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Careers that ended too soon (1 Viewer)

F

finito

Footballguy
If you could choose one player at each offensive position to stay healthy for their entire career instead of having it cut short due to injury or any other issue that kept them off the field, who would they be?

Mine:

QB - At this moment, I may go with Peyton Manning until we hear something definitive about his return. One of my favorite players ever to watch, the game wouldn't quite be the same for me if he never plays another down.

RB - Bo Jackson (assuming this would be a lot of people's pick). Zero 1k seasons, yet many say he's the best RB they ever saw play. I would have loved to have watched him in his prime at the same time guys like Barry Sanders were tearing it up and see how Bo ended up career-wise against them. Potential runner-ups are Fred Taylor who missed significant time early in his career, and Terrell Davis who would probably be a HOFer if he'd played a few more season.

WR - Sterling Sharpe - I always thought he was the 2nd best WR in the league behind Jerry in the early 90's. Was an amazing player and it would have been terrific if he'd stayed with GB and Favre for a longer career.

TE - Kellen Winslow II - He's a good/very good TE and has had a solid career, but man, if those knees were fine, I really think we'd be looking at him in a different light. Shame his body gave him such trouble at a young age, as he could have been one of the best TEs of his era IMO.

 
'finito said:
TE - Kellen Winslow II - He's a good/very good TE and has had a solid career, but man, if those knees were fine, I really think we'd be looking at him in a different light. Shame his body gave him such trouble at a young age, as he could have been one of the best TEs of his era IMO.
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His motorcycle antics didn't help matters either.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
QB: Joe Roth. Also Steve Young.

RB: Bo Jackson, or Jahvid Best if he winds up hanging 'em up. Other good options are Jim Brown and Gale Sayers.

WR: Sterling Sharpe is the best I can think of.

 
Sean Taylor - who knows how great his career would have shaped up to be. He was certainly on track for a HOF career. Taylor was probably the only guy that could pull off covering guys like Graham and Gronkowski.

Derrick Thomas - Yeah, he played for a long time, but he still had it in his last season, and could have played for 5 more seasons. Closest thing to LT.

 
Not just as a Skins fan, but also as a football fan, Sean Taylor will always be my answer. Not to mention that he's one of the few true potential superstars who had a permanent end to not just his career, but also his life.

 
I'm only interested in finding out what Bo Jackson could've done had he played just football and had a long career...

in other sports...Len Bias (Celtics) and Don Rogers (Cleveland Browns, AFC defensive ROY in 1984), very odd that they both died within a week and a half of each other by way of cocaine...tragic on both sides. Rogers died the night before his wedding, Bias died shortly after the Celtics drafted him number two overall in the NBA draft.

 
I totally agree on the Sterling Sharpe WR call. If you look at his numbers during his best years they were right there with Jerry Rice. Its a shame his career was cut short.

 
A lot of the listed guys are before my time but I always thought it would have been great to see full, healthy careers out of these guys.

Chad Pennington

Charles Rogers

Priest Holmes

Kenechi Udeze

 
Sean Taylor. The only player I've ever seen who covered Randy Moss and T.O. one on one. Kid was an absolute freak.

 
Sayers. Even with the injury he did enough to be counted amongst the elite of all time. Imagine what he'd have done healthy.

 
A selfish homer pick, but I loved watching Domanick Davis (Williams) carry the Texans offense back in the Carr-Capers era. He had awesome hands for a runningback. Too bad his knee injury cut him down too soon.

 
'ConnSKINS26 said:
Not just as a Skins fan, but also as a football fan, Sean Taylor will always be my answer. Not to mention that he's one of the few true potential superstars who had a permanent end to not just his career, but also his life.
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Not a 'skins fan, but when this went down my son was just becoming football "aware" (8 or so). I remember telling him that Sean Taylor died & he got very somber & said sadly- "he was my 6th favorite player..." I knew he liked ST & I didn't know how he'd take it. It was tough. ST was a beast & it would have been great to see him continue. He was just coming into his own as a man. RIP
 
Wasn't Steve Young 38 when he retired? 14 seasons in the NFL, his career wasn't exactly cut short the way Terrell Davis had his snatched from him.

 
'identikit said:
'finito said:
TE - Kellen Winslow II - He's a good/very good TE and has had a solid career, but man, if those knees were fine, I really think we'd be looking at him in a different light. Shame his body gave him such trouble at a young age, as he could have been one of the best TEs of his era IMO.
Click to expand...
His motorcycle antics didn't help matters either.
Click to expand...
Really?Why doncha clue us in on what happened!
 
'infantsam said:
'identikit said:
'finito said:
TE - Kellen Winslow II - He's a good/very good TE and has had a solid career, but man, if those knees were fine, I really think we'd be looking at him in a different light. Shame his body gave him such trouble at a young age, as he could have been one of the best TEs of his era IMO.
Click to expand...
His motorcycle antics didn't help matters either.
Click to expand...
Really?Why doncha clue us in on what happened!
Click to expand...
He tore his ACL in the spring of 2005 joyriding on a motorcycle in a parking lot.
 
In the last few years alone...

QB - Chad Pennington

RB - Domanick Davis, Cadillac Williams

WR - Javon Walker, Darrell Jackson

Really enjoyed watching Domanick Davis play whilst he was around, one of the few RB's to put up 3000 combined yards in their 1st two seasons (other are Dickerson, Edge, CJ2K, Earl Campbell, ADP, Portis, Ottis Anderson, Sanders, Sims, Jamal Lewis, Terrell Davis, Martin, Faulk, Andrews, Cribbs, Forte, Thurman Thomas, Sayers & Herschel Walker).

