Relatively young players retiring (1 Viewer)

[Bri]

What do you think of this new trend?

I saw a few recently, Patrick Willis stood out to me.

I understand everything he said about guys not walking well and "paying the price" for a few more years in the league.

Doesn't this affect team building though for GMs? Are fans wishing him well but a little bitter they didn't get to see him play longer?

Well, what do you think of this new trend

 

[cstu]

I saw the Willis press conference and he wouldn't have retired unless he physically wasn't able to perform.

It's shame because he was the 2nd most dominating LB in their first 7 years after LT.

 

[LarryAllen'sJockstrap]

Willis retirement is really flying under the radar IMO. An all-time great at his position retiring at 30; just turned 30. LBs easily play well into their mid, and sometimes last 30s. This is about as close to a "Barry Sanders" type retirement.

 

[Bri]

http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/12/opinions/jones-nfl-early-retirement/

 

[Insein]

The Locker one surprised me just because you can make a living as a backup in this league. With his pedigree he could have rode that for years. Guess he was tired of the game though.

 

[The Man With No Name]

The recent ones made more than enough for themselves and their loved ones to live on for life. And it helps their long term health big time.

Edit: no problem with it in my eyes

 

[jurb26]

I'll never fault a guy who's already made millions for retiring early and saving a lifetime of pain on his body. It's unfortunate as a fan, but understandable as a person.

 

[mr roboto]

Any fan who gets upset at this needs to recheck their priorities.

 

[ghostguy123]

A fan that is bitter over this is just a bitter person that I wouldnt wanna be around.

 

[Ted Mullins]

Feels like this is inevitable as we hear more about just how hard football (especially NFL level) is on the body/mind. Agree with everyone else in here, don't blame these guys one bit.

 

[fruity pebbles]

With the high salaries I think we'll see more of this. Not everyone eats and sleeps football. Like any job, I'm sure there are guys who don't love it and are doing it for the money. Why not retire when you have enough to live on.

 

[Slider]

Any smart guy will stash his money, play a few years and go live life. Unless you're a QB playing until 37 seems stupid.

 

[King of the Jungle]

I agree. I think this will become the norm at some point. This will swing the pendulum to the weekly leagues side at some point.

 

[VolBoy]

The Locker one surprised me just because you can make a living as a backup in this league. With his pedigree he could have rode that for years. Guess he was tired of the game though.

 

[ghostguy123]

The Locker one surprised me just because you can make a living as a backup in this league. With his pedigree he could have rode that for years. Guess he was tired of the game though.

Unless Locker has something physical we don't know about, I could easily see him step away for a year or so and decide to come back.

 

[msommer]

No problem with retiring whenever they want. It's a job and for the job there is a salary. When the salary no longer makes up for the sacrifices, you have to walk away.

That said, it clearly changes things for GMs, as in an added complexity when you make contracts. I suppose you can reclaim part of the signing bonus, but that doesn't really matter with the spending floor, if you don't spend it you donate it to NFLPA. It might change the way contracts are written, to make them less front loaded, more roster bonuses etc to entice players to stay for the duration. We'll see, right now we may be making a mountain out of a molehill

 

[flysack]

You have to wonder if the Worilds and Locker retirements were influenced by CTE. It doesn't help that the NFL has been working like a terrified tobacco industry trying to cover it up.

What family wants to be a few millions richer but have their patriarch mumbling to himself in his 50s, unable to walk right, remember things, constantly depressed, and eventually kill themselves?

I wouldn't be surprised if this is the beginning of a trend. The Worilds retirement is the biggest one, IMO. Willis was great, but he had leg issues. Locker could have been just depressed about being a career backup (it may have been an ego thing). But Worilds was a legit starting LB who is only 27 years old - and he was a free agent, primed for a nice payday on a contending team.

 

[flysack]

If you haven't heard of Daryl Talley's story, it's a must read.

