Why are all O Linemen white

[illest 0]

Its really strange how this division of race between the two lines is so prevelant. Why is this? Seriously.

[Sho Nuff 719]

All?

Aaron Kampman disagrees...as do many many many others on both sides.

[Sho Nuff 719]

But...if you want to stick with most?

Few reasons...requires a bit more athleticism.

Growing up...how many young black kids are the size and willing to play Oline? Vs. the bigger white kids?

[illest 0]

All?

Aaron Kampman disagrees...as do many many many others on both sides.

There are 288 starting linemen in the league, obviously there are exceptions. But the overwhelming majority follow in the with this rule. Its just strange how well this rule is followed league wide.

[Kent 228]

White Men Can't Rush: The Movie

[edjr 5,567]

offensive lineman need to be smart

defensive lineman need to athletic

 

Didn't Jimmy The Greek explain this to you like 12 years ago?

[Lion Fan 0]

I think it's because the O-line is a "non-glory" position. I believe the black players are drawn to the positions that put them in the spot light. I'm not trying to say that's a negative…I'm just trying to answer the question.

[BuschWack 56]

It all changed after Dan Marino presented his offensive line with Isotoner gloves for Christmas.

[RLLD 3,455]

It all changed after Dan Marino presented his offensive line with Isotoner gloves for Christmas.

 

 

This

[49ers_suck 0]

i'll add my $.02

 

look at worlds strongest man competitions. where are most of the guys from? Finland, Sweden, England......etc......=O-linemen

 

i think it's how the different races are built. no knock on black, white, or brown. i think it's purely an evolutionary thing. our different life histories have selected for certain characteristics depending on our environment.

[stonewall 647]

i'll add my $.02

 

look at worlds strongest man competitions. where are most of the guys from? Finland, Sweden, England......etc......=O-linemen

 

i think it's how the different races are built. no knock on black, white, or brown. i think it's purely an evolutionary thing. our different life histories have selected for certain characteristics depending on our environment.

 

Nice tap dance.

[JT 137]

There are 288 starting linemen in the league, obviously there are exceptions. But the overwhelming majority follow in the with this rule. Its just strange how well this rule is followed league wide.

 

Would be an interesting topic, except that it appears to be untrue.

 

Random sampling of 6 NFC teams starting o-lines: dallas, Philadelphia, Washington, Chicago, Green Bay, Atlanta. Selected because their sites were easiest to get to depth charts. Skipped NY Giants and one other because charts not readily accessible.

 

Green Bay is white across the line. Atlanta has 4 white o-linemen.

 

Despite those two teams, heavily weighted in favor of your hypothesis, the totals show 13 black, 16 white, 1 other on the offensive line.

[FrankRizzo 0]

Would be an interesting topic, except that it appears to be untrue.

 

Random sampling of 6 NFC teams starting o-lines: dallas, Philadelphia, Washington, Chicago, Green Bay, Atlanta. Selected because their sites were easiest to get to depth charts. Skipped NY Giants and one other because charts not readily accessible.

 

Green Bay is white across the line. Atlanta has 4 white o-linemen.

 

Despite those two teams, heavily weighted in favor of your hypothesis, the totals show 13 black, 16 white, 1 other on the offensive line.

 

Maybe black men don't want to block and be "slaves" to the white QBs .....

Just smurfing with ya!

 

I think the original poster only watches Green Bay vs New England games?? This thread is whacked. I checked some teams and even my past favorite teams (9er fan) and Guy Mac and Bubba Paris were stellar O-line men.

[illest 0]

Maybe black men don't want to block and be "slaves" to the white QBs .....

Just smurfing with ya!

 

I think the original poster only watches Green Bay vs New England games?? This thread is whacked. I checked some teams and even my past favorite teams (9er fan) and Guy Mac and Bubba Paris were stellar O-line men.

A Guy Mac reference really? That should prove my point... Uninterestingly, I acutally used to go to Guy Mac's house when he played in GB for a year. I was buddies with his son Dejon, until they moved after just one year.

[FrankRizzo 0]

A Guy Mac reference really? That should prove my point... Uninterestingly, I acutally used to go to Guy Mac's house when he played in GB for a year. I was buddies with his son Dejon, until they moved after just one year.

 

So you actually knew a black offensive lineman personally .... yet you start this type of thread?

[mgs316 14]

The two whitest (non-black) teams in the NFL, Indy and Pats, are also the most successful the last decade. Take from that what you wish.

[KSB2424 3,083]

It appears that the discrepancy is not as much as you think. Thanks JT.

 

However I did read a column a few years ago by some dude (a black guy if that matters) who tackled the race versus football position. It was really interesting. I forget the dudes name or else I would try to find it. But the cliff notes version was that it really wasn't because of any 'racist' motives, rather just beasue that's the habit that Pee Wee coaches across America got into.

