Texans safety Bernard Pollard started all 16 games for the Chiefs in 2008, but he ended up in Houston after Kansas City cut him just before the start of the 2009 season.
Pollard describes getting cut by the Chiefs as a shock, but he says he thinks he knows what the problem was: He wouldn't put up with new coach Todd Haley and his staff cursing him out.
"With professional athletes, you're dealing with grown men. You're not dealing with boys," Pollard tells the Journal Gazette. "You're not in a locker room with sophomores in high school. You're dealing with grown men with families. I have a wife. I have a son. And I have a daughter on the way. I'm not going to sit there and let you curse me out when you feel like cursing me out or talk to me any way you want to talk to me, and you just want me to sit and take it and say, 'Yes, coach.'"
As ArrowheadPride.com notes, Pollard had a shouting match with Chiefs defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast during training camp, leading to Pollard being sent off the field. Apparently that was not just one isolated incident.
But from Pollard's perspective, it's all worked out. Now he's a starter in Houston.
"I respect others because that's what I want in return," Pollard says. "It was shocking to get let go, but I'm a Texan, and I'm happy to be one."
Bernard Pollard didn't like Chiefs' coaches' cursing
Posted by Michael David Smith on November 8, 2009 9:17 AM ET
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Pollard should have been banned from football for life after what he did to Tom Brady.
Hey Benard Pollard, they sell Tampons every where, go pick some up!
I'm a diehard Chiefs fan and the more I hear about Haley and his staff the less I like him. You can't be a dickhead 24/7. This seems to be his style.
That's interesting because I'm sure the coaches in Kansas City didn't like his "playing", either.
good for Bernard , If my boss cusses at me at work I'll get him fired, I wouldn't put up with that nonsense either..
What is PFT's take on Pollard, i don't know much about him...Good luckPollard with your new job and your family......
................Geaux Saints.....................
The reason he was released couldnt possible be that he spent his time on the field talking trash. But was a huge liability defending the pass and we is a big hitter but a terrible tackler. Remember Bernard you were one of the reason the chiefs have been so bad on defense in the past!
Haley seems to make it a practice to scream down players and basically treat them disrespectfully --- to an extreme, and often very publicly.
Haley tried to go tough guy on Anquan Boldin when he was in Arizona - Q is a full grown man and was having none of it. Other such incidents with other players continue to surface now in KC.
The pattern is clear - it's Haley's modus operandi. This certainly isn't helped by the fact Haley's team is performing abysmally.
Fact is Haley would never get away with such an approach to any of these men without the life-changing authority vested in him as a head coach.
Some coaches get respect by the way they inherently carry themselves. It's natural for them, just in how they are Mike Tomlin comes to mind. So does Mike Singletary. Love him or hate him, Rex Ryan is inspiring. These are men you want to go to war with.
But it seems very unnatural for Haley to earn respect like other men. It's forced quite awkwardly, as he seems to feel the need to squawk, deride, cuss and denigrate - and it's very off-putting. What baller would want to run through a wall for that a-hole? The list continues to shrink.
I realize different approaches ands styles can work with different coaches, but it's hard to be on board with Haley's arrogant hard ass approach.
Haley appears to exploit his coaching empowerment much like a rogue cop might abuse his badge and gun.
Pollard was the biggest shit talker on the roster in Kansas City. He was doing just as much shouting. He single handedly started at least 2 fights between offensive and defensive players. He's the anti-team player.
Oh and anyone playing Houston...post pattern off play action. He'll be out of position every time.
I truly don't like to wish ill on anyone, but I truly hope someone takes an intentional dive at this piece of shit's knees someday and puts him out of the NFL for a year or more. Let's see how he likes it when they're HIS knees.
He dopey McPollard I have a news flash, you may not be a sophmore in high school, but you are still playing a kids game. When you start providing metrics to your boss at 8 AM Monday morning, because Friday he has an idea, then you can throw the dont curse at me bull. There is a certain set of unwritten rules in each profession, coaches cursing is pretty standard fare in any pro sport. If you don't like it, go work 8-6 M-F pulling in under 100k, and see how much you yearn for being cursed at.
Waaahhhh, my vajayjay hurts. What a freakin crybaby for someone who talks as much shi* as he does. Maybe if he didn't suck so much he wouldn't hear as much cussing. If you play in the secondary for the Chiefs/Lions/Jags/etc and are LET GO, chances are you're really bad.