Former Bills LB in their heyday. Great guy. Strong family man. Successful businessman after football. But then all the health issues just destroyed him and his family.

 

[sports_fan]

I much prefer to see a guy leave on his own terms than be forced out due to age or injuries. Former players going broke or becoming depressed after retirement is such a sad trend. If he's willing to walk away you know he has been at least reasonably smart with his money otherwise he wouldn't retire. And if he's at a mental state where he's ready to go then he should do so.

 

[Bri]

You have to wonder if the Worilds and Locker retirements were influenced by CTE. It doesn't help that the NFL has been working like a terrified tobacco industry trying to cover it up.

What family wants to be a few millions richer but have their patriarch mumbling to himself in his 50s, unable to walk right, remember things, constantly depressed, and eventually kill themselves?

I don't think the NFL hides concussion info. I remember not too long ago Riddell and the NFL each paid millions to have some research and a study done and that was released to the public. It's been mentioned in that one class action lawsuit that involved many players. If you're going to put something like that out there that you know will get you sued, but for the betterment of the players and league...I give them kudos on that move. That was a stand-up guy kind of thing. I have read some player biographies that are disturbing. I can understand your sentiment. Goodell has done some things I couldn't agree with less, but I don't think we, fans, have ever been as informed about concussions as when he was commish. Riddell's new helmet (since, I believe they went with a different company) also involved a lot of research and $ and an HBO special about them making it and studying "best practices." An independent doctor must clear a player seems to be an excellent step up. I've noticed people here annoyed like "check him out already, let us know if he's playing" so I'm not getting the whole backdoor illegally let a player play type vibe. There MAY be some info hidden. What us fans never understand is that there's actually HIPAA laws protecting their rights yet they announce injuries and such-there are things they legally can't tell us. Anywho, this is not fixed. I don't believe it will ever be where players don't get concussions. I do think under Roger, they've put a good effort toward improving this. Were they wrong in the past where Goodell's regime had to agree to pay out a ton of money (500mil?) in that retired player lawsuit-YES, but that's not on Roger. He wasn't commish when they played and that lawsuit wasn't in court long and they got a lot of $. This is not an issue where I blame Goodell.

 

[12punch]

You have to wonder if the Worilds and Locker retirements were influenced by CTE.

I think worilds is def cte

Free agent edge rusher Jason Worilds says he's retiring after five years in the NFL.
Worilds reportedly informed the Steelers on Tuesday night that he wants to devote his time "working for my religion."

 

[Bri]

I wouldn't be surprised if this is the beginning of a trend. The Worilds retirement is the biggest one, IMO. Willis was great, but he had leg issues. Locker could have been just depressed about being a career backup (it may have been an ego thing). But Worilds was a legit starting LB who is only 27 years old - and he was a free agent, primed for a nice payday on a contending team.

Worilds was not going to be re-signed and was strongly rumored to join Lebeau in TEN.

I guess that playing for PIT was a great experience and the notion of playing for a losing team and moving his family was involved in his thoughts.

I do think, currently, if a player plays for the Pats or Seahawks or....they could totally think "I had a good run" and see it as a law of averages playing for a loser eventually.

Elvis Grbac was a decent QB many years ago. He was set to make a bunch of money in free agency, but decided to retire roughly at age 30. I can think of many old guys (but not many young ones) that when faced with the thought of free agency, retired instead. There was once an exception made to salaries of veterans that had played for a team for X number of years. I don't recall the specifics, but it was a rule meant to help teams keep their long time veterans.IIRC if they paid a ten year vet the veteran minimum it was nothing against the cap and if they paid more, they could deduct whatever the vet minimum was from their cap number-so if the vet minimum was 1 mil and he made 3.5 mil, only 2.5 went against the cap. I'm real fuzzy on this. Once upon a time it was so guys like Reggie White wouldn't leave (which he did) but instead wound up being a salary cap shell game not necessarily in the spirit of the rule. I don't think it exists anymore

 

[flysack]

You have to wonder if the Worilds and Locker retirements were influenced by CTE. It doesn't help that the NFL has been working like a terrified tobacco industry trying to cover it up.