 

A fast little white kid was told he couldn't be a DB, maybe a WR for now, but he should prolly learn to pass the ball and be a QB. Big white guys were told to go block, and big black dudes were told to rush the QB. When assigning postions at the Pee Wee level of football it just happened that way because "that's the way it always is". No real rhyme or reason.

 

The author interveiwed that white WR from the Rams of a few years ago who's name escapes me and that WR said that through every level of football the coach tried to get him to change positions. Even though the guy was good at WR. He said it was almost comical.

 

So to answer your question, it is because that was just how it was so people thought that is how it's supposed to be. Of course over time that is changing as we see more and more diverstiy in all the postions.

[FrankRizzo 0]

The two whitest (non-black) teams in the NFL, Indy and Pats, are also the most successful the last decade. Take from that what you wish.

 

What are you talking about?? The biggest athletes on those teams are black - Troy Brown, Ty Law, Marshall Faulk, Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison, Bob Harrison, Richard Seymor, Lawrence Maroney (for 1 game), Randy Moss, shoot even Dungy .... and more and more and more (not a fan of either team, but when I think of them I don't think of just "white").

 

What a strange statement to make.

[illest 0]

Some intellegent responses on a topic that is quite a can of worms. Those of you that are trying to say this isn't true because you saw 4 teams rosters that were only slightly following this rule (but still did) are ridiculous. Check out the entire NFL; the vast majority of O linemen are white and D linemen are black. You can't check out 6 teams, then ignore the teams that completely follow this rule, and then dismiss it because only a slight majority on the teams you chose to look at were this way.

 

Common Man!

[FrankRizzo 0]

It appears that the discrepancy is not as much as you think. Thanks JT.

 

However I did read a column a few years ago by some dude (a black guy if that matters) who tackeld the race versus football position. It was really interesting. I forget the dudes name or else I would try to find it. But the cliff notes version was that it really wasn't because of any 'racist' motives, rather just beasue that's the habit that Pee Wee coaches across America got into.

 

A fast little white kid was told he couldn't be a DB, maybe a WR but he should prolly learn to pass the ball and be a QB. Big white guys were told to go block, and big black dudes were told to rush the QB. When assigning postions at the Pee Wee level of football it just happened that way because "that the way it always is". No real rhyme or reason.

 

The author interveiwed that white WR from the Rams of a few years ago who's name escapes me and that WR said that through every level of football the coach tried to get him to change positions. Even though the guy was good at WR. He said it was almost comical.

 

So to answer your question, it is because that was just how it was so people thought that is how it's supposed to be. Of course over time that is changing as we see more and more diverstiy in all the postions.

 

There is some truth to this ... I coach peewee football in a california mixed neighborhood (predominitely white, but there are other races especially black). And during tryouts we see who the best athletes should go where and it truly works out that way ... I dunno if it's will, desire or better moves/cuts but the best and fastest ball carriers end up being black players. I know their parents push them to be the man and playing in a premier position is the only way to succeed and get ahead in life. White parents don't push their kids like that ... as the "only" option in life. So playing the line or whatever is "acceptable". I could go on and on but my boss is looking for the TPS reports ...

[mgs316 14]

What are you talking about?? The biggest athletes on those teams are black - Troy Brown, Ty Law, Marshall Faulk, Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison, Bob Harrison, Richard Seymor, Lawrence Maroney (for 1 game), Randy Moss, shoot even Dungy .... and more and more and more (not a fan of either team, but when I think of them I don't think of just "white").

 

What a strange statement to make.

 

It was in an article on EPSN last year, it didn't examine what positions they played just that the had the highest total compared to the rest of the league. Maybe all of them played special teams.

[JosephB.Palasky 0]

It all changed after Dan Marino presented his offensive line with Isotoner gloves for Christmas.

 

 

holy turds, that one is classic. dang.

[Parkers99 0]

I fully recognize that there are many athletes that don't fall into the typical white/black typecasting. But anyone that hasn't noticed this obvious difference in O lines and D lines must truly be colorblind. At every level of the game from peewee to pro, Olines & Dlines are predominately white or black respectively.

 

The guys rattling off that Olinemen need to be smart are idiots... I played both ways (small school) and playing Oline definately requires less thought than any other position.

 

I think the guy that brought up the "strong man" contests really had a great point.

 

I remember reading in a fitness magazine once something about slow & fast twitch muscle fiber... I really can't remember it very well but I think maybe some small difference in our muscle make-up may play a factor. Strength is the single most important quality for an Olineman - For a Dlineman, I'd say agility.

 

eh... that's my theory anyway.

[columbuscft 0]

All racism aside but I really haven't seen many asian pro football payers am I right?

[illest 0]

Hines Ward! I'm pretty sure there's a couple Nguyen linemen or something...

[WhiteWonder 2,172]

there is no politically correct way to answer this. Its simply, as others have mentioned, that the o-line requires a little more thinking and is less glamorous... and the d-line requires more athleticism.