I'm also amazed how much you all know about Haley's coaching style. Have you personally interacted with the guy or is this all based off the media? That's what I thought. Apparently it worked enough to make him a hot coaching commodity. I guess it's folks like you that brought about 'stress cards' in the military.
quit.crying.
I'm a diehard Chiefs fan and the more I hear about Haley and his staff the less I like him. You can't be a dickhead 24/7. This seems to be his style.
Look, some NFL coaches will curse out players as a motivational ploy; although it obviously does not work well with all players. A mediocre player like Pollard does not like it, so he gets moved. Coaches want to move players who can't take some stress. This is not a white collar job where you are always expected to be prim and proper. No big deal.
What did they say, quit f*ckin suckin Pollard! Seems ok to me.
Only memorable thing Pollard has done in his entire life is injure Brady. Once he retires, he will be forgotten for everything else.
boldin was hurt and still thought he should be in the game and also call the plays. haley was right to chew his ass.
the chiefs arent a good team so they need to toughen up. if haley hollering at them is too much, i hear mcdonalds is hiring.
coaches curse. it's the way of the world. it's also all a lot of players understand.
Bernard Pollard is a friggin Trivial Pursuit question in a Texans uniform. That is all he will ever be known for. He is a piss poor tackler (when the person isn't stationary looking in the opposite direction) and a joke in coverage.
all these pu$$y a$$ cry babies bitching about how hard Haley is are the same punks that will think he's a great coach when he's winning!! everyone wanted Tom Coughlin fired just weeks before he won the Super Bowl. Get over it. Coaches yell at players. Big F-ing deal. Come work at my job and see how far you get screaming at you boss because he cussed at you. Just tell it like it is and admitt you got sand in your vagina and "it wealy wealy hoorts!" PU$$Y!!
Once again the Girlymen rise. This is FOOTBALL, not soccer, not baseball and not tiddlyfreakinwinks! If you think cursing has no place in FOOTBALL then you obviously haven't played the game, go back to watching freakin soccer with the rest of the girlymen who know their place and stay away from football boards.
Belichick & Dungy don't curse at their players.
I don't think cursing = success
Pollard might have been a sub-par player, but that doesn't warrant what he's talking about. this is the NFL, not boot camp.
"With professional athletes, you're dealing with grown men. You're not dealing with boys,"
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Then name me one grown man who hasn't been cursed out at some point in his life....Or hasn't cursed someone out......What a ridiculous statement....Alot of professional athletes act like entitled spoiled brats.......Too bad you got cursed out Pollard, if you were as good as you think you are, it would have never happened.......
If this story is actually true - I applaud this guy. Not many "grown men" stand up for their beliefs. That's why a Tim Tebow is incredibly refreshing, and why so many guys hate him - because he has the backbone to stand up for his convictions and not run with the crowd like a blind lemming. So, if this is a true story - good for him.
Bernard is an overbearing butthead. It is either Bernard's way or he goes flying off the handle. I know this first hand. Did anyone see the two questionable plays against the Colt's today? An elbow to the side of Dallas Clark's head after Clark had just smoked his butt, and the cheap shop on Manning when he was already down? Pollard tried to go helmet to helmet but instead got Manning on the back of the neck. Watch what the NFL does this week with him. I bet he is ten grand to 30 grand light next week!
Hey, Bernie-Bubbie,,,grow the FU*K UP.
pollard didnt deserve special treatment. the man cant tackle. its simple. if ur a safety, and u cant tackle, coaches tend to yell.
hes simply not a starter in the nfl, so i think at the end of the day he had to look at himself. he didnt quit the chiefs, they cut him. so he was taking the coaches yelling at him....until they didnt want to anymore.
I think Pollard played a huge role in this, and it's really silly for the guy who took a franchise quarterback out for a season with a low hit and than celebrated, to really pretend like someone cursing is enough to take you off a team.
Although it might be inapproriate, there are far better reasons for someone to be kicked off a team. He didn't voluntarily sit out, he didn't just stop playing or pull a T.O. bench press in his driveway. He simply was cut because that's exactly the type of player he is: cutable. If he had real value, or real worth in any way, he would still be on that team. No matter what arguments he had, he clearly did not offer anything of that high a value to make it worthwhile for the coaches to keep him there.