Chris Cooley is keenly aware how the media machine operates, so you can guarantee the Redskins tight end knew what was in store when he said last week on a radio show it was "amazing" to watch Tony Romo "choke" during the Cowboys' Week 4 loss to the Detroit Lions.
Cooley was a guest on "The Rich Eisen Podcast" this week, and he lamented his choice of words but stood by his general message.
"I would have liked it to come out differently," Cooley said. "I do want them to lose -- every player does. I don't like getting the bad name that I did for what was insinuated that I called someone a choker.
"I wish that I hadn't used it, I've addressed it, and you can't do anything more than that," Cooley added. "Yeah, I absolutely didn't want to say that, and that's not who I consider him as a player."
When Eisen pointed out Cooley later wrote in a blog entry that he was delighted by Romo's failures, the talkative tight end explained what separates him from most professional athletes today.
"The nature of our business is that as a player, everything that you say should be politically correct," he said, "and you should say the team you're playing is a great team and they have great players and everyone's terrific and they hate when we root against someone."
If there's not already a Chris Cooley Fan Club, we're going to charter that bad boy. If every athlete was as smart and candid as him, the sports world would be a much cooler place.
