WEBVTT - Vol. 15: D'Qwell Jackson 0:00:00.240 --> 0:00:04.080 Charges. That's created by Portalais and Control Media. It's produced 0:00:04.080 --> 0:00:10.760 by dB Podcasts in association with I Heart Radio. This 0:00:10.880 --> 0:00:13.960 time a former Sons player who you might remember as 0:00:14.040 --> 0:00:16.320 t Rex. More video in just a moment, but this 0:00:16.480 --> 0:00:18.840 is Rex Chapman's mug Shaun and we are learning a 0:00:18.920 --> 0:00:22.119 lot more about the charge ups and Chargeman, tell me 0:00:22.120 --> 0:00:25.520 about the p D suspension. You suspended four games. Listen. 0:00:25.560 --> 0:00:27.200 I'm not here to make an excuse for it. But 0:00:27.320 --> 0:00:29.280 the next year in training camp they tested me. I 0:00:29.280 --> 0:00:33.080 get popped and it's like he rolls the window down 0:00:34.000 --> 0:00:37.760 and as the windows rolling down, he's rapping. He's reaching 0:00:37.800 --> 0:00:40.800 for his glove box. There's no way of fixing it. 0:00:40.800 --> 0:00:44.280 It's like once you lose it, you can't get it back. 0:00:48.640 --> 0:00:52.400 Welcome back to Charges. I'm your host Rex Chapman. Today 0:00:52.400 --> 0:00:55.120 on the show, we have to quell Jackson, a man 0:00:55.200 --> 0:00:58.200 who made himself into a great pro He was a 0:00:58.280 --> 0:01:01.160 legend in college as a two time All American and 0:01:01.240 --> 0:01:04.440 a stand out in the brutal game of professional football, 0:01:04.560 --> 0:01:07.760 a captain and someone who I think most guys would 0:01:07.800 --> 0:01:11.400 want with them in the trenches, and then almost out 0:01:11.400 --> 0:01:14.839 of nowhere, a few events happened that we'll talk about, 0:01:15.480 --> 0:01:18.240 and Diquell was out of the NFL and looking around 0:01:18.360 --> 0:01:22.080 wondering just what happened and what is happening to him 0:01:22.120 --> 0:01:34.160 and his brain? This his charges Quell, thanks so much 0:01:34.160 --> 0:01:36.639 for being here and welcome to the show Man, Rex, 0:01:36.680 --> 0:01:38.920 thanks for having me. I can't say it enough. This 0:01:39.000 --> 0:01:41.959 is a topic that needs to be discussed and I'm 0:01:42.000 --> 0:01:45.120 happy you've created that platform to do so. Well. You know, 0:01:45.640 --> 0:01:48.000 I've wanted to talk to a football player for some 0:01:48.120 --> 0:01:52.080 time now. Um, obviously I played college basketball. Many of 0:01:52.120 --> 0:01:54.840 my friends were played on the on the football team. 0:01:54.880 --> 0:01:57.560 You know, we lifted in the same facility back then. 0:01:57.640 --> 0:01:59.640 They would you know, come up and poke me, my 0:01:59.720 --> 0:02:03.080 little chick. And it definitely had At Maryland, we definitely 0:02:03.600 --> 0:02:06.200 was really close with the basketball team as well, and 0:02:06.760 --> 0:02:08.919 uh we were playing the summer and things like that. 0:02:09.040 --> 0:02:11.480 But uh, you know it was fun that those days 0:02:11.520 --> 0:02:17.040 were fun. Yeah, to that point though, guys in college 0:02:17.600 --> 0:02:22.480 you know, not basketball players, but college football players. If 0:02:22.480 --> 0:02:25.320 you play four or five years of college football and 0:02:25.320 --> 0:02:28.680 you're getting the same kind of brain trauma over and 0:02:28.720 --> 0:02:31.560 over and over, right, I mean, at some point, isn't 0:02:31.600 --> 0:02:34.400 that something that has to be addressed with the n 0:02:34.480 --> 0:02:38.880 C Double A. And because I