San Francisco 49ers reporter Grant Cohn used his postgame recap of the team’s Thursday win over the Seattle Seahawks to launch a lengthy on-air attack against a fellow reporter who covers the same team.
Cohn, who works for Sports Illustrated, targeted David Lombardi of the San Francisco Standard, accusing him of acting more like a team mascot than a journalist.
“I can’t stand David Lombardi,” Cohn said before detailing his complaint. “It’s bad enough that he’s a fan of the team that he covers, but he thinks he’s on the team.”
Cohn said Lombardi skips the postgame press conference entirely, choosing instead to go into the locker room.
“So, for example, after a game, you might hear some of us interviewing players and the coach at the postgame press conference. You know who never asks a question? Dave Lombardi. You know why? Because he’s not in there. You know why? Because he’s in the locker room. You know what he’s doing? Hugging the players!”
Cohn said the behavior crosses a line, with Lombardi reportedly treating 49ers wins as if he personally contributed to them.
“It does bother me. They say before you go in the locker room, ‘If you’re not in here conducting interviews, you have to leave.’ He’s hugging the players! […] You’re a player on the 49ers. You just won; you’re celebrating with your brothers. Here comes this freaking guy to give you a hug as if you guys accomplished something together. Who the fuck are you?”
Cohn added that he’s bothered by Lombardi’s habit of trying to “bro out with the players.”
“I don’t give Kyle a hug in the locker room after the game and say, ‘How’d it feel? How’s it feel to be 5-0?’ Man, fuck that! I’m sorry, dude. I do disapprove of fans covering teams, but still, Brian Nemhauser is a fan of the Seahawks. He does a great job, even though he’s a fan of the team. He doesn’t think he’s on the team, and he holds their team accountable. This fucking guy pretends to be a journalist and takes shilling to the next level.”
The 49ers improved to 5-0 with the win over Seattle.