What family wants to be a few millions richer but have their patriarch mumbling to himself in his 50s, unable to walk right, remember things, constantly depressed, and eventually kill themselves?

I don't think the NFL hides concussion info. I remember not too long ago Riddell and the NFL each paid millions to have some research and a study done and that was released to the public. It's been mentioned in that one class action lawsuit that involved many players. If you're going to put something like that out there that you know will get you sued, but for the betterment of the players and league...I give them kudos on that move. That was a stand-up guy kind of thing. I have read some player biographies that are disturbing. I can understand your sentiment. Goodell has done some things I couldn't agree with less, but I don't think we, fans, have ever been as informed about concussions as when he was commish. Riddell's new helmet (since, I believe they went with a different company) also involved a lot of research and $ and an HBO special about them making it and studying "best practices." An independent doctor must clear a player seems to be an excellent step up. I've noticed people here annoyed like "check him out already, let us know if he's playing" so I'm not getting the whole backdoor illegally let a player play type vibe. There MAY be some info hidden. What us fans never understand is that there's actually HIPAA laws protecting their rights yet they announce injuries and such-there are things they legally can't tell us. Anywho, this is not fixed. I don't believe it will ever be where players don't get concussions. I do think under Roger, they've put a good effort toward improving this. Were they wrong in the past where Goodell's regime had to agree to pay out a ton of money (500mil?) in that retired player lawsuit-YES, but that's not on Roger. He wasn't commish when they played and that lawsuit wasn't in court long and they got a lot of $. This is not an issue where I blame Goodell.

Roger, is that you?

Seriously - the NFL has been fighting Dr. McKee's work at Boston U for years now, trying everything it could to discredit her and her findings.

http://www.bu.edu/cte/category/dr-mckee/

 

[Bri]

You have to wonder if the Worilds and Locker retirements were influenced by CTE. It doesn't help that the NFL has been working like a terrified tobacco industry trying to cover it up.

What family wants to be a few millions richer but have their patriarch mumbling to himself in his 50s, unable to walk right, remember things, constantly depressed, and eventually kill themselves?

I don't think the NFL hides concussion info. I remember not too long ago Riddell and the NFL each paid millions to have some research and a study done and that was released to the public. It's been mentioned in that one class action lawsuit that involved many players. If you're going to put something like that out there that you know will get you sued, but for the betterment of the players and league...I give them kudos on that move. That was a stand-up guy kind of thing. I have read some player biographies that are disturbing. I can understand your sentiment. Goodell has done some things I couldn't agree with less, but I don't think we, fans, have ever been as informed about concussions as when he was commish. Riddell's new helmet (since, I believe they went with a different company) also involved a lot of research and $ and an HBO special about them making it and studying "best practices." An independent doctor must clear a player seems to be an excellent step up. I've noticed people here annoyed like "check him out already, let us know if he's playing" so I'm not getting the whole backdoor illegally let a player play type vibe. There MAY be some info hidden. What us fans never understand is that there's actually HIPAA laws protecting their rights yet they announce injuries and such-there are things they legally can't tell us. Anywho, this is not fixed. I don't believe it will ever be where players don't get concussions. I do think under Roger, they've put a good effort toward improving this. Were they wrong in the past where Goodell's regime had to agree to pay out a ton of money (500mil?) in that retired player lawsuit-YES, but that's not on Roger. He wasn't commish when they played and that lawsuit wasn't in court long and they got a lot of $. This is not an issue where I blame Goodell.

Roger, is that you?

Seriously - the NFL has been fighting Dr. McKee's work at Boston U for years now, trying everything it could to discredit her and her findings.

http://www.bu.edu/cte/category/dr-mckee/

You say they're hiding but that you claim they're fighting some of her zillion studies. I don't have the time to read through that many studies but...how is that hiding?