 
Mark Bavaro

Al Toon

Mark Gastineau.. I know he wasn't injured when he abruptly,surprisingly, in the middle of the season retired,but it was a career that was destined for the HOF.

 
'identikit said:
'finito said:
TE - Kellen Winslow II - He's a good/very good TE and has had a solid career, but man, if those knees were fine, I really think we'd be looking at him in a different light. Shame his body gave him such trouble at a young age, as he could have been one of the best TEs of his era IMO.
Click to expand...
His motorcycle antics didn't help matters either.
Click to expand...
He's a soldierhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I82BPA5QAaQ
 
A lot of these guys still played a long time but had injuries that maybe made them less effective. A few guys who were just done too early.

I can think of a few RB off the top of my head.

Robert Edwards, NE

Billy Sims, Det

Joe Delaney, KC

 
RB- Robert Edwards NE : Blew his knee out in a flag football game at the Probowl after his rookie year. Came close to having to have the leg amputated.

 
For WR, I think Sharpe and Toon are the "best" answers, but a dark horse in that category to me is Germane Crowell. Put up 81-1338-7 in his second year and got injured the next year (thinking ACL, know it was the knee)...pulled up some injury reports in the following years and he was always out or PUP'ed with the knee. Not saying the guy would have been Toon or Sharpe-like, but he did his damage with Batch and Ferrotte at the helm.

 
RB - Billy Sims - tore his knee up and would of only missed 1 season now adays.

Billy had it all power, speed, a nasty streak.

Way too short of a career

 
'Stitch said:
Sean Taylor. The only player I've ever seen who covered Randy Moss and T.O. one on one. Kid was an absolute freak.
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I'm as big of a Taylor fan as anyone... see my pic!Moss tourched Taylor for a TD though. It was a remarkable catch by Moss in the endzone so I guess you could say he was "covered." None the less, Moss won the battle IMO. Taylor scared TO so badly in the games that TO got sever droppsie which was pretty hilarious.Taylor is easily my answer to this question although I think it doesn't reflect what the OP was intending. I think he wanted offensive players but I could be wrong. Taylor was the most talented S to ever take the field IMO. They dude could do it all and he was just begining to reflect that on the field when his life was tragically taken. He was 6'3", 225 lbs, could run like a CB, hand INCREDIBLE range and instincts (both on par with Ed Reed who is IMO the best S of this generation), was fearless, could hit likt a frieght train and had a passion for his craft. Basically I've always seen Taylor as a much bigger and faster version of Ed Reed, which is pretty terrifying. I felt that way even when he was playing at Miami. He was a terrible loss to all those who love football.
 
Bo Jackson. end thread/

and :IBTL:

No one had his combination of speed, acceleration and power in his short time he was healthy. There's not been one like him before or since that could do what he could do.

 
'Sweet Love said:
For WR, I think Sharpe and Toon are the "best" answers, but a dark horse in that category to me is Germane Crowell. Put up 81-1338-7 in his second year and got injured the next year (thinking ACL, know it was the knee)...pulled up some injury reports in the following years and he was always out or PUP'ed with the knee. Not saying the guy would have been Toon or Sharpe-like, but he did his damage with Batch and Ferrotte at the helm.
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Crowell is a great answer, I remember picking him up off waivers in the first dynasty league I ever played in, I thought I scored big time. He made some incredible catches in his brief career, I hung onto him for a season but he was just never able to overcome the knee injury...Shame, he had some talent.
 
Going really old school here but this guy is one of my favorite what ifs?

QB Cecil Isbell with the Green Bay Packers. He played just 5 seasons but stopped after 1942 (IIRC he retired when he didn't get a pay raise from the owner).

He was putting up passing numbers at the end that were remarkable and could have finished his career with guys like Waterfield and Luckman. His final 2 years he completed almost 57% and 55% of his passes, threw for over 2,000 yards in 1942, and threw a combined 39 TD vs. 25 INT including his final season with 24 TD vs 14 INT.

 
As a Steeler fan I'd say Terry Bradshaw. I still recall his last game when he tried to make an appearance in week 12 to rescue the floundering Cliff Stoudt led offense. He basically had a noodle arm and still threw 2 TD's on 8 passes and breathed life into the offense. Ultimately he could not finish the game and it ended up being his last game due to his elbow injury but if not for that injury I thought he had a few good years left.This of course does not compare to players like Bo Jackson and Sayers getting their careers cut short but if I could choose to extend somoene career it would have been my all-time favorite player, Bradshaw.

Here's another one and another Steeler. Gabriel "Senor Sack" Rivera. Who knows how good he could have been but the Steelers passed on Marino to take him in the middle of the first round. He was just starting to come on and I think he had 3 sacks in his first 7 games before being involved in a car accident which left him paralyzed. Can't tell you the pain of this for years watching Marino explode for the Dolphins while Rivera's career was over and the Steelers were led by the likes of Mark Malone,Stoudt, and David Woodley. Nothing Rivera could have done in his career would have made up for passing on Marino but if his career had not been cut short it sure could have eased the pain a little.

 
My inital thought was Barry Sanders.

Then I saw the name Bo Jackson and my answer became crystal clear.

Bo.

A lot of other quality names. Sharpe, Taylor, Sayers, Edwards, to name a few. But my answer is Bo and it's not close.

 
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