Don’t Spare the Rod
My parents drilled two things into my head when I was a youngster:
- Don’t play with matches.
- Don’t play with firecrackers.
The first warning came with a story about Bobby Something-or-Other accidentally setting his house on fire because he was playing with matches.
The second came with a story about Joey Something-or-Other blowing off his fingers because he was playing with firecrackers.
My mom and dad probably made up both stories, but I was young enough to take them as gospel and didn’t want to wind up like either Bobby Something-or-Other or Joey Something-or-Other.
Plus, my parents never spared the rod and I was afraid of getting an ass-whipping if I disobeyed them. So – cross my heart – I never once played with matches. So it follows that I never once set a match to a firecracker.
Too bad the parents of Jason Pierre-Paul never gave him such warnings – or if they did, he wasn’t afraid of an ass-whipping.
You see, over the Fourth of July holidays, the New York Football Giants star pass-rusher played with both matches and firecrackers. Although, in his case, he skipped the firecrackers and progressed to big-time fireworks.
Unfortunately for him, he suffered some sort of explosive injury to his hands on the night of the Fourth while he was attempting to light some fireworks. According to reports for viable sources, Jason Pierre-Paul’s injuries required hospitalization. But here’s where the story really becomes unfortunate for Jason Pierre-Paul – who is an unsigned free agent.
Prior to the accident, the Giants put the franchise tag on him as both sides tried to work out a long-term contract that called for $60-million over several years. But neither Jason Pierre-Paul nor his agent had yet to approve or to sign the offer. Now, citing a lack of proper judgment on Jason Pierre-Paul’s part, the Giants are pulling the long-term offer off the table.
The franchise-tag offer is still currently on the table and would pay Jason Pierre-Paul $14.8-million for one year – but that offer could be rescinded.
Barry Bowe is the author of:
Jason Pierre-Paul decided to have his right index finger fully amputated to “minimize the damage” he suffered in the fireworks explosion over the Fourth of July weekend.
The amputation was performed on Wednesday, July 8th.
However, the New York Football Giants were unaware of Pierre-Paul’s amputation until reading a report by ESPN’s Adam Schefter. His tweet included pictures of Pierre-Paul’s medical chart.
The recovery from the amputation is not expected to be long. Other injuries he suffered, most notably fractures in other parts of the hand, are expected to take longest to heal.