Everybody loved The Blind Side, starring Sandra Bullock, about the life of Michael Oher and his rise to becoming a football star; everyone but Michael Oher himself. The Carolina Panthers player claims the 2009 film has taken away what he does on the field.
Oher said Wednesday of last week,
“I’m not trying to prove anything. People look at me, and they take things away from me because of a movie. They don’t really see the skills and the kind of player I am. That’s why I get downgraded so much, because of something off the field. This stuff, calling me a bust, people saying if I can play or not … that has nothing to do with football. It’s something else off the field. That’s why I don’t like that movie.”
Jemele Hill and Michael Smith of ESPN’s His & Hers speak obout if Oher’s claims can be taken seriously. Hill states that she can understand if other players use the movie against Oher since he had the persona of being a gentle giant on the field, while Smith brings up the point that most offensive lineman are anonymous but most eyes are on Oher.
As Oher stated because of the movie,
“Offensive linemen don’t get looked at. Nobody is paying attention to the offensive line. But me? I’m getting watched for everything. I know what type of player I am. Everybody else that I know knows what type of player I am. So that kind of stuff doesn’t worry me.”
Sandra Bullock won an Oscar as well as a Golden Globe for her performance in The Blind Side as Oher’s adoptive mother who overall helped him begin football where he became an All-American player at the University of Mississippi and then the first round draft pick for the Baltimore Ravens.
Oher assisted the Ravens to their Superbowl win in 2012 and at media day ahead of the game, he also spoke against The Blind Side, saying,
“I’m tired of the movie. I’m here to play football.”
Image: Via Flickr/Jeff Weese
