DeSean Jackson: Players should be mic’d up if no fans are allowed at games
Trash-talking receivers and cornerbacks are a natural part of the game, but allowing the fans to hear what is said would enter unfamiliar territory.
Football games could look different in the fall if they are played, and Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson is the latest to offer a suggestion.
Jackson said that the NFL should look into having players wear microphones during games next season.
“They should give fans the [insight] to see what really goes on between the white lines,” Jackson said on teammate Lane Johnson’s Outside the Lane podcast. “It gets crazy, bro. I know in the trenches it gets crazy. And I know on the outside it gets crazy, too, the conversations we go back and forth on.”
Listening to wide receivers and defensive backs trade verbal jabs would be its own show inside a football game. Cornerbacks and wide receivers have always been known as big talkers. Not many of those conversations become public. A lot of fans wish they knew what was said right before fights like those between A.J. Green- Jalen Ramsey, Andre Johnson- Cortland Finnegan, Odell Beckham Jr.- Josh Norman, and Andre Rison-Deion Sanders.
The downside to this added entertainment would be that it could be too much exposure. Last season, New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold was mic’d up and a clip of him saying he was “seeing ghosts” in a 33-0 loss to the Patriots went viral. The Jets were unhappy that the comment made the broadcast and the following Monday night, the Steelers and Dolphins refused to wear microphones.
In games without fans because of the pandemic, the sounds inside the stadium will be limited to whistles, football verbiage and pads popping. Jackson suggested that playing music would help bring energy, but make no mistake about it, the receiver would still love to see and hear fans at Lincoln Financial Field when the season starts.
“It’ll definitely be weird at first, but hopefully they can figure out [an alternative] because I definitely think a lot of teams and players feed off the energy," Jackson said.