The sports media coverage in New York is just a little more brutal than it is in most other major American markets, and that was on display again this week when ESPN New York radio host Don LaGreca went on a bit of a tirade in response to comments made by Giants offensive lineman Evan Neal.
Evan Neal later apologized for his initial statements | SCREENSHOT: SNY/YouTube
Neal got a brutal lesson about what happens to you when you call out New Yorkers – they rally around each other. The offensive lineman stuck his foot in his mouth following his team’s 40-0 blanking by the Dallas Cowboys. When asked about the fans’ dissatisfaction, Neal ripped into Giants backers, saying that he does not “concern (himself) with the opinion of a sheep,” suggesting that fans who boo must “flip hot dogs and hamburgers somewhere.”
La Greca – known for his fiery personality – wasn’t hearing any of it. He took the player to task on a recent broadcast.
“Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me?” La Greca ranted. “I’d cut his ass. I would,”
How dare you? How dare you? These people pay your salary, they pay an obnoxious amount of money to park, an obnoxious amount of money for PSLs, to sit there and watch this pap, and you call them hamburger flippers? What, you’re so much better? I’d rather have a guy that’s flipping hamburgers block than your piece of garbage ass. Who the hell are you, to talk to fans like that? You piece of garbage.”
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“If you see him at the mall in Willowbrook, boo his ass,” La Greca implored. “If you see him at the DMV, boo him! Don’t stop booing him! If he goes to the Pro Bowl, boo him! If he wins a Super Bowl, boo his sorry ass. Screw that guy!”
For his part, Evan Neal must have heard the blowback, as he issued an apology for his rather rude statement. He acknowledged that it was disrespectful to all Giants fans.
“I am wrong for lashing out at the fans who are just as passionate and frustrated as I am,” Neal wrote on X. “I let my frustrations in my play and desire to get the best of me. I had no right to make light of anyone’s job, and I deeply regret the things I said.”
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