Coaches, especially NFL veterans who turn to a coaching role, tend to get passionate on the gridiron. At times, this intensity can create tense moments between them and the players, even when those players are young. That’s when they start learning, right? However, on one occasion, Marshawn Lynch got a little too aggressive with his approach during a football camp, leading a mother to confront him afterward for cursing at her child.
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Lynch was known for his powerful, aggressive, and imposing play style in the NFL. It allowed him to earn the “Beast Mode” persona on the field. He made five Pro Bowls and won a Super Bowl with this fierce approach. But transferring his beastly aggression to coaching may have been a bit rocky.
A Twitter user unearthed an old video from 2019, shortly after Lynch’s playing career ended. The video went viral at the time, capturing a heated confrontation between Lynch and the mother of a child, Stephanie Siva, at one of his football camps.
The incident occurred during a drill where kids as young as nine were instructed to hit each other without pads. Those who objected had to run laps instead. However, it was the swearing that led to trouble for Lynch with the mother. And his response? While somewhat sexist, he suggested that Siva’s child needed some tough love.
“Tell them that if they’re not doing what they need to do, then yes, there’s consequences,” Lynch told the mother, who confronted him at the stands for cussing. She even claimed that Lynch brought her son to tears.
“If it takes that amount of time for when I tell a kid to do something and they’re not doing what they’re supposed to do, then there are consequences. Like push-ups, like running laps, like telling them to get the f*ck out of my drill if they’re not doing it right,” the former RB added.
The mother continually tried to interrupt Lynch throughout what he was saying, but he made his argument clear. If her kid isn’t doing the drill right, then he’s going to let them know. And he’s going to treat them the same way he would treat any other player on the field.
When a mom flipped out on Marshawn Lynch for cussing at her kid during a kid’s football camp pic.twitter.com/xyfm2DzXrM
— Football’s Greatest Moments (@FBGreatMoments) April 12, 2025
Although Lynch begins the video by asking if he can speak to a man instead of the son’s mother, which is honestly a bit sexist and wasn’t needed from Marshawn. He should know better, too, because his mother has fought battles for him in the past. Like the time she made a public Facebook post questioning Pete Carroll’s decision not to hand the ball to her son on the goal line in Super Bowl XLIX.
At the same time, the victimized mother in the video should have also let Lynch coach his style to her kid. After all, he made it to the NFL. If there’s someone who knows the effort and mindset that it takes to make it, Lynch is the guy.
Not every coach is going to be a nice guy who wants to bond with their players. In fact, some of the greatest coaches of all time have pushed their players to the limit and demanded the most out of them. Furthermore, they’re remembered as mean guys, but they have the hardware to show for it. Think of Jon Gruden, Bill Belichick, and Andy Reid.
Sure, maybe cursing at kids during a football camp isn’t the ideal setting for Lynch to be seen as an all-time great coach. But any good coach knows the importance of maintaining the same intensity in practice as they do in a game. That’s why Lynch was so blunt when critiquing his campers.
While some parents might not appreciate it, they chose to have their kids participate in a camp led by a former NFL player. What did they expect?
