Sal Alosi

Until last night, Sal Alosi was not a household name. And while his name still may not be, if you watched any of the NFL games from yesterday, his actions did not go unnoticed.

The New York Jets' strength and conditioning coach is in the middle of his 15 minutes of fame.

Alosi was on the sidelines as Miami Dolphins' cornerback Nolan Carroll was covering a punt (with two Jets' players already blocking him) and was forced out of bounds. Carroll was running by Alosi, when Alosi leaned his knee into Carroll's way, tripping him. Carroll was shaken up on the play, had to be attended to by Dolphins' training staff and eventually walked off on his own.

Most of us have no idea what kind of person Sal Alosi is and I am not going to use my blog as an opportunity to shout how terrible he is or call for him to be fired (though I think it may be appropriate).

One thing is for certain, Sal Alosi used extremely poor judgment. And I don't want to hear that it was an accident (Alosi admitted it wasn't) or that it was instinct (if you watch the NFL, players that cover punts are forced out of bounds and run out of bounds often). He purposely tripped Nolan Carroll.

Was it because the Jets were losing? Was it that they were playing so poorly and he was trying to get an unconventional edge?

Whatever his intentions were, I will only make two points about Sal Alosi's actions. They were unprofessional and unsportsmanlike.

No matter what level you play at (and in life in general) - little league to major league and everywhere in between - three things should be expected. You will try as hard as you can, no matter your talent. You will practice good sportsmanship. And you will act professional (even if you are not).

I'm not questioning Sal Alosi's work ethic. I can only imagine the sacrifice it takes to make it to the level he has. And it is unfortunate that most people who have seen the play will now say that his is not professional and not sportsmanlike.

Sal Alosi could be both on a day-to-day basis. But one play has changed the perception of him.

And one moment is all that it takes to change the perception of us all.

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