Distractions.

It is a quick and easy term used by football coaches to describe players they don't feel comfortable with. Sometimes it can be a valid excuse to sign another player while passing on a player. Sometimes it is a pretext to not sign a player the coach doesn't want on his team.

Football coaches do not want distractions. They are well aware of the dangers that distractions can cause. In the locker room. In the meeting rooms. When players ask questions about their teammates during press conferences. Everywhere.

Many would argue that this aversion is exaggerated, as football involves dealing with distractions every snap. A player who has an assignment to play is mentally and physically distracted by the fact the player in front of him has a completely different assignment.

Football coaches don't like distractions. Jack Del Rio, Commanders' defensive coordinator, has been a football coach ever since 1997. He rose from assistant strength coach with Saints to linebackers coach with Ravens to defensive coach for the Panthers to defensive coach for the Jaguars to head coach with the Jaguars to defensive coach of Broncos then to defensive coordinator with the Commanders.

Even though the words are not true, the NFL loves to claim that non-players are held to higher standards than players. Coaches should be held to a higher standard when it comes to avoiding distractions coaches claim they hate. But Del Rio created a distraction by expressing his opinions via Twitter and other social media.

He was a distraction for the football players, regardless of his views. This alone raises the question of whether Del Rio and the Commanders should continue to be friends.

As I said on Sunday, Del Rio should not be punished for his opinions. Although I don't agree with the idea of Del Rio creating a major distraction for an organisation that has had too many of them, I can understand the need to end the relationship.

We can accept that coaches are trying to reduce distractions, and not just to give the cold shoulder to players they don't like on the team. A two-time ex-head coach should know that he should try to keep distractions from his team.