mean, you guys, it's 0:02:38.919 --> 0:02:41.160 one thing to get out of college and not have 0:02:41.480 --> 0:02:45.120 you know, insurance and retirement and stuff when you played basketball, 0:02:45.360 --> 0:02:47.880 ran track or it's just a different sport. You know, 0:02:47.960 --> 0:02:51.480 your sport is very, very different, and it's just hard 0:02:51.520 --> 0:02:53.720 for me to you know, not everybody gets to go 0:02:53.760 --> 0:02:56.600 on and play like yourself. So that I'm just saying, 0:02:56.639 --> 0:02:58.520 I think there's some stuff that that's got to be 0:02:58.560 --> 0:03:01.120 done at some point. Yeah, no, I agree, because I 0:03:01.400 --> 0:03:05.799 remember when. I don't specifically remember the year, but Corey 0:03:05.919 --> 0:03:08.240 Stringer is a name that stands out to me. He 0:03:08.320 --> 0:03:11.080 played for the Minnesota Vikings. He was a guy who 0:03:11.360 --> 0:03:15.000 died from heat heat exhaustion in the NFL, And immediately 0:03:15.800 --> 0:03:18.880 the NFL adopted this rule where they were over hire 0:03:19.000 --> 0:03:22.880 people just to have water buckets and ice towels to 0:03:22.960 --> 0:03:27.720 make sure no one overheated and also to make sure, 0:03:28.280 --> 0:03:32.840 you know, guys were getting the proper properly hydrated, getting fluids. 0:03:32.840 --> 0:03:35.160 And it was just a huge shift. And now you 0:03:35.200 --> 0:03:38.600 talk about the collegiate game with the young, you know, 0:03:38.640 --> 0:03:42.480 college athletes playing football, well, in the NFL, they have 0:03:42.720 --> 0:03:46.280 this thing called what is it They take care of 0:03:46.360 --> 0:03:48.840 their players at a different rate than that college man. 0:03:48.840 --> 0:03:51.040 When I was in college, there was no rules. There 0:03:51.080 --> 0:03:53.440 was no rules to say you can't hit this many times. 0:03:53.720 --> 0:03:55.560 We can, we can play as long as we want. 0:03:56.000 --> 0:03:58.400 And you know, a lot of these guys are being 0:03:58.680 --> 0:04:02.640 let go and that having issues five, six, seven, eight, 0:04:02.720 --> 0:04:07.080 nineteen years later that never manifested at such a young age. 0:04:07.240 --> 0:04:10.800 You know, I've had buddies who played the game, and 0:04:11.160 --> 0:04:13.640 you know, whether they were twenty two or twenty five, 0:04:13.680 --> 0:04:15.680 a lot of these issues don't manifest into you a 0:04:15.680 --> 0:04:17.919 lot a lot older. And at that point, if you 0:04:17.960 --> 0:04:20.920 hadn't played in the NFL and you hadn't made an 0:04:20.920 --> 0:04:23.000 exorbitant amount of money, you can take care of yourself 0:04:23.040 --> 0:04:25.000 from a health standpoint. But there's a lot of guys 0:04:25.000 --> 0:04:28.360 from the collegiate game that are struggling right now. And 0:04:28.400 --> 0:04:31.479 I think the NFL has to get with the n 0:04:31.520 --> 0:04:34.160 C double A to bridge that gap between you know, 0:04:34.200 --> 0:04:36.279 what's happening in the NFL and what's happening at the 0:04:36.279 --> 0:04:39.599 collegiate level. For sure, I'm with you. Uh, let's start here, 0:04:39.680 --> 0:04:42.040 let's go back with the love of the game. You know, 0:04:42.080 --> 0:04:43.960 tell me this where'd you grow up and how did 0:04:44.040 --> 0:04:46.719 football enter your life? Yeah? Yeah, So I'm from a 0:04:46.839 --> 0:04:50.360 small city in Florida called Largo, And I tell you what, 0:04:50.400 --> 0:04:53.039 it's so small. My mother used to say, you better 