Is Peyton Manning a Poor Sport?

So Peyton Manning marched off the field after losing the Super Bowl without taking time to congratulate Drew Brees, does that make him a bad sport? That's the question that's still being asked almost 48 hours after the game.

I've read that Manning called Brees later that evening to congratulate him and that Brees is OK with that. But does that speak to Manning's character or to Brees? I think that says more about Drew Brees than it does Peyton Manning. What Manning needs to do is release a statement acknowledging that in the heat of the moment and disappointment of defeat he did the wrong thing in walking off the field, that would show everyone that he still has great integrity.

Was he a poor sport? On this occasion, yes, absolutely no question about it. I was raised playing sports, rugby, soccer (football), and golf. From the beginning it was instilled in me that in sports as in life we should be gracious in victory and magnanimous in defeat. On Sunday Manning failed to pass this test.

After every football game in the NFL the players from opposing teams take time to greet and congratulate one another, the Super Bowl should not be the exception, every game counts. Can you imagine the outcry in golf is someone refused to shake the hand of a competitor at the end of a match? They'd probably be fined, why, because good sportsmanship is so much a part of the game.  

Sport reflects life. A little civility and humility will go a long way. What does it say to our children when someone walk off the field in a huff after losing? In life you play hard and do your best we shouldn't resent it when others do well or better than us as long as we've worked hard. 

We could use a little more civility in the church. I heard recently of the sad story of a fellow pastor who refused to eat with a colleague because they disagreed over an issue. Four of them met for lunch and one refused to have anything to eat because the person picking up the tab held the opposing view. Crazy. 

I don't why I felt I wanted to write about this but I just had to. Perhaps its the way I was raised, play hard, play fair and always be a good sport.