Something that we haven't talked much about here is the deactivation of Jevon Kearse Sunday night against the Colts. I got the update on my phone walking into the stadium that Kearse was a healthy scratch. I was really surprised to see that. I wouldn't have been all that surprised to see him get replaced in the starting line-up, but Jeff Fisher deactivating a veteran player on the day of that game doesn't exactly happen every day.
Then on Monday the story took an even more interesting turn when it was reported that Kearse left the stadium once he was told instead of staying to support his team on the sidelines like all of the other inactive players. Kearse was asked about leaving today and was anything but apologetic:
"Once I got the official word I jumped back in the Benz and went home,'' Kearse said.
Nice. He also mentioned that he had family in town and that he didn't think one extra guy being on the sidelines was going to make a difference. Jim Wyatt mentions in that article that Kearse became defensive when asked if that sent a bad signal to his teammates.
You know what Jevon, it does send a bad message to your teammates and as a veteran player you should know that. This is pretty obvious sign that a guy cares more about himself than he does the team and even at 0-4, the Titans' record when he left the stadium, that is unacceptable.
To make matters worse Fisher has said that Kearse will not be fined for leaving the stadium. So I guess if you are a veteran player you can do whatever you want. Why not when the season has already gone down the crapper, right?
Now it is obvious that the season is over, and it is also obvious that Kearse is at the end of the line as an NFL player, but that still doesn't excuse the behavior and the message it sends to the rest of the team. What happens next week when Lavelle Hawkins is told for the 25th straight game that he isn't going to be active and he leaves the stadium? I mean him being on the sideline isn't going to change the outcome of the game...
Fisher said in his press conference on Monday that he is going to deal with it between he and Jevon. I hope he deals with it by making him inactive for the rest of the season since they are already playing for 2010. Might as well get guys like William Hayes and Jacob Ford work now since they will still be on the roster next season. They might also care more about how the team does than their wounded pride.
[UPDATE]- Here is a link to his interview from today.