Sports fans are clearly the least-empathetic creatures on earth. Don’t believe me? Then just ask Miami Dolphins quarterback, Chad Henne. On Aug. 1, Henne was booed by fans during a scrimmage at Sun Life Stadium. These jeers soon turned into a “We want Orton” chant, referring to Denver Broncos quarterback, Kyle Orton.
It’s one thing to be booed and ostracized by the opponent’s fans on the road, but to be heckled by your own fans during a practice is just unheard of. “We sitting here talking about practice. Not a game, not a game, not a game. We talking about practice.” Sorry, couldn’t resist channeling my inner Allen Iverson.
Look, believe it or not, athletes are humans too. They have feelings and emotions just like the rest of humanity. My name may not be Dr. Frasier Crane, however, one does not need a Ph.D. in clinical psychology to know this had to hurt Henne.
What exactly does booing your own team’s quarterback accomplish? There’s no denying Chad Henne had a disappointing season last year, but football is a team sport and there was plenty of blame to go around. We all know Henne is no Dan Marino or Bob Griese, but he is the starting quarterback of the Miami Dolphins, and true Dolphins fans should support him, not demonize him.
The average person tends to place athletes up on a pedestal, and when these athletes fail to live up to expectations, watch out, because it’s hunting season and they are the rabbits. Next time you want to bash an athlete just because they aren’t living up to your standards on the field, don’t. How would you feel if you were the athlete being verbally abused?
Just like our NSU athletes, Henne is giving his maximum effort, and at the end of the day, that’s all anyone could ask for.