 

[Sabertooth]

league is going to be legislated out of existence at some point.

 

[jurb26]

league is going to be legislated out of existence at some point.

Not a chance. Our government loves nothing as much as money and the NFL rakes it in. Rules will continue to change but as long as the NFL is making money they will be around.

 

[General Tso]

Wow - Chris Borland retires. 24 years old. Fears of brain injury. And only two diagnosed concussions.

Football is in BIG trouble folks.

 

[Slapdash]

The ####ty search function prevented me from finding this so I started a topic for him.

This is just one of the more shocking NFL stories I have seen, wow.

 

[Bri]

Wow - Chris Borland retires. 24 years old. Fears of brain injury. And only two diagnosed concussions.

Football is in BIG trouble folks.

http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/12496480/san-francisco-49ers-linebacker-chris-borland-retires-head-injury-concerns

That's so odd because his injuries were in 8th grade and high school. It's a different spin to discuss than I just got hurt and am worried of future problems

 

[General Tso]

I think we can officially remove "relatively" from the title.

 

[ConnSKINS26]

Football is still the biggest in some of the poorest areas of the country. For a ton of kids, football will be the only option to possibly be wealthy one day. Some of these kids will find other sports, but many won't.

 

[JonB86]

league is going to be legislated out of existence at some point.

Not a chance. Our government loves nothing as much as money and the NFL rakes it in. Rules will continue to change but as long as the NFL is making money they will be around.

Boxing shows no signs of disappearing, I think eventually it will just be you know the risks, sign this waiver giving you no rights or you can't play football. As in everything money talks!

 

[flysack]

Wow - Chris Borland retires. 24 years old. Fears of brain injury. And only two diagnosed concussions.

Football is in BIG trouble folks.

I was just coming to post this.

Yep. I told you.

http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/12496480/san-francisco-49ers-linebacker-chris-borland-retires-head-injury-concerns

This isn't the worst of it. What I see happening is a decline in onfield talent as more and more parents (and kids themselves) funnel themselves toward baseball and basketball at an early age. You can make just as much money (if not more) without the insane long-term threats to your health.

 

[JaxBill]

FYP

Wow - Chris Borland retires. 24 years old. Fears of brain injury. And only two diagnosed concussions.

Football is in BIG trouble folks.

I was just coming to post this.

Yep. I told you.

http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/12496480/san-francisco-49ers-linebacker-chris-borland-retires-head-injury-concerns

This isn't the worst of it. What I see happening is a decline in onfield talent as more and more parents (and kids themselves) funnel themselves toward soccer and basketball at an early age. You can make just as much money (if not more) without the insane long-term threats to your health.

 

[flysack]

Don't kid yourself. Soccer is gaining popularity in the U.S., and good for it, but baseball still rules and is internationally popular as well.

 

[RUSF18]

Not to mention that the ball is starting to get rolling on brain trauma suffered by kids playing soccer.

 

[VarsityBlues123]

Any fan who gets upset at this needs to recheck their priorities.

do they? as a fan, yes some are entitled to be upset about a 3rd round pick retiring out of fear of a game he signed up for. while willis retired due to actually health concerns he suffered and played many seasons to sustain injury, according to borland he is retiring out of fear after one year pure fear of something he is scared of. he played for many years including high school and college now he is scared? i guess i need to get my priorities straight and before the people who say easy for me to say as a person who dont play football and i couldnt take a hit and all that stuff, i probably couldnt but i didnt sign up to play this game and sell my self to an employer/team at the combine and in meetings and lie and tell them i am a dedicated person the team should waste a pick on. if the game of football is not for him anymore that is his choice but to tell people who are upset about it to get their priorities straight is just an opinion i dont share.