0:04:53.080 --> 0:04:55.240 tell me who you're crushing on because it could be 0:04:55.279 --> 0:04:59.120 your cousin. That's how that that that's how small the 0:04:59.200 --> 0:05:02.880 community was, you know, and and a couple of times 0:05:02.880 --> 0:05:08.159 she was right. You know, I'm from Kentucky, a right. So, 0:05:08.160 --> 0:05:10.640 so my my love for football started at a very 0:05:10.680 --> 0:05:14.039 young age. Rex, Like I was that kid. I grew 0:05:14.120 --> 0:05:16.440 up in Florida, so Tampa Bay the Bucks were my 0:05:16.520 --> 0:05:19.400 favorite team, and I used to I remember back in 0:05:19.440 --> 0:05:22.680 the day they had these like plastic uniforms with plastic 0:05:22.760 --> 0:05:25.880 helmet and show the pass and I would remember sleeping 0:05:25.920 --> 0:05:27.440 in it to the point I wanted to go to 0:05:27.520 --> 0:05:30.479 school in this football uniform. So my love for the 0:05:30.560 --> 0:05:33.880 game started when I was probably like five years old. 0:05:34.200 --> 0:05:37.320 And I started playing organized football when I was seven 0:05:37.720 --> 0:05:41.239 and I never missed a year. And so, uh, my uncle, 0:05:41.480 --> 0:05:44.080 my uncle Charles, he was a huge influence in my life. 0:05:44.320 --> 0:05:47.520 He was a military guy. So the way I would 0:05:47.520 --> 0:05:49.960 get disciplined when I was younger was if I didn't 0:05:50.000 --> 0:05:52.560 take out the trash or do dishes or you know, 0:05:52.720 --> 0:05:55.400 messed up in school for whatever reason. He would take 0:05:55.440 --> 0:05:58.359 me out and we called his run the Kumba. He 0:05:58.400 --> 0:06:01.359 would find the biggest field possibly could fine and we 0:06:01.400 --> 0:06:04.240 would run around this field. In every corner. We would 0:06:04.240 --> 0:06:07.040 either do sit ups or push ups or jumping jack's. 0:06:07.400 --> 0:06:10.480 He would work my ass out, you hear me. It's 0:06:10.560 --> 0:06:14.000 basically it's coaching. You were getting coached from a really 0:06:14.160 --> 0:06:17.480 young age because we're all punished by doing more right 0:06:18.240 --> 0:06:22.360 in sports. Right. So so when I started playing organized football, 0:06:22.440 --> 0:06:25.920 it was it became easy, you know, And I just 0:06:26.080 --> 0:06:27.800 I loved the game so much. And I was a 0:06:27.880 --> 0:06:30.600 part of that old culture that we call it the 0:06:31.560 --> 0:06:33.000 what do you call it? I forget? This is a 0:06:33.120 --> 0:06:35.000 drill where two guys you lay on your back and 0:06:35.040 --> 0:06:40.120 you just oh yeah, something like Oklahoma's Oklahoma Oklahoma, the 0:06:40.160 --> 0:06:43.400 Oklahoma the Oklahoma drill. So I grew up in that culture, man, 0:06:43.560 --> 0:06:45.560 and I loved it at the time. You know, I 0:06:45.600 --> 0:06:48.640 absolutely loved it. And see I hated it. I thought 0:06:48.680 --> 0:06:51.240 I was a football player and everything I realized I 0:06:51.400 --> 0:06:54.400 liked hitting. I didn't like getting hit. You know, Well, 0:06:54.400 --> 0:06:56.680 I got a funny story. So for me, I thought 0:06:56.760 --> 0:06:59.040 I loved the game, but I was right there in 0:06:59.120 --> 0:07:02.280 line with you didn't want When I realized when I 0:07:02.320 --> 0:07:04.440 got hit for the first time, I boo who cried, 0:07:04.640 --> 0:07:07.080 I threw my helmet, showed up pass I'm done with this. 0:07:07.600 --> 0:07:10.480 But that uncle who I told you about, that would 0:07:10.560 --> 0:07:13.120 take me out running and and push ups and sit ups. 0:07:13.160 --> 0:07:16.040 He was my coach, so I could not quit. So 0:07:16.520 --> 0:07:20.120 my first three years there was a guy named Cornelius Thomas. 