's "I'm going to make this tackle". I made , what would have been, a game saving tackle in a huge game in highschool (if our punt returner didn't fumble in the endzone). On the 5 yard line, Jenks Highschool (if you don't know about them http://jenkstrojanfootball.com. They're a huge highschool that has better facilities than a lot of colleges, as did my highschool) ran the ball. I dove left and grabbed the runner by whatever I could, which happened to be his face mask. I pulled him to the ground by his face. No penalty was called, and thank god, he was fine. It could have been bad, especially after seeing the tape.

I, however, didn't feel bad. I did the best I could in the presented situation.

People who haven't ever played the game don't know what it's like. "arm chair" quarterbacking is a huge pet peeve of mine. Understanding the game is one thing, knowing, quite another.

I played and I coach my son's mini mite team. No sympathy for players who play dirty and make dirty hits. Tatum would purposefully go head-hunting.

[Mad Russian]

Originally Posted by blendermassacre

This is uncalled for. You don't know how he felt inside.

Respect for the dead is obviously out of style.

He felt better inside that the guy he paralyzed.

I didnt respect him when he was alive, why should I respect him whe he is dead?

[i_got_a_mohawk]

Originally Posted by Mad Russian

He showed no remorse to the guy he paralyzed with a dirty hit. No remorse for him.

Anyone who plays contact sports goes on the field knowing there is a risk of injury, be it accidental or deliberate. When the ol' adrenaline and testosterone is pumping you can hardly be said to be thinking straight as you would be walking down the street or in the office.

[blendermassacre]

Originally Posted by Mad Russian

He felt better inside that the guy he paralyzed.

I didnt respect him when he was alive, why should I respect him whe he is dead?

I think we've officially sunk to a new TBOT low here folks.

This is really sad, IMO.

[macaroni tony]

Originally Posted by blendermassacre

I think we've officially sunk to a new TBOT low here folks.

This is really sad, IMO.

Eh, I've heard much worse here in OT, but still pretty sad.

Don't have to like the guy for the type of hits he made, or respect him, for that matter. But he lost five toes, then a leg, then his life. I'd say he more than paid for whatever he did in life, Darryl Stingley's accidental injury included.

[blendermassacre]

Originally Posted by macaroni tony

Eh, I've heard much worse here in OT, but still pretty sad.

Don't have to like the guy for the type of hits he made, or respect him, for that matter. But he lost five toes, then a leg, then his life. I'd say he more than paid for whatever he did in life, Darryl Stingley's injury included.

Liking a person, and respecting their family after their death is quite another.

For example : http://boston.barstoolsports.com/ran...-goes-to-hell/

[macaroni tony]

^ ooh.....tough read

[MatticusMania]

from the article
"Again, let me be clear: football is a brutal game and guys get injured all the time. I don’t hate Tatum for paralyzing a guy. I spit on his grave for doing it on purpose with a cheap shot, then not offering even a modicum of respect to his victim until he could profit (further) from it. Good riddance, Assassin. And good luck getting raped by Satan."

wow, uh... yeah

I mean, was the intention of the tackle to actually paralyze the guy? I have a hard time saying 'yes' to that, but I guess I really don't know.

[i_got_a_mohawk]

Originally Posted by blendermassacre

Liking a person, and respecting their family after their death is quite another.

For example : http://boston.barstoolsports.com/ran...-goes-to-hell/

Yes, that guy clearly has "high christian ideals".

There is a difference between an on purpose cheap shot (happens in sport all the time) and purposefully breaking someones neck. I certainly doubt it was the latter.

[macaroni tony]

By football standards at the time, that was definitely not a cheap shot. That was the way people hit back in the day; Tatum was just the best at delivering them. That was just because he was a great football player.
BTW...I read somewhere that Tatum and Madden stayed at the hospital for two days until the doctors told them they could see Stingley. At which point they got blocked by Stingley's agent. Not 100% sure if it's true or not, though.

[blendermassacre]

I really wish someone didn't spam youtube videos of the hit. IME, a in the situation of a defender breaking up a pass, there is no illegal hit aside from leading with the head.

[fo shizzle]

Most of the venom spewed over Jack Tatum was his behavior after the hit. No contrition, no apology. He felt that he shouldn't apologize for what is just "part of the game". (I think this is the old school version of "keepin it real"). The truth is that players in that situation (pre-season, late in the game, nothing at stake) would generally take care of each other.
He also created this persona of the "Assassin". And for years he profiteered off this event.