You know I’ve gone back and forth with myself a few times since news broke of the death of Steve McNair and the shadowy circumstances that lead to this tragedy. Was I going to write about it. Is it appropriate? Steve McNair was arguably one of the most important Black quarter backs in NFL history. The question begins, do the circumstances surrounding his Untimely death erase everything else that he was?
Let’s be real here, men with money and power especially athletes have extra material affairs. Its as much a part of “The Life” as injuries and pregame tape. And if you look at the statistics on marriage, divorce and infidelity, It’s amazing to me that people are so shocked that he was stepping outside his marriage.
While all the details are still fuzzy, the fact remains that Air McNair was investing his time and money on Ms. Sahel Kazemi. Trips, vehicles, etc and allegedly the promise that he was leaving his wife. People, Men especially need to really understand what they’re doing when they create these fantasy worlds built on lies. You are screwing with a person’s reality! That’s not something to be taken lightly. People create masterpieces or destroy legacies based off of feelings.
Does this tarnish McNair’s contributions to football on and off the field? Not in my eyes. But it is a shame that while his family and close friends have to deal with his lost, they’re also forced to re-exam the man who they believed him to be. Lives forever changed, a legacy that will now always be mentioned with “but”… a tragedy no matter which angle you examine it from and so many questions that might never receive answers.
Perception IS reality a lot of the time. I hope people take this as a lesson learned. Neither Steve nor Sahel deserved this as their end.
Jill MunroeJill Munroe is a Los Angeles-based host, producer, and writer. You can find her work on sites such as FoxSports.com, EURweb.com, and MSN.com. Munroe is a current member of the African-American Film Critics Association and the National Association of Black Journalists. Munroe has also been a frequent guest on ESPN radio and Yahoo Sports. In 2015, Munroe released her first book, "PostGame Pass: access into "the life" JillMunroe.com