The big question — the one no seems to be asking — regarding the situation in which Indiana Fever rookie guard Caitlin Clark got roughed up recently is simple, really.

That is, where in the world were Clark’s teammates? Why didn’t they rush to protect her? Why did they just stand there and watch it happen? By doing so, they, in essence, were signing off on it, agreeing with it. Indeed, as the old saying goes, “If you’re not for me, then you’re against me.”

It is common in sports, especially the pro variety, for teammates to stand up to opposing players in support for one another. The degree of that suppprt — or the lack thereof — indicates the cohesiveness of the team.

In football, the support is most apparent when the quarterback is affected. Quarterback is the most important position in team sports. You can’t win without a good one — and a healthy one. So, when the quarterback is roughed up, the offensive linemen almost always come to his add. The linemen and the quarterback are like brothers. They support each other — and protect each other — in all aspects of the game, and team.

When I think of that regarding the Browns, I go back to the late 1970s and early 1980s and their games against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Pittsburgh middle linebacker Jack Lambert from Mantua Crestwood High School and Kent State had no problem hitting Browns quarterback Brian Sope after the whistle. 

In a 1978 game at Cleveland, Lambert did just that, leading with his helmet, after Sipe was well out of bounds along the Browns sideline following a scramble. To say that “Jack Splat,” the nickname given Lambert by longtime iconic Steelers Radio Network color analyst Myron Cope, was outmanned is an understatement. It was like General George Custer at the Battle of Little Big Horn. Browns players in the bench area went after him, and so did the offensive linemen as they ran over.

As enough flags were being thrown into the fray to make the area look like the United Nations building, Browns offensive guard Henry Sheppard, who was not in the game at the time and was standing on the sideline, raced over to Lambert, patted him on the backside and said with a smile and a laugh, “Nice hit, Jack!” That only served to make him more upset. Lambert exploded even more when he was ejected.

In a 1972 game at Cleveland, Pittsburgh cornerback Mel Blount did pretty much the same thing, hitting tight end Milt Morin out of bounds in the Browns bench area. The Browns players made a posse around Blount to voice — and demonstrate — their displeasure.

If only Caitlin Clark had had that kind of support from her teammates recently.

Steve King