 

[mr roboto]

Any fan who gets upset at this needs to recheck their priorities.

do they? as a fan, yes some are entitled to be upset about a 3rd round pick retiring out of fear of a game he signed up for. while willis retired due to actually health concerns he suffered and played many seasons to sustain injury, according to borland he is retiring out of fear after one year pure fear of something he is scared of. he played for many years including high school and college now he is scared? i guess i need to get my priorities straight and before the people who say easy for me to say as a person who dont play football and i couldnt take a hit and all that stuff, i probably couldnt but i didnt sign up to play this game and sell my self to an employer/team at the combine and in meetings and lie and tell them i am a dedicated person the team should waste a pick on. if the game of football is not for him anymore that is his choice but to tell people who are upset about it to get their priorities straight is just an opinion i dont share.

Really? This isn't that important. They aren't defending your rights in war. They aren't teaching your kids. They aren't saving people's lives. They are actually doing almost nothing for you except entertaining you. If you are personally impacted by a guy retiring before you think he should you really do need to check your priorities. Employment is a contract. If you left your job for what you perceived a good personal reason would your customers have a right to be personally offended by that?

 

[roadkill1292]

Any fan who gets upset at this needs to recheck their priorities.

do they? as a fan, yes some are entitled to be upset about a 3rd round pick retiring out of fear of a game he signed up for. while willis retired due to actually health concerns he suffered and played many seasons to sustain injury, according to borland he is retiring out of fear after one year pure fear of something he is scared of. he played for many years including high school and college now he is scared? i guess i need to get my priorities straight and before the people who say easy for me to say as a person who dont play football and i couldnt take a hit and all that stuff, i probably couldnt but i didnt sign up to play this game and sell my self to an employer/team at the combine and in meetings and lie and tell them i am a dedicated person the team should waste a pick on. if the game of football is not for him anymore that is his choice but to tell people who are upset about it to get their priorities straight is just an opinion i dont share.

Is there any evidence that he planned this before he "sold" himself to a team?

If you're complaining about a guy changing careers and leaving your favorite company, your priorities are definitely not straight.

 

[Ditkaless Wonders]

league is going to be legislated out of existence at some point.

Incongruent to me with the rise in the popularity of MMA.

 

[Shutout]

Wow - Chris Borland retires. 24 years old. Fears of brain injury. And only two diagnosed concussions.

Football is in BIG trouble folks.

I was just coming to post this.

Yep. I told you.

http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/12496480/san-francisco-49ers-linebacker-chris-borland-retires-head-injury-concerns

This isn't the worst of it. What I see happening is a decline in onfield talent as more and more parents (and kids themselves) funnel themselves toward baseball and basketball at an early age. You can make just as much money (if not more) without the insane long-term threats to your health.

Agree. I love football and never watch baseball but if I had a son with talent, I'd tell him to pursue baseball for financial, health, and longevity reasons.

 

[kface]

Any fan who gets upset at this needs to recheck their priorities.

do they? as a fan, yes some are entitled to be upset about a 3rd round pick retiring out of fear of a game he signed up for. while willis retired due to actually health concerns he suffered and played many seasons to sustain injury, according to borland he is retiring out of fear after one year pure fear of something he is scared of. he played for many years including high school and college now he is scared? i guess i need to get my priorities straight and before the people who say easy for me to say as a person who dont play football and i couldnt take a hit and all that stuff, i probably couldnt but i didnt sign up to play this game and sell my self to an employer/team at the combine and in meetings and lie and tell them i am a dedicated person the team should waste a pick on. if the game of football is not for him anymore that is his choice but to tell people who are upset about it to get their priorities straight is just an opinion i dont share.

Is there any evidence that he planned this before he "sold" himself to a team?

If you're complaining about a guy changing careers and leaving your favorite company, your priorities are definitely not straight.

Even if he planned it before who cares. He gets paid x million per year to play football and that's what he did. His business. Just like the game is 'just a business' so should the players approach to it.

And yes people need to get their priorities straight. It's a game...

