Rex Grossman, the NFL’s favorite pinata, took another off-the-field beating after San Diego linebacker Matt Wilhelm told a California newspaper that Chargers linebackers coach Ron Rivera advised his players they could rattle Grossman because he was “a mental midget.”
Grossman took the high road.
“He has never been around me, and he always has been up in the booth,” Grossman said of the former Bears defensive coordinator, who denied using the term. Rivera’s alleged knock came on the same day the Chargers’ Phillips called Cedric Benson “soft” on Sirius Radio.
Bears center Olin Kreutz blistered Rivera in protecting Grossman. “They won their first game and you would think they’re Super Bowl champs by the way they run their mouth,” Kreutz said.
For the record, Rivera considered Wilhelm’s revelation regrettable and said in a phone interview that he addressed the matter with the linebacker. “I told Matt, ‘You keep that up, I might not ever be able to go back to Chicago,’ ” Rivera told the Tribune.
“I would never say something like [‘mental midget’] about somebody, especially Rex,” Rivera said. “I have a lot of respect for him because he went through a tough time last year and I didn’t think it was all fair.”
One player doubted the term “mental midget,” just popped into Wilhelm’s head.
Kreutz went even further. “I think Ron showed you right there why he isn’t here anymore,” he said. “He’s kind of a ‘me’ guy who said too much sometimes. It doesn’t [surprise me]. Here’s a guy who said after we lost the Super Bowl, ‘It’s my time [to be a head coach].’ So take it for what it is.”
Meanwhile, Benson tried to mask his anger behind a sarcastic laugh, but he obviously wasn’t flattered by the oral assault Phillips directed toward him. “I’ll run that dude over any day,” Benson said with a smile that had an edge.
“If I met him in the hole? Any day. You know, one-on-one? Yeah, right. Come on,” he said. “They’re just talking. … I don’t even know what number he is. I don’t know who he is.”
For his part, Benson says his running style speaks volumes. “I don’t need to defend myself on being a tough runner,” he said. “Being a tough runner? Come on.”
