"He’s Been Hanging Out With Ryan Clark Too Much": Doug Gottlieb Accuses Kendrick Perkins of Playing 'Race Card' in Shedeur Sanders Debate

Doug Gottlieb Accuses Kendrick Perkins of Playing
Doug Gottlieb Accuses Kendrick Perkins of Playing 'Race Card' in Shedeur Sanders Debate - Images via IMAGN

ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins on Tuesday boldly compared Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders to former President Barack Obama. Fox Sports talk radio host Doug Gottlieb on Wednesday accused Perkins of playing the race card on an episode of the β€œDoug Gottlieb Show.”

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Gottlieb accused Perkins of hypocrisy. He pointed out that the Browns’ starting quarterback Deshaun Watson, who is out injured with an Achilles injury, is black.

β€œHe’s not the most powerful guy in sports,” Gottlieb said. β€œI do think the black community by and large embraces him and seems to have made this into some sort of uh racial thing, which it’s comedy. Because Dillon Gabriel is not white, you know.”
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β€œAnd oh yeah, by the way, the guy who was the starting quarterback before injury for the Cleveland Browns … just so happens to be black as well,” he added. β€œThat's the actual starting quarterback of the Cleveland Browns. So, there's a lot to it that has nothing to do with race and that Kendra Perkins, maybe he's been hanging out with Ryan Clark too much, is making it completely about race.”
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Kendrick Perkins asserted that Sanders was uniting the black community by being on the field. The remarks came right after Sanders’ first NFL start with the Cleveland Browns against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, where he completed 11 of 20 passes for 209 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

Sanders' mother, Pilar Sanders endorsed the comparison. She reposted a clip of Perkins’ statement on her Instagram Story on Tuesday, accompanied by love emojis.

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Kendrick Perkins calls out Browns’ coach for perceived Shedeur Sanders disrespect

Kendrick Perkins is known for his hot takes on issues. He called out Browns coach Kevin Stefanski for not giving Shedeur Sanders his flowers after an impressive first NFL start.

"Cupcake a** probably texted Dillon [Gabriel], 'missed you out there capt,'" Perkins tweeted.
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In a video shared by the Browns on X, coach Stefanski publicly praised several players but gave a three-word response in his speech about Sanders.

"Offense, wasn't perfect. How about that big play by [Dylan Sampson] at the end... and then another rookie making his first start, nice job Shedeur. Well done."

Sanders, according to Browns owner Jimmy Haslam, was General Manager Andrew Berry’s choice and not Coach Stefanski. This has led to speculations about Sanders' place as a starting quarterback moving forward, with Stefanski refusing to confirm if Sanders will start against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.

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Edited by Ubong Richard
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