ESPN suspends commentator over RGIII comments

ESPN commentator Rob Parker has been suspended indefinitely as a result of disparaging racial comments he made about Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III on Thursday.

"Following yesterday's comments Rob Parker has been suspended until further notice. We are conducting a full review," ESPN spokesman Mike Soltys said.

Parker said of Griffin on ESPN2's First Take: "Is he a brother, or is he a cornball brother? ... He's not real. OK, he's black, he kind of does the thing, but he's not really down with the cause. He's not one of us. He's kind of black, but he's not really, like, the guy you want to hang out with because he's off to something else."

Robert Griffin II, Griffin's father, told USA TODAY Sports on Thursday, "I wouldn't say it's racism. I would just say some people put things out there about people so they can stir things up."

Parker, 48, has worked as a reporter and columnist for newspapers such as Newsday, the Detroit News and the Cincinnati Enquirer. According to his web site, he started at ESPN in 2003.

Parker gained notoriety in 2008 when, while he was a Detroit News columnist, he asked then-Lions coach Rod Marinelli about his daughter being married to the team's defensive coordinator. Parker asked Marinelli, whose team eventually finished the season winless, "Do you wish your daughter would have married a better defensive coordinator?"

Parker later resigned from the paper and apologized to Marinelli, who said he didn't accept the apology.