0:07:20.480 --> 0:07:23.040 We're still friends to this day. He was the biggest, 0:07:23.160 --> 0:07:27.360 baddest young dude that played on our team. And every 0:07:27.440 --> 0:07:30.000 day we would hit. My uncle would make me go 0:07:30.080 --> 0:07:32.800 against Cornelius Thomas and I would boo who cried? And 0:07:32.840 --> 0:07:34.880 boo who cried? And one day, I'll tell you what. 0:07:35.400 --> 0:07:38.320 One day I got fed up. I was like, I'm 0:07:38.320 --> 0:07:41.600 not taking this anymore. And I won that battle and 0:07:41.800 --> 0:07:44.320 we fought right after that. But at that moment, a 0:07:44.440 --> 0:07:46.920 light bulb went off, as if I can be the aggressor, 0:07:47.960 --> 0:07:50.760 the collision won't hurt as much, and it just a 0:07:50.880 --> 0:07:53.240 light switch went off and I was was hooked from 0:07:53.280 --> 0:07:55.960 the very beginning. But what age was that, this was 0:07:56.080 --> 0:08:01.120 probably nine, a ten nine is a blessing. If that's 0:08:01.160 --> 0:08:03.120 what you're gonna do with your life, that is a 0:08:03.160 --> 0:08:05.640 blessing to get that mindset at that age. Yeah, it 0:08:05.800 --> 0:08:07.920 just and it was. It was a great teacher because 0:08:08.040 --> 0:08:10.600 I realized I was so competitive, and it taught me 0:08:10.760 --> 0:08:14.800 every day how to bounce back from failure. It was 0:08:14.920 --> 0:08:17.040 every day it was a result of coach telling you 0:08:17.360 --> 0:08:19.480 you did well, you didn't do well. And for a 0:08:19.600 --> 0:08:22.720 young person, I think it's a great tool, especially nowadays, 0:08:22.840 --> 0:08:25.800 to be able to manage failure because that's the real world, 0:08:26.200 --> 0:08:30.560 you know. And my uncle was fantastic at those teaching moments. Man, 0:08:30.880 --> 0:08:36.439 that's terrific. Here on Time Warner Sports Report, my name 0:08:36.520 --> 0:08:39.559 is Eric Keenan wart spilling Raymond James Stadium despite all 0:08:39.640 --> 0:08:42.440 the routing crowd behind us, and I'm now to talk 0:08:42.480 --> 0:08:44.839 about our defensive player of the air player. Accuse you know, 0:08:44.920 --> 0:08:46.760 there are a lot of great defensive players in high 0:08:46.760 --> 0:08:49.560 school football. They sure fin ellis County. But our defensive 0:08:49.600 --> 0:08:51.640 player here, he's only a junior. He's got a big 0:08:51.720 --> 0:08:55.959 time future and that's seminal linebacker to Quell Jackson. It's 0:08:56.000 --> 0:08:59.200 obvious Jackson possesses those skills and He's hunger to play 0:08:59.240 --> 0:09:01.840 the game is easily noticed. He's the kind of player 0:09:01.960 --> 0:09:03.720 doesn't want to come off and feel anyway, So he's 0:09:03.800 --> 0:09:06.959 he conditions itself to play both both ways. But we 0:09:07.040 --> 0:09:08.880 will never know how much better he would be if 0:09:08.920 --> 0:09:11.600 he's fresh. Every down on defense, the world half defense 0:09:11.679 --> 0:09:15.359 is the reason Seminal went deep into the postseason. Statistically, 0:09:15.520 --> 0:09:18.600 Jackson led Seminal and tackles and tackles for a loss. 0:09:23.760 --> 0:09:25.760 What kind of a player were you in high school? 