So here's what I'm thinking. I may just forego NFL games this year because I'm fed up with the whining. In 20 years on the PD I never made half what the lowliest bench warmer made. Maybe my chances of suffering a career ending knee injury weren't as great but one bullet could have turned out the lights for good. So their whining about not having longevity as an excuse for holding out or maybe not playing to their full potential leaves me cold. And the owners? I can't say. At least they were smart enough to diversify. All the players have agents and legal teams and it seems that none of them play because they love the game, they do it for the money. That, to me, takes a lot of the charm out of watching.
I remember in the early days of the AFL seeing a film about the Kansas City Chiefs. Lenny Dawson sold insurance in the off season. Deacon Jones, one of the Fearsome Foursome of the Los Angeles Rams played almost an entire game with a thumb that was so badly dislocated that his teammates could see the joint through the laceration in his hand. The trainer had to yank the thumb back into place every couple of plays. Gale Sayers tore up a knee so bad that even after surgery most people thought he was history. He came back the following year to lead the NFL in rushing. And that was way before the days of arthroscopic surgery. Now these guys get a sniffle and they're on the bench for 2 days so as not to adversely affect their yards per carry before the next contract negotiation.
Well, thanks boys and girls for letting me vent. I feel better.
