Dwayne Haskins was dehumanized in the wake of his tragic death

When Daniel Wilcox read the tweet ESPN’s Adam Schefter posted to break the news of NFL quarterback Dwayne Haskins’ death, he thought about how some view athletes as mere entertainers without taking the time to see them as human.

“When you’re in the NFL, you’re just a piece of meat. You’re a name and you’re a number,” says Wilcox, who played tight end for the New York Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Baltimore Ravens.

Schefter caught backlash after listing Haskins’ career setbacks while reporting on his death, which occurred when the 24-year-old was hit by a truck in the early hours of Saturday morning.

“Dwayne Haskins, a standout at Ohio State before struggling to catch on with Washington and Pittsburgh in the NFL, died this morning when he got hit by a car in South Florida, per his agent Cedrick Saunders,” Schefter tweeted.

“Haskins has a family, and they’re hurting,” says Wilcox. “You’re pointing out a flaw in someone instead of embracing the fact that someone has just lost their life. There’s a level of insensitivity. With being a reporter, sometimes you want to be the first one to get it out and you don’t think about the people that you affect when you say things.”

The sports community spoke out against Schefter’s tweet, which was posted at a time when Haskins’ family, friends, and former teammates were taking in the enormity of his death. Schefter would eventually delete the tweet, but the damage was done.

How about “ Dwayne Haskins, son, husband, buckeye brother, friend, beloved teammate has passed away” TF his career ups and downs have to do with him unfortunately losing his life