You learn to keep your head on a swivel, when you're among large men of an athletic disposition. It's Rule One for journos who roam football sidelines or sit courtside at basketball games or otherwise hang as close to the action as possible.
So I'm of two minds about the ESPN photographer who walked into Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams as he came off the field Monday night.
One is the keep-your-head-on-a-swivel thing.
The other is keep your head, period, because Adams shoved Photographer Dude out of the way, and Photographer Dude went down, and now he's saying he sustained a headache, a possible minor concussion and whiplash.
(Which, I'm sorry, unavoidably reminds me of the classic courtroom meme of the guy involved in a minor fender-bender showing up in court wearing a huge neck brace. Just how my mind works.)
Anyway, all of that has resulted in Adams being charged with misdemeanor assault. And as much as I reflexively side with my journalistic brethren in these matters, I'm having a hard time not seeing that as a stretch.
This is because I've seen the incident from two different angles, and it looks like two different things. In one, the photographer stumbles into Adams path and Adams gives him a legitimate full-on shove. In the other, taken from behind Adams, the photographer walks into Adams, who stops briefly and pushes him away. It happens so quickly you don't even see the push.
Is that assault?
I don't know. I 'm not a lawyer, and I don't play one on TV. But it sure as Jack McCoy doesn't look like assault to me. It looks like the sort of schoolyard shove that happens every day on every playground in America.
This one wasn't, of course, which is why the league should hand Adams a lengthy sitdown, and take some of his money while they're at it. And the photographer should file a civil suit on top of that, because you need to answer for it with your wallet if you decide to go shoving photogs and/or reporters around.
But a criminal act?
Opinions vary. But I'm not seein' it.
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