I doubt most people are upset over the t-shirt. I think it’s funny too.
But if you want an answer as to why the players seem to feel that it’s acceptable to play in an unprofessional manner on the field, look no further than the coach that’s wearing the shirt that assigns blame to another team for a fight they took part in on the week they’re about to play them and then immediately walks it back.
Freddie is probably your answer. And even if he wasn’t, little events like this don’t make it easier to back him up from the front office. It makes it harder.
When things like this happen, do this:
Think of who the best coaches are in a sport and imagine whether they would do that thing you’re questioning. If you can’t, then it’s probably not the right thing. And if it happens repeatedly, the coach will end up fired soon.
You can really apply the same thing to all leaders on a team. Those things certainly have changed with gen x coaches and players and now gen z players as opposed to gen x and boomer players and coaches but it applies consistently.