EAGAN, Minn. ā Alexander Mattison and the Minnesota Vikings had boarded the flight home after a tough loss earlier this season, when the fifth-year running back found dozens of hateful and racist messages directed toward him on social media.
Criticism for the fumble he lost or his lack of rushing yards in the game? Fine. That comes with the job. But the trolling that night was so egregious that Mattison, after conferring with a trusted friend and fellow Black teammate, decided to push back and share some screen shots.
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āUnder my helmet, I am a human, a father, a son,ā Mattison posted on Instagram in his lament and challenge to the 60-plus users to reflect on their words and the harm they can inflict. āThis is sick.ā
The intensity of NFL fandom that increased with the surge of fantasy football participation around the turn of the century has spiked further in the age of online betting.
āWhen you used to lose, you would hear about it because of a fanās loyalty to the team. They want to win. Now you hear about it because theyāre losing their money because of you,ā Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff said.
The accessibility of social media has put players in position to feel that ferocity as never before, and that's one reason why the league has a wellness program for these uniquely high-profile employees.
āWeāve come to a place in society, unfortunately, where we think itās acceptable to dehumanize people. I think that veil of anonymity online creates that culture or that belief that itās OK to go after people with impunity, but I think that we have to consider the impact on athletes,ā said Dr. Brownell Mack, the team clinician for the Vikings. āWe see them in armor. They wear the helmets and the padding, and we think that theyāre somehow invincible or donāt have feelings.ā
The contrast between those ups and downs in public approval rating can be particularly jarring.
āI was a Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee. Iād like to think of myself as a pretty good dude. But I pushed my backup quarterback last year. That went viral,ā Vikings left guard Dalton Risner, referring to a sideline confrontation during his time with the Denver Broncos. āIt was an all-out brawl, how I got made out to be as a guy. Woo, man. Thatās a good example of how youāve got to be able to ride the wave of this whole deal and keep even-keeled.ā
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Drew Lock learned this as a freshman at Missouri, when he eagerly soaked up the praise after a win in his first start and had his eyes opened to the opposite after a lopsided loss the following week.
āI was like, āHoly cow, this is a roller coaster of, āYouāre the best and youāre the worst,'" Lock said. āOnce I cleared through that first year I was like, āIām done with it. I've got to stay away.āā
Mack and his colleagues with other clubs regularly counsel players through mental health challenges that can quickly arise in this tension between the fame, fortune and privilege of playing a game for a living and the scrutiny surrounding such short careers.
Rookies across the NFL each summer aren't just trying to memorize their playbooks. They attend a required symposium and receive skills training in areas such as decision-making and stress management.
āWe're trying to put our best foot forward on the field, but people are going to mess up,ā Vikings cornerback Akayleb Evans said. āYouāre not always going to be at your best every game. People just have to realize the human side of everything."
Social media is the proverbial double-edged sword. That's the easiest way for players to show their human side to the world. But that's where the danger lurks too.
āIāve just got to understand that Iām doing something that only a small percentage of people get to do. Itās what comes with this game," Dallas Cowboys safety Jayron Kearse said. āBefore I was here, this came with it. After Iām gone, itās going to be the same thing that comes with it.ā
The people on the other side of the screen are often grappling with the same realities. Matt Rigby manages a high-maintenance fantasy keeper league with friends and relatives, an intense hobby he fits in behind raising a family, working as a data scientist and coaching high school football in North Carolina.
āIāve had Deebo Samuel on my team for six years. Heās like my brother at this point," Rigby said. "So when he doesnāt perform well, and I know that I speak for other people in the league on this too, I think we spend far too much time trying to get into the personal life. Thereās like a disappointment in the player simply because of the fantasy outlook.ā
Rigby recalled a recent season when another participant was down on San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle because his receiving production had waned even though the offense was thriving.
āIām sitting there thinking, 'I love watching Kittle right now, because heās contributing to the game. That doesnāt necessarily mean heās got a stat line to show for it, but what is football at some point?" Rigby said. "Is it just fantasy football? Or are we watching the game as the game?ā
Tennessee Titans wide receiver Chris Moore has struggled with the push and pull of social media, whether to stay on or get off, as he's progressed through his career.
āMy biggest thing is if I could just tell fans directly, āWeāre people like you. I have a wife and a daughter, another one on the way. I go home to them," Moore said. "I just want to provide for them, see them, and this is just an avenue for me to do that.āā
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AP Pro Football Writers Schuyler Dixon in Frisco, Texas, and Teresa M. Walker in Nashville, Tenn., and AP Sports Writers Tim Booth in Renton, Wash., and Larry Lage in Allen Park, Mich., contributed.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL