On Sunday night, I felt sorry for Kyle Williams, seeing the pained look on the young man's face as he owned up to his mistakes that cost the 49ers a trip to the Super Bowl.
On Monday morning, I felt more sorry for our society.
Posted on Williams' Twitter account:
@KyleWilliams_10. I hope you, youre wife, kids and family die, you deserve it
Or how about this gem from a commentator on nymag.com:
I hope Williams die a horrible death. And soon!!! A car crash, that would be nice … Brain cancer would be fantastic, but unfortunely he doesn't have one. …
There are more. Many, many more that are just as ugly, nasty and threatening.
Billy Cundiff, the Ravens' kicker who missed a last-second field goal attempt that gave the New England Patriots a trip to the Super Bowl, doesn't have a Twitter account.
That didn't stop the haters from posting:
Billy Cundiff tried to kill himself Sunday night, but he couldn't kick the bucket.
Jarrod Chin, director at the Center for Sport in Society at Northeastern University in Boston, said some fans may have lost touch with reality.
"They think this is 'their team' and they become angry and violent if their players fail," Chin said via phone Monday night. "Some of these people need to step back and see that at the end of the day this is just a game. Just entertainment."
After accepting responsibility for their roles in defeat Sunday night, both Williams and Cundiff were able to look at themselves in the mirror on Monday morning.
It wasn't as easy for some of us to do the same.
Today's poll
Will 49ers fans ever get over Kyle Williams' two punt-return mistakes?
• Yes • No
Vote above or leave your comments in the comments field; or go to www.sacbee.com/sports
Weekend results
Who is most to blame for the Kings' woes?
• Former coach Paul Westphal: 11%
• Coach Keith Smart: 1%
• Basketball president Geoff Petrie: 24%
• Owners Joe and Gavin Maloof: 64%
Total votes: 1,050
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