0:09:25.800 --> 0:09:29.800 I saw in my research you were a three star recruit. Uh, 0:09:29.920 --> 0:09:31.719 and not a lot of guys. You know, with the 0:09:31.840 --> 0:09:35.000 NFL career. You had our three star guys, which I've 0:09:35.040 --> 0:09:38.000 always felt was three star for me. Come on, come on, 0:09:38.240 --> 0:09:41.040 their kids, their kids. Some are gonna grow, some are 0:09:41.080 --> 0:09:44.040 not gonna grow. You know. I blame Tom Limming. I 0:09:44.120 --> 0:09:46.959 blamed Tom. It was it was a publishing that just 0:09:47.160 --> 0:09:50.160 would you know, rank all the guy right right, I'll 0:09:50.200 --> 0:09:53.360 never forget his name. Oh he pissed me off, defenssed 0:09:53.400 --> 0:09:56.880 me off, and uh I did it all play on offense? 0:09:57.080 --> 0:09:59.240 Oh yeah, I was from the time I stepped on 0:09:59.320 --> 0:10:03.000 the field. That is played quarterback and linebacker. And in 0:10:03.160 --> 0:10:06.520 high school I was my freshman year, I played receiver 0:10:06.800 --> 0:10:10.160 and free safety. I'm not fast enough, but I could catch, 0:10:10.600 --> 0:10:13.120 so that that marriage didn't work out all that well. 0:10:13.280 --> 0:10:17.120 So my sophomore year, I transfer high schools and now 0:10:17.160 --> 0:10:20.319 I'm playing quarterback and I'm playing linebacker. I never came 0:10:20.360 --> 0:10:23.160 off the field, and at one point I was the punter, 0:10:23.559 --> 0:10:25.959 you know. I went to punting camps, and oh I 0:10:26.280 --> 0:10:28.520 did it all. Man. I loved the game, man, I 0:10:28.679 --> 0:10:31.240 loved every bit of it, every aspect of the game. 0:10:31.679 --> 0:10:34.760 The quarterback side gave me. It helped me become a 0:10:34.840 --> 0:10:37.679 better linebacker and vice versa. Now we ran the wing 0:10:37.800 --> 0:10:40.160 t I didn't throw the ball a ton, but you 0:10:40.240 --> 0:10:42.000 know it was. I was more in to position the 0:10:42.080 --> 0:10:44.800 leadership at that point, to motivate the guys around me too, 0:10:45.320 --> 0:10:47.000 you know, because I would, you know, talk a little 0:10:47.040 --> 0:10:49.000 trash to him and give them confidence that we can 0:10:49.040 --> 0:10:52.360 beat this team. Because Rerex I went to. I was 0:10:52.400 --> 0:10:55.120 at a predominantly white school, which is fine, but it 0:10:55.280 --> 0:10:57.839 was only like a handful of black guys and we 0:10:57.960 --> 0:11:01.520 were badasses man on the football field. Like those guys, man, 0:11:01.600 --> 0:11:03.160 I still keep in touch with a ton of them. 0:11:03.200 --> 0:11:05.160 But I did it all on the football field. How 0:11:05.240 --> 0:11:07.400 did you end up at Maryland and what made you 0:11:07.520 --> 0:11:10.439 decided to be a Trappist? Yeah? Yeah, So the current 0:11:10.600 --> 0:11:13.199 coach right now at the University of Maryland is a 0:11:13.200 --> 0:11:15.440 guy by the name of Mike Locksley. At the time 0:11:15.480 --> 0:11:17.800 when I was in high school, I was a three 0:11:17.880 --> 0:11:20.760 star recruit. No one really recruited me. I would go 0:11:20.880 --> 0:11:23.079 to two camps a year, that was U c F 0:11:23.400 --> 0:11:26.240 and U s F University of Central Florida and University 0:11:26.280 --> 0:11:29.240 of South Florida. And they're a guy named jene Chiswick 0:11:29.280 --> 0:11:31.600 who went on to be the head coach at Arburn. 