What would we do without the good people of Forbes publishing their random lists?
This week, it's their Top 10 Most Disliked Players in the NFL.
No. 1 on the list—Eagles starting quarterback Michael Vick. Heh, now there's a surprise.
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Full list below, featuring another Eagles quarterback not named Mike Kafka and even more on Jay Cutler…
From Forbes:
"The latest public surveys from Nielsen and E-Poll Market Research, a tracker of public perceptions of athletes and other celebrities, show that Vick still stands as the least liked player in the NFL. According to the poll, a full 60% of respondents claim the Eagles quarterback as a player they 'dislike,' 'dislike somewhat,' or 'dislike a lot.'"
He is especially unpopular amongst you ladies:
News
"Women, for example, view Vick negatively at a 70% clip, compared to 50% for men."
For the record, we'd be remiss in failing to point out that while Vick remains widely disliked for reasons that are overwhelmingly apparent, he is simultaneously one of the most popular athletes in the game today. That's part of what being "polarizing" is all about. With that in mind, Nielsen Sports VP Stephen Master provided one of the article's best quips:
“If this were a poll of fantasy football players, you’d see a whole different result,” says Master. “They love him.”
That they do. Plus, it should be noted this list references one "Michael Vick," and not "Mike Vick," who people—Tony Dungy—seem to like.
As for the other Eagle on the list, Vince Young cracks the Top 10 at No. 7, barely more despised than Carson Palmer, but slightly less maligned than Chad Johnson. Maybe it was the "Dream Team" comment, maybe it was his falling out with Jeff Fisher, maybe it was his rumored suicide attempt (that apparently became okay to joke about?). Maybe it was all of these things. And maybe it was none of these things. Either way, people don't like Vince Young—even if there's six other people they dislike more.
One of those individuals is my boy, Jay Cutler. At No. 5, Cutler is the first player on the list with no apparent criminal history. Translation—of all the guys in the NFL who hold at least a 10% awareness level with the public and haven't committed a crime or been involved in a criminal investigation, Jay Cutler is the least likable. I can't imagine why.
As Kulp and I were discussing, this list seems highly dubious. Tim Tebow, for example, the post polarizing and publicized player of the 2011 season, is not in Top 10, whereas Carson Palmer—who was retired two weeks ago—and Jeremy Shockey—who deserved to be on this list if it were 2005—are.
Your thoughts?
Forbes Top 10 Most Disliked Athletes:
1. Michael Vick
2. Plaxico Burress
3. Ben Roethlisberger
4. Albert Haynesworth
5. Jay Cutler
6. Chad Johnson
7. Vince Young
8. Carson Palmer
9. Tony Romo
10. Jeremy Shockey
>>The NFL's Most Disliked Players [Forbes]