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The bad news is that Marshawn will undoubtedly want to kick my ass this summer.. The good news is I linked BZ to this photo in the article by MIke, so hopefully you guys get a lot of hits.
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Inside the Buffalo Bills organization, one of the poorer-kept secrets is a mutual aversion between current running back Marshawn Lynch and Hall of Famer Thurman Thomas. Simply put, you’re unlikely to see the duo sharing at a meal at Lynch’s Applebees or Dave and Buster’s hot spots anytime soon.
Several current and former players I’ve spoken to confirm the two aren’t fond of each other. Word is Thomas doesn’t think Lynch is very deserving of being part of the Bills organization and Western New York community.
Evidence of Lynch’s contempt for Thomas rests in his locker. Billszone.com photographer Michael Thomas captured a photocopied image of a Mark Gaughan Buffalo News blog entry from March 2009 Lynch has taped inside his stall. In the short column, Thomas said at the time he’d get rid of Lynch, who had previously been arrested a month earlier on a gun possession charge in California.
“If I was the GM (general manager), he’d be out of there.” Thomas said in the article.
If Lynch was using the letter as extra motivation it failed to work. He ran for just 450 yards on 120 carries and scored just two rushing touchdowns in 2009. His 3.8 yards per carry average was actually padded on 35 and 47 yard gains on two carries late in the season.
There’s also the incident late last season where Thomas brought his child with him into the locker room before a game, and Lynch snubbed him.
Reports trickled down to Thomas’ in-season radio show on WGR-550, though Thomas declined to ever formally name the player who was rude to him in front of his son.
As expected, neither player is willing to speak on the record about each other. Then again, Lynch refuses to speak to anyone about anything at all these days.
We will.
Thomas was and remains the best running back the organization has ever had. More importantly, he’s been a pillar in the community during and since his playing days and has been involved in countless charitable causes. He also still calls Western New York his home.
Occasional annoying twitter political talk aside, Thomas is a Hall of Famer with a heavily vested interest in the direction of the organization. Like many of the players that made up the greatest era of football the organization has ever seen, he wears his heart on his sleeve. He’s earned the right to speak his mind.
“This guy (Lynch) as talented as he is wouldn’t last a half season in our locker room when we played,” a former player told me. “We weren’t perfect by any means… but nothing like this. His off field antics have been an embarrassment.”
Thomas was completely right to say what he said, even though he told me the article was taken out of context and didn’t tell the whole story.
Meanwhile, undeniable God-given talent aside, Lynch has been a constant black eye on the organization on and off the field since being drafted in 2007. He’s had a pair of 1,000 yard seasons and a Pro Bowl to his credit, but it’s been overshadowed by off-field incidents, including separate hit and run, weed and gun possession charges. He’s also been involved in reported incidents where he didn’t end up criminally charged, including the alleged heisting of $20 bills on two occasions.
This is all in less than a three-year period.
Like it or not, Lynch’s time in Buffalo is limited, even if he wasn’t dealt before or during this past NFL draft. He lost his starting job to Fred Jackson last season and may have received a knockout blow in late April when the team took C.J. Spiller ninth overall. As a result Lynch, assuming he’s still with the team when training camp opens, enters the fray as the third string back on the roster.
Jackson isn’t going anywhere and here’s a newsflash; the Bills didn’t take Spiller that high to be a kick returner and carry the ball five times per game.
Although it wasn’t mandatory, it should be noted at Buffalo’s last organized team workouts before the draft, Lynch was a no-show, one of the few veterans not in attendance, surprising with a brand new coaching staff to meet.
Buddy Nix at the time and since has refused to comment about Lynch’s absence.
Again, we will.
Lynch wants to remain in Buffalo about as much as bartenders on Chippewa Street want him in their bars. If you thought he was a malcontent after losing his starting job to Jackson, it’s hard to imagine how he’ll be when he shows up to mandatory portions of camp, and that’s if he doesn’t hold out for a trade or release.
Chan Gailey has promised a clean slate for everyone on the roster, Nix says he has no intention of trading Lynch, and he still has two years left on a rookie deal at a very reasonable salary. Conceivably he could once again become a factor in the Bills offense, but don’t count on it.