0:11:32.160 --> 0:11:34.680 He was the first guy to give me a scholarship 0:11:35.160 --> 0:11:38.520 my I think my junior year of high school. And 0:11:38.600 --> 0:11:41.199 then it kind of just snowballed and Maryland was the 0:11:41.320 --> 0:11:44.960 next team in line. Particularly Mike Lochley, he reached out. 0:11:45.520 --> 0:11:47.400 I was living with my grandparents at the time. He 0:11:47.520 --> 0:11:50.400 developed the friendship with them. He made me feel like 0:11:50.520 --> 0:11:52.559 this was my uncle. Now. I could have gone to 0:11:53.120 --> 0:11:55.320 l s U at the time when Nick Saban was there, 0:11:56.040 --> 0:11:59.800 Um NC State, Chuckle Model was there. You know. I 0:12:00.040 --> 0:12:03.439 had a handful of offers, decent d one offers, but Maryland, 0:12:03.480 --> 0:12:06.079 for whatever reason, I had that connection with Mike Loxley. 0:12:06.480 --> 0:12:10.679 He you had never been to Maryland. I had never 0:12:10.760 --> 0:12:12.959 been on a plane out of high school, and just 0:12:13.559 --> 0:12:16.000 the back and forth. He was honest with me. He 0:12:16.120 --> 0:12:18.760 told me the truth. I wanted to play right away 0:12:19.000 --> 0:12:20.920 and I just wanted to feel like a sense of home. 0:12:21.040 --> 0:12:23.160 And then when I was able to take my visit, 0:12:24.000 --> 0:12:26.640 I was around like minded guys who love football, but 0:12:26.760 --> 0:12:29.719 they also was invested in the school side of it. 0:12:30.400 --> 0:12:32.960 You know. It was more so about talking about both, 0:12:33.120 --> 0:12:37.080 and I can envision myself actually living in my mind 0:12:37.280 --> 0:12:39.920 as a high school. I wanted to be in a 0:12:40.040 --> 0:12:42.880 place where I can potentially live when I'm done playing, 0:12:43.400 --> 0:12:46.199 and it happened. I'm still in the d n V area. 0:12:46.840 --> 0:12:49.120 It was the first year after Ralph Freedan had gotten 0:12:49.160 --> 0:12:51.480 to Maryland and one team games got blown out by 0:12:51.559 --> 0:12:54.599 University of Florida. And uh, when I got here, I 0:12:54.679 --> 0:12:56.760 was CULTI shot man, you know, me coming from a 0:12:56.800 --> 0:13:01.000 small city and coming to this big man tropolitan area. 0:13:01.440 --> 0:13:03.760 It was rough my first year. Man. I remember calling 0:13:03.880 --> 0:13:07.720 the national news is the local news right right? Yeah? 0:13:07.840 --> 0:13:09.559 It was like I was out of place. I'm like, 0:13:09.760 --> 0:13:13.640 this is a different world to me. And luckily I 0:13:13.800 --> 0:13:17.360 have some friendships I created my freshman year was still 0:13:17.440 --> 0:13:19.160 close to this day. They helped me kind of. It 0:13:19.240 --> 0:13:21.440 was a bunch of guys from the South. The guys 0:13:21.480 --> 0:13:24.720 from North Carolina, guy from Texas, another guy from Florida. 0:13:25.120 --> 0:13:27.559 We knew what we were kind of dealing with and 0:13:27.600 --> 0:13:30.760 we helped each other. So um, yeah, it was funny 0:13:30.800 --> 0:13:41.839 how things come full circle, what happened and when that 0:13:42.040 --> 0:13:46.520 led you to your transformation as just this unstoppable defensive force, 0:13:46.960 --> 0:13:49.040 you know what. So there was one school that I 0:13:49.120 --> 0:13:51.719 wanted to offer that I wanted an offer for that 0:13:51.840 --> 0:13:54.079 I wanted to I wanted them to offer me, and 0:13:54.160 --> 0:13:56.160 no one else would have had another shot at was 0:13:56.240 --> 0:14:02.840 Florida State was growing up in my town, Florida State 0:14:03.000 --> 0:14:06.200 was like you were king and so we weren't really 0:14:06.880 --> 0:14:09.640 us fans, the Gator fans, and they had offered me. 0:14:09.880 --> 0:14:12.160 I was like, no, I