 

[pantherclub]

Both of my boys want to play football. There is no way in hades that will ever happen. I played through HS and still have pain in my back from some of the hits I took. My older brother played, tore his ACL and is a mess right now at 44. Couple the random injury aspect with the concussion problems that are rising up and there is no effing way.

Risk is too great. Good for these young players recognizing the risk.

 

[VarsityBlues123]

Any fan who gets upset at this needs to recheck their priorities.

do they? as a fan, yes some are entitled to be upset about a 3rd round pick retiring out of fear of a game he signed up for. while willis retired due to actually health concerns he suffered and played many seasons to sustain injury, according to borland he is retiring out of fear after one year pure fear of something he is scared of. he played for many years including high school and college now he is scared? i guess i need to get my priorities straight and before the people who say easy for me to say as a person who dont play football and i couldnt take a hit and all that stuff, i probably couldnt but i didnt sign up to play this game and sell my self to an employer/team at the combine and in meetings and lie and tell them i am a dedicated person the team should waste a pick on. if the game of football is not for him anymore that is his choice but to tell people who are upset about it to get their priorities straight is just an opinion i dont share.

Really? This isn't that important. They aren't defending your rights in war. They aren't teaching your kids. They aren't saving people's lives. They are actually doing almost nothing for you except entertaining you. If you are personally impacted by a guy retiring before you think he should you really do need to check your priorities. Employment is a contract. If you left your job for what you perceived a good personal reason would your customers have a right to be personally offended by that?

why are you so offended someone would be upset by a player retiring

Any fan who gets upset at this needs to recheck their priorities.

do they? as a fan, yes some are entitled to be upset about a 3rd round pick retiring out of fear of a game he signed up for. while willis retired due to actually health concerns he suffered and played many seasons to sustain injury, according to borland he is retiring out of fear after one year pure fear of something he is scared of. he played for many years including high school and college now he is scared? i guess i need to get my priorities straight and before the people who say easy for me to say as a person who dont play football and i couldnt take a hit and all that stuff, i probably couldnt but i didnt sign up to play this game and sell my self to an employer/team at the combine and in meetings and lie and tell them i am a dedicated person the team should waste a pick on. if the game of football is not for him anymore that is his choice but to tell people who are upset about it to get their priorities straight is just an opinion i dont share.

Is there any evidence that he planned this before he "sold" himself to a team?

If you're complaining about a guy changing careers and leaving your favorite company, your priorities are definitely not straight.

i didnt know my priorities had to align with the masses on a website and i didnt know because i take concern with football players retiring after one year out of fear or because they are scared has to do with my personal priorities. I may get hurt driving a car, i should quit doing that. i should stop drinking soda out of fear of being a diabetic, i should stop eating red meat out of fear of having a heart attack. people even smoke cigarettes because they enjoy it regardless of risks. should they get their priories straight? because i eat meat, drink soda and drive a car which are all risky, should i get my priorities straight? there is a word for people who quit things because they are scared or have fear.

 

[VarsityBlues123]

Both of my boys want to play football. There is no way in hades that will ever happen. I played through HS and still have pain in my back from some of the hits I took. My older brother played, tore his ACL and is a mess right now at 44. Couple the random injury aspect with the concussion problems that are rising up and there is no effing way.

Risk is too great. Good for these young players recognizing the risk.

but you watch the game every sunday for your own personal enjoyment and gain in a fantasy football world? hypocritical isnt it?

 

[mr roboto]

 

[pantherclub]

Both of my boys want to play football. There is no way in hades that will ever happen. I played through HS and still have pain in my back from some of the hits I took. My older brother played, tore his ACL and is a mess right now at 44. Couple the random injury aspect with the concussion problems that are rising up and there is no effing way.

Risk is too great. Good for these young players recognizing the risk.

but you watch the game every sunday for your own personal enjoyment and gain in a fantasy football world? hypocritical isnt it?

