Theismann, Saying He Was ‘Jealous,’ Apologizes for Remarks on McMahon

Washington Redskin quarterback Joe Theismann, saying he was “jealous” of Jim McMahon, has apologized for disparaging comments he made about the quarterback of the Super Bowl champion Chicago Bears.

“It’s not my position to make a decision about what another athlete does in the National Football League, and I was completely wrong in making those statements,” Theismann told a local television station.

“You know, I just guess maybe I got a little envious, a little jealous of the fact that he could do such a great job of advertising. I’ve thought about it for a long time and never had the guts to go ahead and do it.”

In a speaking engagement Monday in Hamilton, Canada, Theismann criticized McMahon as a role model for youth, saying the Bear quarterback exhibiting “a lack of respect for the rules of life as a professional athlete” by such actions as “wearing sunglasses and punk haircuts.”

In his apology, Theismann said: “I didn’t necessarily think it (McMahon’s life style) was right, but yet again, I really have to apologize to Jim McMahon and say that I’m not in any position to judge another person. . . . I’ll clear it up right here and say I was wrong.”