LeBron James is making headlines this week with his Twitter feed yet again. In an 
exchange that all seems a bit tongue-in-cheek, LeBron asked ESPN Insider John Clayton when was the deadline to sign with an NFL team. Pete Carroll, master recruiter and current Seattle Seahawks head coach caught wind of this and immediately started with the recruiting pitch. Carroll tweeted at King James “are you aware of what the league’s rookie minimum is?” LeBron responded “Yeah, more than what I’m making now Coach.” And with that, the rumors of the world’s greatest athlete turning to football were set ablaze.
Pete Carroll soon posted the above picture of a #1 Seahawks jersey and in true Ichiro style, the jersey simply reads LeBron. In high school Lebron was an all state wide receiver with a big frame and speed to burn. Still, the jump from high school football player to the next level is not that easy (anyone remember Greg Paulus?). And we’re talking about a jump to the NFL where big, scary men look to hurt each other. It doesn’t seem like a place where the happy-go-lucky, free loving LeBron would like to be. LeBron and gridiron simply don’t go together.
LeBron would have to be an idiot to consider turning to the physical game of football while basketball is out of session as the risk of injury is entirely too high. His tall body and long legs would expose him to leg injuries and make him an easy tackle for the league’s small cornerbacks.
Still, the idea of getting the world’s best, most explosive athlete out on the football field is a lot of fun. The guy could win every jump ball and have Calvin Johnson type inpact on every possession. We know he has the hand-eye coordination to catch the ball which was the concern with getting Usain Bolt out on the football field, and we know he’s freakishly strong. But, we also know he has a reputation for being soft.
If Pete Carroll wants to bring him out to Seattle, I support it 100%. If you have a chance to take a flier on a guy, do it every time. It still baffles us here at Off The Bench that Barry Bonds wasn’t able to get a job after a season in which he had a .480 OBP. It’s the same type of thing here: you have a chance to potentially make your team better so give it a shot.
A word of warning to Coach Carroll: Don’t let him play the 4th quarter.
-Sean Morash
