When you’re upset, sometimes you say things you don’t really mean. That’s what I’ve been told. So we’ll just have to hope that Sarah from Seattle was really upset when she wrote her message to Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton after they beat the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL playoffs, a message that was posted on a Seattle TV Network’s Facebook wall. Sarah’s note took Newton to task, but not because he beat her beloved Seahawks. It seems the problem was that Cam grabbed a 12th man flag dangling from the stands over the tunnel and threw it on the ground as he celebrated. For those not in Seattle or College Station, Texas, the 12th man is the expression used for Seattle fans, and Texas A&M fans, inferring their vocal support is like having a 12th man on the field, instead of the 11 mandated by the rules. According to Sarah, when Cam threw that flag to the turf, a flag that was being waved in Cam’s face as he walked towards the lockers, he insulted more than just some guy in the stands. In fact, according to Sarah, he insulted more than even the entire Seattle fan base, which is probably unusually large because they’ve been to the past two Super Bowls. According to this fan Sarah, who felt the need to express her thoughts to a news network and their corresponding public, Cam Newton’s actions insulted, and these are now her words, “a community that feeds and clothes the homeless, that raises funds for families in hard times, that helps a 3-year-old battle cancer, and that has more grace and respect than you (Cam Newton, that is) can imagine.”
The note went on to say that Seattle’s quarterback Russel Wilson will be doing charity work at a children’s hospital while Cam is practicing this week – which makes sense because Seattle is done for the year, and Carolina is playing Sunday to go to the Super Bowl. Sarah also said she hoped God teaches Cam what real winning looks like, which I can’t believe either a) will happen, or b) is actually something Sarah wants, but instead is something you say to someone you hate in invoking religion as a means of moral superiority.
It’s not hard to find the hypocrisy in Sarah’s angst, like how Cam Newton does a remarkable amount of charity work himself, including funding Charlotte public schools through his own foundation. And the fact that Seattle has consistently been one of the most bombastic, trash talking teams in the league the past several years. Or a well-documented case of Seahawks fans throwing food at San Francisco 49er Navorro Bowman when he was carted off the field of after a knee injury. By all accounts, Sarah is an easy mark, and her note has more holes than the Seattle defense the first half of last week’s game.
But there are two issues that just don’t add up here. First, why does Cam Newton, who is both something of a showman with his touchdown celebrations, and also African-American, get so much vitriol from what I’m assuming to be white fans? If this crazy note were a singular artifact, that would be one thing. But it’s not. Newton has largely been scrutinized and at times vilified for simply being in the business of entertainment. When white tight end Rob Gronkowski acts impish, he’s just having a good time. When Newton does it, he’s a show-off. Please tell me the difference, besides the obvious and unfortunate.
Second, Sarah’s note, and perhaps the 12th man in general, is a reminder of the insufferable and at times unreasonable attachment between fans and their teams. Sarah’s angst wasn’t simply against a quarterback she didn’t like, although that’s certainly part of it. It’s that her self-worth is tied to membership in the 12th man, and subsequently the success and – in this case, failings – of the team they support. When the Seahawks lost to Carolina, Sarah lost as well. She lost her sense of being a winner, of superiority, of all the things that come with the basked glory of fandom.
So, to maintain her self-esteem, without rooting for someone else, Sarah did what came naturally. She made sure she was a winner anyway, in this case by calling Cam Newton, who did win the game by the way, a loser. That note, by putting Cam down, would help bring Sarah up. It’s like watching a reality TV show – no matter what, your life can’t be that bad.
Yes, Sarah from Seattle was very upset, and probably always is when the Seahawks lose. That’s the power of fandom. And when you’re upset, you sometimes say things you don’t mean. Only in this case, I think Sarah actually meant every word.
Keith Strudler is the director of the Marist College Center for Sports Communication and an associate professor of communication. You can follow him on twitter at @KeithStrudler
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