 

Its the same reason there are so few stand out, white WR's. How many white CB's are there? If a white guy is playing DB, he is almost always a safety. Most kickers are white.... not a glamorous position. Historically, most QB's are white.

 

now, beyond this, i think Black athletes have an easier time playing the other spots because I think athleticism wins out over anything else. Im not looking up the numbers but I am almost sure there is a much higher % of black offensive lineman than white defensive lineman.

[illest 0]

I was watching an NFL replay of a game about a decade ago and I saw a black punter. That was an odd sight.

[JT 137]

Some intellegent responses on a topic that is quite a can of worms. Those of you that are trying to say this isn't true because you saw 4 teams rosters that were only slightly following this rule (but still did) are ridiculous. Check out the entire NFL; the vast majority of O linemen are white and D linemen are black. You can't check out 6 teams, then ignore the teams that completely follow this rule, and then dismiss it because only a slight majority on the teams you chose to look at were this way.

 

Common Man!

 

6 starting o-lines out of 32 is a fair and representative survey, and more than dispels your flawed comments. It's a far larger sample size than national news polls on any topic, or ratings systems used by the TV or radio industries.

 

But, just for fun, I checked 6 random AFC teams. Again, ease of access to their depth chart was the key. Here's the breakdown:

 

Buffalo (1 black - 4 white), Miami (2-3), NY Jets (3-2), Baltimore (4-1), Cleveland (3-2), Jacksonville (3-1-1 other)

 

So that's 16-13-1. Our earlier sample was right along the same lines, though if I recall, slightly skewed to more white players than black. The two combine to just about a 50/50 split. And that's more than 1/3 of the teams in the league. Remember, we also have at least 3 teams in there with 4 or more white linemen ('following the rule as you put it) , so it's not as if I'm cherry picking teams that support my stance (or, rather, refute yours as ridiculous nonsense)

 

It's not "a can of worms", as you call it, unless you choose to ignore the facts in favor of fishing for a racial discussion based on stereotype and misinformation.

 

And to call it a "rule", as you persist in doing, is inane.

[mambokings 0]

I was watching an NFL replay of a game about a decade ago and I saw a black punter. That was an odd sight.

 

That was probably Reggie Roby, may he rest in peace.

[illest 0]

And to call it a "rule", as you persist in doing, is inane.

You're inane.

[FrankRizzo 0]

All racism aside but I really haven't seen many asian pro football payers am I right?

 

Did you purposely leave the "L" out of players?

 

If so, bravo my friend ...

[MTSkiBum 1,594]

6 starting o-lines out of 32 is a fair and representative survey, and more than dispels your flawed comments. It's a far larger sample size than national news polls on any topic, or ratings systems used by the TV or radio industries.

 

But, just for fun, I checked 6 random AFC teams. Again, ease of access to their depth chart was the key. Here's the breakdown:

 

Buffalo (1 black - 4 white), Miami (2-3), NY Jets (3-2), Baltimore (4-1), Cleveland (3-2), Jacksonville (3-1-1 other)

 

So that's 16-13-1. Our earlier sample was right along the same lines, though if I recall, slightly skewed to more white players than black. The two combine to just about a 50/50 split. And that's more than 1/3 of the teams in the league. Remember, we also have at least 3 teams in there with 4 or more white linemen ('following the rule as you put it) , so it's not as if I'm cherry picking teams that support my stance (or, rather, refute yours as ridiculous nonsense)

 

It's not "a can of worms", as you call it, unless you choose to ignore the facts in favor of fishing for a racial discussion based on stereotype and misinformation.

 

And to call it a "rule", as you persist in doing, is inane.

 

Add the steelers in, they are 3 black, 1 white, 1 Hawaiian on the offensive line, and 2 white and 1 black on the defensive.

[NorthernVike 2,080]

Some intellegent responses on a topic that is quite a can of worms. Those of you that are trying to say this isn't true because you saw 4 teams rosters that were only slightly following this rule (but still did) are ridiculous. Check out the entire NFL; the vast majority of O linemen are white and D linemen are black. You can't check out 6 teams, then ignore the teams that completely follow this rule, and then dismiss it because only a slight majority on the teams you chose to look at were this way.

 

Common Man!

 

 

Why should we do your homework fuckchop? If you are so sure post it yourself

[JT 137]

Why should we do your homework fuckchop? If you are so sure post it yourself

 

C'mon, be fair. He has shown himself capable of the brilliant "I know you are but what am I" retort.

[Kingstowne Dealers 14]

I can't wait until kickoff. We have way too much time on our hands.

[Kingstowne Dealers 14]

Why should we do your homework fuckchop? If you are so sure post it yourself

 

 

I don't know what 'fuckchop' means but it is very catchy and makes me smile. I shall use it in my every day discourse.