Hate the Game, Not the Player - Haynesworth is Right

Amid all the criticism of Albert Haynesworth from the media, fans, and his very own peers, no clear analytical argument has been formed to prove to me that he is wrong for taking that stance of not wanting to switch his playing position.

The media has labeled him lazy. The fans has labeled him ungrateful, and his peers have called him disloyal, but allow me to put you in his shoes for a few moments. Every story has two sides to it.

First and foremost you don't become and All Pro NFL player by being lazy. Haynesworth prior to becoming a free agent in the spring of 2009 dominated opponents for the better part of three years a the DEFENSIVE TACKLE position. He was so dominant that the Redskins signed him to a 100M contract, and had a press conference to announce to the world that they were happy to pay him.

100M with 41M guaranteed is quarterback money. He was making much more than the QB at the time (Jason Campbell) was making. Which would lead a rational person to believe that he was the most important player on the team.

YOU DON'T ASK YOUR MOST IMPORTANT PLAYER TO CHANGE POSITIONS THROUGH THE MEDIA!

Can you imagine being in Chicago one morning, and Brian Urlacher wakes up and reads in the Tribune that Lovey Smith is quoted as saying that the Bears are unilaterally moving Urlacher to safety?

Football purest will say that a move from DT to NT is not that big of deal since both are considered interior line positions. But tell that to a players body on Mondays after a grueling day of double-teams, or tell it to a players Hall of Fame aspirations when his stat lines and resumes are compared at the highest level.

In my opinion asking a DT to move to NT is the equivalent of asking your Tom Brady's or Peyton Manning's of the world to abandon the drop back passing games, that they excel at, to run the wishbone or spread options. It's utterly ridiculous.

Haynesworth is not lazy, ungrateful, or disloyal, he's just right. Take the money, fanaticism, and propaganda out of the narrative and you'll see it that way too.