The Cris Carter-Keyshawn Double Standard

Everyone is always piling on T.O., including the ESPN Sunday Countdown crew. Both Keyshawn Johnson and Cris Carter have been critical of the wide receiver multiple times this season, which is why some of their comments came across a bit hypocritical this past weekend.

The set was discussing Anquan Boldin's recent run-in with a coach, and both Johnson and Carter were sticking up for the Arizona receiver. This isn't sitting well with the Dallas Media, who are calling both analysts hypocrites today. Via Barry Horn at the Dallas Morning News....

As we all know from watch ESPN's Sunday studio show this season, Keyshawn Johnson and Cris Carter aren't very fond of Terrell Owens. The ex-WRs have picked, picked, picked on T.O. for everything from alligator arms to lizard leanings. They think T.O.'s sideline behavior has been lousy.

So it was surprising to hear Keyshawn kid-gloving Cardinals WR Anquan Boldin this morning after his sideline spat with former T.O. sparring partner Todd Haley.

"No. It's not that big of a deal," Keyshawn said. If it was, you could see players grabbing him ... I've been with Todd Haley and I've been around Todd Haley. He coached me with the Jets. He coached me in Dallas. In our meeting rooms (he) was the worst. You would like to be a fly on that wall. I don't how we could even be in the same room, I don't know how we can get along so well. But that's just a player and a coach out there competing. I work for TV, but I hate it because they try to turn it into more than it is. And, it's not that big of a deal."

Said Carter: "For one, a lot of times you don't know what the players are saying. But as players and coaches, we're a fraternity. Whatever we say on Sunday's or Monday's during the game it doesn't count. This is a competitive atmosphere. It's a result's oriented business ...When you have an athlete like him and he can't participate in the game, he's going to let the coach know that. And he has a right to know that because of the sacrifice he's made for his teammates."

Considering that the Carter-T.O. "Bullet incident" happened only a few short weeks ago, it's definitely surprising that he would be a Boldin apologist. Forget the fact that anytime Keyshawn says that someone is a "distraction", that it's extremely hypocritical. I know the media is trying to play up the whole fight between Anquan and Coach Haley, and ESPN was right in dismissing it over the weekend, but they should be more careful about who they do and don't defend on-air.

Do Keyshawn and Cris Carter have a double standard when it comes to T.O.? (Dallas Morning News)