Mike Wallace signed a contract with the Baltimore Ravens and wasted no time taking shots at the Vikings and quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.
Last season was a disappointing one for wide receiver Mike Wallace from a statistical point-of-view, but by all accounts Wallace kept whatever frustration he was feeling in check and never made trouble for Teddy Bridgewater, Mike Zimmer or anyone else.
In fact, Wallace so impressed Mike Zimmer with his work habits and his attitude that after the season Zimmer openly declared he “loved” Wallace and would like to have him back.
Apparently, that affection is not entirely mutual.
In his first press conference after signing a 2-year, $11.5 million deal with Baltimore Ravens, Wallace cut loose with his real thoughts about the Vikings and Teddy Bridgewater. They are not positive (via @ravens):
"When the process started I knew I wasn’t going back to Minnesota. I was like, I need a good quarterback. I need a quarterback who I know is proven, who can get things done. And [Joe] Flacco, he’s always been that guy. I’ve always loved his deep ball. Always."
How does it feel under the wheels of that bus, Teddy?
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Leaving aside the classlessness of Wallace’s comments, is he entirely wrong in his assessment of Teddy Bridgewater? Of course he’s not entirely wrong.
It’s true that Teddy Bridgewater doesn’t throw a deep ball like Joe Flacco. It’s true that Flacco is more proven than Bridgewater. It’s true that Wallace has a chance to produce better numbers with Flacco throwing him the ball.
Wallace’s remarks are valid, but it’s still a little disappointing that he would go there after the Vikings and Mike Zimmer went out of their way to say nice things about him.
Would it have killed Mike Wallace to give a little shout out to Teddy Bridgewater? Did he have to immediately rip into Teddy?
It’s not hard. Just say, “It didn’t work out in Minnesota but I still enjoyed my time there and Teddy Bridgewater is a great guy.” It doesn’t even matter if you really mean it!
Wallace is looking forward to working with Flacco. https://t.co/hqzhNN5uMO
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) March 15, 2016
Wallace clearly is more worried about protecting his own reputation than doing the right thing by his former teammates. He thinks people are down on him after he had a bad year. He wants us to know it wasn’t him, it was the quarterback.
Next: Wallace signs with Ravens
That’s the kind of guy Wallace is. Clearly, he was just playing the good teammate last year so he wouldn’t damage his chances of catching on with another team after he got cut. Hey, no problem. It’s just business.
Well good luck in Baltimore Mike Wallace. Ravens fans, enjoy your new wide receiver who can’t run a route to save his life, has hands of stone, is scared to go over the middle and will throw your QB under the bus if he has a bad year.