In a radio interview earlier this week, Lions’ linebacker Zack Follett referred to Matthew Stafford as a “china doll” due to the amount of injuries that the quarterback has suffered throughout his brief career.

Quickly after word spread about his comments, Follett issued an apology to Stafford and said that his comments were taken out of context. But instead of leaving it at that, he made a video blaming Satan for the fallout that he’s received.

You can watch his sermon below. (Hat tip to Raw Sports for the video.)

Zack Follett – Response to my comments made from zack follett on Vimeo.

I think it’s great that Follett follows his religious beliefs but he seems to be making a bigger deal out of this situation than he needs to. He apologized to Stafford and explained to him that what he said was taken out of context. That should have been the end of it. But now he goes on this rant about how Satan created this backlash, when it was Follett who started all of this by opening his mouth. Was what Follett said about Stafford the work of Satan, too? I’m confused.

I think Follett needs to see the bigger picture here. He says he was taken out of context and that he spent the majority of the radio interview praising Stafford for being a “baller.” But just because you say 10 positive things about someone doesn’t mean the one negative gets erased. He referred to Stafford as a “china doll” (i.e. fragile, easy to break, etc.), which was a mistake on his part. He’s a seventh round pick who hasn’t done anything thus far in his career. He hasn’t earned the right to say anything negative about one of his teammate (and the comment was negative, I don’t care if he does believe he was taken out of context), nevertheless the face of the franchise.

Next time Zack, just keep your comments positive and move on. That way you don’t have to break out your Jesus armor.

After he was carted off the field strapped to a stretcher following an injury in a game against the Giants earlier this season, one would think that Lions’ linebacker Zack Follett would be sensitive when it came to talking about player injuries. One would think…

When asked what he thinks of Matthew Stafford in a recently interview with ESPN Radio 1430 AM, Follett called his quarterback a “china doll.”

From the Detroit Free Press:

“Stafford, good guy,” Follett said. “He’s a china doll right now. Anytime he gets hit, he goes down. But the kid is — hopefully, it’s just patiently waiting for him, because the kid is an awesome talent. He has a tremendous arm. The throws that he makes during practice when no one can touch him, he looks like an All-American quarterback, but put him in a game, and you hit his shoulder. So hopefully, say a couple prayers, keep him healthy next year, and the Lions can do some damage in the NFC.”

As usual when it comes to controversial comments, I wonder if we’re getting the full context of the interview. If we are, then I wonder why a player (a former seventh round draft pick who hasn’t done squat in the league, no less) who ended the season on IR would throw his quarterback under the bus like that. Did Follett compliment Stafford? Yeah, he basically said that Stafford is an amazing talent and can make all the throws in practice when nobody is trying to defend him. That’s like saying a student is a great test taker when he’s at home and can look up the answers in the back of the book.

That said, it’s not like Follett didn’t speak the truth. Some fans are always saying how they’d wish athletes were more honest and say what’s really on their minds, and that’s what Follett did. Stafford has missed more games (19) than he’s played (13) in his first two NFL seasons, so it’s not a stretch to call him call him injury prone.

But again, if you’re a seventh round draft pick that wasn’t playing very well before you suffered a horrific season-ending injury, then just keep your mouth shut. What has Follett done to earn the right to call Stafford a “china doll?”