“He thinks it’s his decision, that’s cute”: Ryan Clark and Channing Crowder mock Garrett Wilson for his perception of the team’s rookie dinner
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In the NFL or NBA, there are a set of customs that have been followed since time immemorial. Some players pray before games and have certain rituals of their own that they consider to be their good luck charm. There is one particular custom that has been followed in the league for so long that when you hear about it you feel bad but also at the same time, it is hilarious. We are referring to the treatment of rookies across the league.
As a rookie entering the NFL, players will be coming off amazing college seasons and carry a lot of that momentum and their pride from there into the league. Considering the league is a completely different place than college football, the professional players would want to knock their egos down a peg to show them that their previous stats and achievements do not matter in the professional league and they will have to prove their worth from scratch here and earn their stripes.
“It’s not gonna be cool”: Ryan Clark gives a reality check to Garrett Wilson about his rookie dinner
Garrett Wilson, the 10th pick in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft is excited to play his first season in the NFL, though he will do so for the New York Jets. The team also has the custom of rookies taking the vets out for dinner and Wilson is no exception to this rule. The wideout seemed naive about this and stated on The Pivot Podcast, “They did tell me about the dinner, I got to take all the receivers to dinner, that’s gonna be cool, I’m excited for that.”
Well, little does he know what that actually means for his bank balance… Veterans Ryan Clark, Fred Taylor, and Channing Crowder gave him a reality check on how his rookie dinner will actually turn out to be.
“It’s not gonna be cool,” Ryan Clark straight up gets Wilson’s perspective straight and tells him to his face that it will not be fun. Fred Taylor, the co-host jumps in and he knows from experience that the bill will go up really high. “You know they gonna run that bill up to like $75,000,” Taylor says making Wilson’s jaw drop. Though you are an athlete that is still a lot of money unless you are Tom Brady or LeBron James.
The vets start having very expensive tastes at these rookie dinners, “You know you’re gonna have to buy the Louie the XIII (wine) at the restaurant,” Clark continues to give Wilson a reality check on how it will be. Of course, the rookie is new and he thinks the vets are just playing with him and scaring him, “Nah, they ain’t doing me for $75k,” Wilson attempts to reassure himself.
Given that he is the 10th pick and has a guaranteed amount of $20 million, you cannot completely dismiss the fact that he may end up being made to spend that much on the rookie dinner. “He thinks it’s his decision, that’s cute, that’s so cute,” Channing Crowder and Ryan Clark laugh at the rookie thinking it is up to him to decide how much they will have and where the dinner will be at.
Clearly, the practice of the NFL rookie dinner is iconic. Recently, Fred Taylor shared a memory of his rookie dinner where he claimed that Tom Brady made the rooks spend a minimum of $5 to $6 thousand dollars on a bottle of wine that he just used to take a sip from before getting up and leaving.
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Sumedh Joshi
(2235 Articles Published)