Then again, maybe he’ll tape this to his locker as well.
--------------------
Inside the Buffalo Bills organization, one of the poorer-kept secrets is a mutual aversion between current running back Marshawn Lynch and Hall of Famer Thurman Thomas. Simply put, you’re unlikely to see the duo sharing at a meal at Lynch’s Applebees or Dave and Buster’s hot spots anytime soon.
Several current and former players I’ve spoken to confirm the two aren’t fond of each other. Word is Thomas doesn’t think Lynch is very deserving of being part of the Bills organization and Western New York community.
Evidence of Lynch’s contempt for Thomas rests in his locker. Billszone.com photographer Michael Thomas captured a photocopied image of a Mark Gaughan Buffalo News blog entry from March 2009 Lynch has taped inside his stall. In the short column, Thomas said at the time he’d get rid of Lynch, who had previously been arrested a month earlier on a gun possession charge in California.
“If I was the GM (general manager), he’d be out of there.” Thomas said in the article.
If Lynch was using the letter as extra motivation it failed to work. He ran for just 450 yards on 120 carries and scored just two rushing touchdowns in 2009. His 3.8 yards per carry average was actually padded on 35 and 47 yard gains on two carries late in the season.
There’s also the incident late last season where Thomas brought his child with him into the locker room before a game, and Lynch snubbed him.
Reports trickled down to Thomas’ in-season radio show on WGR-550, though Thomas declined to ever formally name the player who was rude to him in front of his son.
As expected, neither player is willing to speak on the record about each other. Then again, Lynch refuses to speak to anyone about anything at all these days.
We will.
Thomas was and remains the best running back the organization has ever had. More importantly, he’s been a pillar in the community during and since his playing days and has been involved in countless charitable causes. He also still calls Western New York his home.
Occasional annoying twitter political talk aside, Thomas is a Hall of Famer with a heavily vested interest in the direction of the organization. Like many of the players that made up the greatest era of football the organization has ever seen, he wears his heart on his sleeve. He’s earned the right to speak his mind.
“This guy (Lynch) as talented as he is wouldn’t last a half season in our locker room when we played,” a former player told me. “We weren’t perfect by any means… but nothing like this. His off field antics have been an embarrassment.”
Thomas was completely right to say what he said, even though he told me the article was taken out of context and didn’t tell the whole story.
Meanwhile, undeniable God-given talent aside, Lynch has been a constant black eye on the organization on and off the field since being drafted in 2007. He’s had a pair of 1,000 yard seasons and a Pro Bowl to his credit, but it’s been overshadowed by off-field incidents, including separate hit and run, weed and gun possession charges. He’s also been involved in reported incidents where he didn’t end up criminally charged, including the alleged heisting of $20 bills on two occasions.
This is all in less than a three-year period.
Like it or not, Lynch’s time in Buffalo is limited, even if he wasn’t dealt before or during this past NFL draft. He lost his starting job to Fred Jackson last season and may have received a knockout blow in late April when the team took C.J. Spiller ninth overall. As a result Lynch, assuming he’s still with the team when training camp opens, enters the fray as the third string back on the roster.
Jackson isn’t going anywhere and here’s a newsflash; the Bills didn’t take Spiller that high to be a kick returner and carry the ball five times per game.
Although it wasn’t mandatory, it should be noted at Buffalo’s last organized team workouts before the draft, Lynch was a no-show, one of the few veterans not in attendance, surprising with a brand new coaching staff to meet.
Buddy Nix at the time and since has refused to comment about Lynch’s absence.
Again, we will.
Lynch wants to remain in Buffalo about as much as bartenders on Chippewa Street want him in their bars. If you thought he was a malcontent after losing his starting job to Jackson, it’s hard to imagine how he’ll be when he shows up to mandatory portions of camp, and that’s if he doesn’t hold out for a trade or release.
Chan Gailey has promised a clean slate for everyone on the roster, Nix says he has no intention of trading Lynch, and he still has two years left on a rookie deal at a very reasonable salary. Conceivably he could once again become a factor in the Bills offense, but don’t count on it.
Then again, maybe he’ll tape this to his locker as well.
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