Back from what seemed like a very fun retirement, Marshawn Lynch seems to be in full “DGAF” mode.
In the fourth quarter of the Raiders’ blowout win over the Jets on Monday, Lynch held himself an impromptu dance party on the sideline. TV cameras caught the little outburst, as did the stadium camera at O.co Coliseum.
Marshawn Lynch is the greatest pic.twitter.com/iCLodp7qus
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) September 17, 2017
Most people seemed pretty amused by Lynch’s dancing. Teammates laughed, fans in the stadium danced along, fans at home smiled, fans on social media retweeted. It was a good time for everyone.
Well, it wasn’t a good time for the Jets, who fell to 0-2 with a 45-20 loss. After the game, a number of Jets defenders expressed their displeasure with Lynch. Via ESPN:
“We’re upset because it seems like he was rubbing it in our face,” nose tackle Steve McLendon said. “But he’s winning, man. He can do whatever he wants to do.”
Linebacker Darron Lee added, “It’s their house — they can do whatever they wants — but as a competitor, as a defender, you don’t like to see that type of stuff. It’s demoralizing, but we have to bow up and keep fighting.”
And here’s linebacker Jordan Jenkins, whose anti-Lynch comments went somewhat viral:
“It irks my ever-living nerves,” linebacker Jordan Jenkins said. “When I saw it happening, it was infuriating. … That pissed me off. I’m an old-school guy. I don’t like when things like that happen. That was embarrassing, losing like that and having Marshawn dance like that.
“Great player, but seeing that happen, that should infuriate the whole team. It should infuriate everybody and we should have a good response coming into next Sunday.”
Jenkins went on to say that Lynch’s dancing was “not unsportsmanlike at all” (and later defended himself on Twitter, extensively), but it’s clear he’s at least a little bitter about the dance party.
#Jets Jordan Jenkins said Marshawn Lynch dancing "pissed me off" & Jets should be embarrassed. But also, "it's not unsportsmanlike at all." pic.twitter.com/auDpIVUYn3
— Andy Vasquez (@andy_vasquez) September 18, 2017
Obviously it sucks to lose, and it sucks to get blown out. But sheesh, do we have to get up in arms about an opposing player dancing on the home sideline? That’s a Major League Baseball level of curmudgeon-ness.
When you win, you get to dance. That’s how the world works.
[ESPN]
How about playing a little defense and keeping the score close. Don’t give him a reason to dance in the first place. Oh right, the Jets being the Jets and all that….