I dont think hypocritical is the word you are looking for here

 

[kface]

Any fan who gets upset at this needs to recheck their priorities.

do they? as a fan, yes some are entitled to be upset about a 3rd round pick retiring out of fear of a game he signed up for. while willis retired due to actually health concerns he suffered and played many seasons to sustain injury, according to borland he is retiring out of fear after one year pure fear of something he is scared of. he played for many years including high school and college now he is scared? i guess i need to get my priorities straight and before the people who say easy for me to say as a person who dont play football and i couldnt take a hit and all that stuff, i probably couldnt but i didnt sign up to play this game and sell my self to an employer/team at the combine and in meetings and lie and tell them i am a dedicated person the team should waste a pick on. if the game of football is not for him anymore that is his choice but to tell people who are upset about it to get their priorities straight is just an opinion i dont share.

Really? This isn't that important. They aren't defending your rights in war. They aren't teaching your kids. They aren't saving people's lives. They are actually doing almost nothing for you except entertaining you. If you are personally impacted by a guy retiring before you think he should you really do need to check your priorities. Employment is a contract. If you left your job for what you perceived a good personal reason would your customers have a right to be personally offended by that?

why are you so offended someone would be upset by a player retiring

Any fan who gets upset at this needs to recheck their priorities.

do they? as a fan, yes some are entitled to be upset about a 3rd round pick retiring out of fear of a game he signed up for. while willis retired due to actually health concerns he suffered and played many seasons to sustain injury, according to borland he is retiring out of fear after one year pure fear of something he is scared of. he played for many years including high school and college now he is scared? i guess i need to get my priorities straight and before the people who say easy for me to say as a person who dont play football and i couldnt take a hit and all that stuff, i probably couldnt but i didnt sign up to play this game and sell my self to an employer/team at the combine and in meetings and lie and tell them i am a dedicated person the team should waste a pick on. if the game of football is not for him anymore that is his choice but to tell people who are upset about it to get their priorities straight is just an opinion i dont share.

Is there any evidence that he planned this before he "sold" himself to a team?

If you're complaining about a guy changing careers and leaving your favorite company, your priorities are definitely not straight.

i didnt know my priorities had to align with the masses on a website and i didnt know because i take concern with football players retiring after one year out of fear or because they are scared has to do with my personal priorities. I may get hurt driving a car, i should quit doing that. i should stop drinking soda out of fear of being a diabetic, i should stop eating red meat out of fear of having a heart attack. people even smoke cigarettes because they enjoy it regardless of risks. should they get their priories straight? because i eat meat, drink soda and drive a car which are all risky, should i get my priorities straight? there is a word for people who quit things because they are scared or have fear.

Yes, they are called smart

People that smoke are stupid.

 

[kface]

Both of my boys want to play football. There is no way in hades that will ever happen. I played through HS and still have pain in my back from some of the hits I took. My older brother played, tore his ACL and is a mess right now at 44. Couple the random injury aspect with the concussion problems that are rising up and there is no effing way.

Risk is too great. Good for these young players recognizing the risk.

but you watch the game every sunday for your own personal enjoyment and gain in a fantasy football world? hypocritical isnt it?

Why do you keep saying that? If others want to take that risk it is their choice. It's smart for someone to stand up and say you know what, the risk isn't for me. Others won't make that decision and we will watch them play. Even if the average nfl career turned out to be 3 years everyone would still watch them play. And because most of us recognize football for what it is...a game we don't care what players choose to retire or not retire.

 

[Da Guru]

The Locker one surprised me just because you can make a living as a backup in this league. With his pedigree he could have rode that for years. Guess he was tired of the game though.

Many "backup" QB are pulling in between 2-3 million a season. Pretty good living as well and getting a NFL pension. Many backups hang around for 8-10 years. Guys like Shawn Hill, Drew Stanton. Dan Orvlovsky, Matt Cassell, have been around forever.