"Crook," "devil," stupid," "puppet" and "dictator" were among the things Pittsburgh's James Harrison called NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in an interview published in Men's Journal. The interview was reported on by ESPN.
I guess you can certainly say Harrison, the Steelers linebacker fined several times last season by the NFL for hits that were deemed illegal, knows how to vent his frustrations. Here is one of Harrison's quotes:
"If that man was on fire and I had to piss to put him out, I wouldn’t do it. I hate him and will never respect him."
Harrison did not stop at Goodell. He also ripped Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and running back Rashard Mendenhall. On the interceptions thrown by Roethlisberger in last season's Super Bowl:
"Hey, at least throw a pick on their side of the field instead of asking the D to bail you out again. Or hand the ball off and stop trying to act like Peyton Manning. You ain’t that and you know it, man; you just get paid like he does."
You have to wonder if the bitter Harrison is talking himself into being let go by Pittsburgh, regardless of how good he is. The criticisms of the commissioner are one thing, but those are personal. Ripping the franchise quarterback is another, and that is unlikely to play well with the organization.