Dale Jr.'s Silence Would Ease Eury Criticism

(Originally published on April 23, 2008)

At first, I thought Dale Earnhardt Jr. was kidding during Tuesday's teleconference. The guy isn't naive enough to be at a complete loss as to why, despite sitting third in the Cup standings, crew chief Tony Eury Jr. has been characterized as shakier than Barney Fife, right?
But he was dead serious.
"He has just as many critics as he does people that want to praise him. So I feel that it's happening more this year than it ever had before, and I really don't know," Junior said. "I can't put my finger on why he's taken just as much heat as he's taken this season."
Doesn't seem that hard to me, though. Although Junior has never intentionally tried to undercut Eury through their now-infamous radio banter, this season it was bound to have an effect like never before. At DEI, Junior Nation had plenty to stay angry about thanks to the lack of top-fight equipment. So the soap opera between the cousins the last two years was little more than an amusing sideshow.
But these days, Eury has no cover. Junior is never going to be blamed for much of anything because he is NASCAR's version of the Pope. The No. 88 is housed at the sport's Mecca, Hendrick Motorsports, so it wants for nothing in preparing to go to battle.
So everything is going to be Eury's fault, and I'm sure he was prepared for that. But if Junior is throwing up his hands, despondent that he can't do anything to make Eury's life easier, he needs to understand that he can do something about it.
It pains me to suggest that any driver make it a point to keep his opinions to himself while in the car. First of all, drivers provide a great deal of needed information. Secondly, when talking with those who are nervous about dipping their toes into NASCAR's waters, I sell it to a large degree on the level of "inside baseball" fans are privy to that are off-limits in other sports.
But for now, at least while Eury is getting established at Hendrick, if he makes a decision late in the race maybe Junior's input should begin and end with "Yep."
His thoughts on what should've happened can wait for the debrief, away from all of our ears. Because if Junior questions Eury at all for public consumption and this points-race drought continues, whether Junior likes it or not it will be used as ammunition to hammer a guy he loves like a brother.
Everybody has a breaking point. Toning down the back-and-forth could be a necessity for both personal bliss and professional success.
You already see hints that the relationship needs to evolve a little. Diehard Junior fans would scurry the 'Net for the Budweiser Race Report, largely because it contained some juicy communications between Eury and "Junebug."
In the Amp-National Guard recap, that is a thing of the past. And that's a good thing, because their snipping shouldn't be a focal point.
At least we know a breakup isn't in store, because Earnhardt and Eury tried divorce already and realized it wasn't for them. But when a couple chooses reconciliation, the key is to make the relationship better, not just settle for the status quo.
Let's not be so concerned that Junior using his helmet mic less equates to a sudden cramping of his style. He'll still have personality in spades, but he'll just use it at different times.
Like in Victory Lane.