April 09, 2022

Steelers Quarterback Dwayne Haskins Fatally Struck by Car: Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Dwayne Haskins has died after being hit by a car Saturday morning in south Florida. He was 24. Haskins was an Ohio State standout who threw for 4,831 passing yards and 50 touchdowns in his only season as the starter, both Big Ten records. He entered the NFL draft and was picked 15th overall by Washington.

posted by rcade to football at 11:37 AM - 8 comments

Former Cowboys exec Gil Brandt made some terrible comments about Haskins on the radio today.

posted by rcade at 01:22 PM on April 09, 2022

.

regarding Brandt, what in the hell is wrong with some people?

posted by tommybiden at 03:30 PM on April 09, 2022

Damn, that's sad. RIP, young man.

And ditto on Brandt.

posted by tahoemoj at 03:37 PM on April 09, 2022

I pray for Dwayne Haskins family. To hear of the untimely death of a child is the dread of any parent. Our son is 33 tomorrow, and since the time he first started going out with his friends and that he or they could drive, I have had many nights when I prayed that the 'phone would not ring. I wonder if Mr. Brandt has any children, and if so whether he ever had reason to worry. He scores about an 11 on my 1-10 total dickhead scale.

posted by Howard_T at 04:58 PM on April 09, 2022

I've been surprised that Gil Brandt was still in sports media at his age (he's now 90). His time as a top Dallas exec was 34 years ago.

But his age shouldn't be an excuse when he's a fixture on SiriusXM and NFL.Com. Sad way to cap off a legendary career in football.

posted by rcade at 08:24 PM on April 09, 2022

To me, this is surreal, even by Florida standards. I've driven through that interchange a bunch of times. It's a massive tangle of roadway spaghetti. One of several in the area. The thought of Haskins navigating it on foot is haunting. Regardless of time, day and circumstances.

I haven't found a story thus far that gives any meaningful background.

If there wasn't enough going on for both drivers and pedestrians to have to process in that situation, the airport is right nearby, with planes taking off and landing all the time. It's an overload of noise and activity.

Some wise guys on the internet are yakking about a dump truck being on the interstate at 6:30 am on a Saturday. Actually, that's normal. A lot of work in South Florida gets done on Saturday mornings via quick hauls and cash labor - because a permit wasn't pulled for the job and the city inspectors are home having breakfast.

I have a short list of friends who have been killed on foot or on bicycles by motor vehicles in Florida over the years and have witnessed it happening to people I don't know. I find it especially disturbing.

posted by beaverboard at 11:44 AM on April 10, 2022

Sorry you've lost friends like that. Tragic.

This local news story has a witness who saw Haskins minutes before the accident on that road. It's no less baffling to him why he was there.

posted by rcade at 11:23 AM on April 11, 2022

This is astonishing. Gil Brandt was a pioneer of modern, scientific techniques in player evaluation and selection: computerized comparisons, psychological testing, using low draft picks to choose players with outstanding potential but uncompetitive on the standard metrics (Staubach, Herchel Walker). You'd think he was a clear-headed guy. And now this.

I hate to say it, but Gil Brandt started in football at a time when the received wisdom among coaches and personnel people was that African-Americans had higher pain tolerance and lower likelihood of injury thaan white players. And there was more, of course. Old belief systems die hard.

Could that be at work?

posted by hexagram at 02:20 PM on April 21, 2022

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