I come to praise the Cougar, and not to bury him, as I would like to do with most Cougars. I think this article is totally unfair and overly harsh. Bledsoe had a phenomenal career, went to a couple Super Bowls and has one ring. He put up some pretty gaudy numbers and in a different era those numbers would have garnered him some Hall of Fame consideration. Just because he spoke honestly about enjoying the downtime of his vacation more than the rigors of the season doesn't mean he was a pussy. Other guys (Tiki Barber, I'm looking at you) chose to walk away from the game once they had the money salted away and not because their bodies had given everything they had to play this brutal fucking sport. Bledsoe kept going until nobody wanted him, and for that even a WAZZU alum gets a pass from me.
Sometimes the competetive fires burn out at 35 when you have a kid, a lot of money, and you want to do something else with your life. Also, none of us know the true condition of his back, knees, or other joints that tend to really hurt after a season. You also have to think there are some environments that would be perfect for him and if they weren't interested, who is to blame him for hanging them up and enjoying the lake.
Just because he spoke honestly about enjoying the downtime of his vacation more than the rigors of the season doesn't mean he was a pussy. Other guys (Tiki Barber, I'm looking at you) chose to walk away from the game once they had the money salted away and not because their bodies had given everything they had to play this brutal fucking sport. So where would you put how Barry Sanders retired in all of this?
So where would you put how Barry Sanders retired in all of this? Lions related burnout. Its amazing the whole team doesn't retire each and every year before season's end. The only entry on their exit interview: "Demoralization" or "Looked unfavorably upon by the Fates".
I can't blame him either. At the end of the day, football is just a job to these guys. Maybe not in thier rookie year, but by the time they are in their 30's it is. So he wanted to retire. So what? I know I would retire at 35 if I could. Also, I would like to point out that his comment was in whitefish review. Perhaps it was just an overly nice comment about how nice whitefish is and how much he loves the place.
Lions related burnout. No doubt at all Gradys. I was just wondering if that made him a "pussy" also, because he got his money and left early like Tiki did. At least the two of them will be able bodied enough to enjoy the money they earned. I say good for them, thanks, and you were fun to watch.
One thing that made Sanders leaving hard was that he left more abruptly than Barber did, giving the Lions basically no warning that he was going to retire.
He also did not have to go endure all of the media asking him question after question every game about his retiring. I wonder if Tiki would have done it the same way in hindsight.
Maybe, but it wouldn't help strengthen his relationship with Giants fans if he did. What Barry did made him look like a complete asshole, he was the only thing the Lions had and then he was gone. Combine that with the fact that he was not at all far from Payton's record and Lions fans missed out on what would have been the most exciting Lions football moment in at least the past decade.
What Barry did made him look like a complete asshole, he was the only thing the Lions had and then he was gone. Combine that with the fact that he was not at all far from Payton's record and Lions fans missed out on what would have been the most exciting Lions football moment in at least the past decade. Maybe, but if he had to choose between being able bodied for those he loved and people who enjoyed watching him work, he made the right choice, and people can think what they want.
