Column: 10 sports figures who might have had a worse 2020 than you have
The countdown to the end of 2020 continued Wednesday with the painfully slow conclusion to the presidential election, rising COVID-19 numbers across the nation and the ongoing saga of the Chicago Bears offense.
Only 56 days remain until New Year’s Eve, when we’ll celebrate the finish to the worst year in our lifetimes and look forward to better things in 2021.
It might be small consolation to some, but at least some prominent sports figures you love to hate are having — or had — some of the most forgettable years of their careers.
Because misery loves company, here are 10 people who might be having a worse 2020 than the rest of us.
1. Bill Belichick
The New England Patriots enter Monday night’s game against the New York Jets with a 2-5 record, their worst start since 2000. Without Tom Brady running the show, Belichick looks like just another mediocre coach with a bad wardrobe. Oddly, he chose 2020 to show off his acting chops in two lame Subway commercials that purportedly portray his dour personality in a lighthearted fashion. Instead, they simply remind us what an arrogant, unpleasant man Belichick is.
2. Rudy Gobert
The Utah Jazz center thought he was a wild-and-crazy guy when he decided to touch several reporters’ tape recorders after a March 9 news conference, pretending to spread the coronavirus. Oh, Rudy! Two days later, the Jazz learned Gobert had contracted COVID-19, leading to the shutdown of the NBA season for several months. The rest of the professional sports leagues and the NCAA followed in the ensuing days. No matter what he does the rest of his career, Gobert will always be remembered as the guy who shut down the sports world.
3. Jim Harbaugh
The Michigan football coach is in Year 6 of a seven-year deal and making nearly $8 million as the fourth-highest-paid coach in college football. For that kind of money, you’re expected to at least compete for a Big Ten title if not a national championship. Neither seems to be a possibility after the Wolverines lost to Michigan State on Saturday in the Big House. When he returned to his alma mater in 2014, some considered Harbaugh the program’s savior. “I don’t consider myself to be a savior then or now,” he said this week. Now he’s just a pinata for all the Michigan haters.
4. Jose Altuve
Like the rest of the Houston Astros players revealed to have stolen signs during their 2017 championship season, Altuve escaped scot-free when MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred opted not to discipline players. But karma eventually caught up to Altuve in 2020. He hit .219 with an 0.2 WAR during the regular season before coming down with a bad case of the yips at second base during the postseason.
5. Jerry Jones
The producers of NFL telecasts love to show the egocentric Dallas Cowboys owner in his suite during games, and nothing has been more enjoyable than watching Jones squirm through a 2-6 start. The Cowboys are going with a fourth-string quarterback, either Garrett Gilbert or Cooper Rush, on Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers, so let’s hope the Jerry-Cam is fixated on the owner’s box for some plum reaction shots.
6. Jay Cutler
The former Bears quarterback with the perpetual smirk was divorced by his wife and reality show co-star, Kristen Cavallari, then was linked romantically with Fox News personality and conservative Twitter troll Tomi Lahren. Cutler said he and Lahren were just friends, which at least suggests he has friends.
7. Ryan Braun
One of the most hated opposing players in Wrigley Field history, Braun hit a career-low .233 in 39 games with the Milwaukee Brewers, who declined a mutual $15 million option after the season. On the plus side, there were no fans at Wrigley this year to boo Braun, who thrived on the fan negativity over the years. With no one there to abuse him, Braun was homerless in 11 at-bats at Wrigley.
8. Stan Bowman
The Chicago Blackhawks general manager finally admitted the team is going through a rebuild last month after telling WSCR-AM 670 in February the Hawks simply were “incorporating some new, younger players.” Whatever you want to call it, the regression from the glory years continued unabated in 2020, a bleak season that ended with the departure of popular goaltender Corey Crawford after an undeserved spot in the gerrymandered NHL playoffs.
9. Rob Manfred
Baseball’s perennially embattled commissioner was forced to apologize for a bizarre comment after the Astros investigation, when he angered players by referring to the World Series trophy as a “piece of metal.” After turning off fans during the pandemic-related shutdown with a nonstop verbal battle with the players union over prorated salaries and the length of a shortened season, Manfred almost made it to the end of the World Series without further incident. But a discombobulated speech during the ceremony after Game 7 made some wonder if he was all there.
10. Don Cooper
The Teflon pitching coach of the Chicago White Sox somehow survived managerial changes over the years because of his cozy relationship with executive vice president Ken Williams, leading to his reputation as “pitching coach for life.” Cooper finally had a staff he could be proud of in 2020, only to be fired after the season along with manager Rick Renteria. His scowl will be missed by all.
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