can't, I can't. I can't 0:14:12.160 --> 0:14:14.920 do it. I'm a Florida State. Yeah. I was like, 0:14:15.000 --> 0:14:17.280 I can't do it. Just off of the lads alone, 0:14:17.600 --> 0:14:20.760 I cannot do it. And Florida State never offered me. Man, 0:14:20.880 --> 0:14:23.360 they never offered me. So to answer your question, when 0:14:23.400 --> 0:14:28.120 it really so my sophomore year, I'm a starter and E. J. Henderson, 0:14:28.200 --> 0:14:31.680 the guy who won the Dick Buckets Award at linebacker, 0:14:31.800 --> 0:14:35.520 he had graduated, So now I'm a shooting starter. The 0:14:35.680 --> 0:14:38.640 second game of the season my sophomore year, we're playing 0:14:38.640 --> 0:14:42.520 at Dope Campbell Stadium. We're playing the team that overlooked me. 0:14:43.160 --> 0:14:45.880 And I know all the other linebackers they had recruited 0:14:45.960 --> 0:14:47.760 that are playing. They were They were all good, don't 0:14:47.800 --> 0:14:49.280 get me wrong, But I thought I was better than 0:14:49.280 --> 0:14:52.400 at least one of them, you know. And the first 0:14:52.480 --> 0:14:55.280 player of the game, Chris Rix, is a quarterback, and 0:14:55.400 --> 0:14:58.160 I'm I'm like super geek for this game. And first 0:14:58.200 --> 0:15:00.280 player of the game, Rex throws an out out to 0:15:00.360 --> 0:15:04.520 the tight end. I intercepted, I returned for fifty eight yards. 0:15:04.800 --> 0:15:08.480 I scored touchdown. And at that moment Rex, After that game, 0:15:08.680 --> 0:15:10.720 I went on to have like ten plus tackles. I 0:15:10.800 --> 0:15:15.320 blocked the kid, And I remember, I've never felt that 0:15:15.400 --> 0:15:17.880 there's there's moments in your life where you feel like, damn, 0:15:18.840 --> 0:15:21.880 I think I'm better than what I actually then I am. 0:15:22.000 --> 0:15:24.600 You know, I think I'm better and I'm this very humble, 0:15:24.680 --> 0:15:28.760 obedient kid at the time, you know, and uh, the 0:15:28.880 --> 0:15:30.920 confidence just oozed out of me. I knew at that 0:15:31.040 --> 0:15:33.040 moment I could play at the next level. I just 0:15:33.120 --> 0:15:36.120 did it again. Then you could play on Sundays. There 0:15:36.200 --> 0:15:38.120 was no doubt. There was no doubt in my mind. 0:15:38.360 --> 0:15:40.240 And my grades started to take a hit after that 0:15:40.600 --> 0:15:44.800 because the focus was shifted. And that's the moment. That's 0:15:44.840 --> 0:15:47.200 the moment that it still gives me chills thinking about it. 0:15:47.560 --> 0:15:50.840 That's a beautiful story. It really is the school that 0:15:50.960 --> 0:15:53.600 overlooked you too. All right, let's go, let's go to 0:15:53.640 --> 0:15:55.680 the draft. What do you feel like when you got 0:15:55.760 --> 0:16:00.480 the call? Truth? Man, Oh my gosh, it's hard to 0:16:00.480 --> 0:16:03.160 put it in the words. You know. I was there 0:16:03.200 --> 0:16:05.640 with my family, the people that I love. I didn't 0:16:05.680 --> 0:16:08.880 have this big, massive, you know, watch party anything. I didn't. 0:16:08.880 --> 0:16:11.320 It was too much pressure for me. I wanted people 0:16:11.440 --> 0:16:13.920 that if things didn't work out the way I thought 0:16:13.960 --> 0:16:15.600 they would, if they didn't work out the way I 0:16:15.640 --> 0:16:17.720 thought they would, I wouldn't feel embarrassed in front of 0:16:17.760 --> 0:16:20.200 these people. So it was all my close family and friends, 0:16:20.240 --> 0:16:22.760 and I remember getting the phone call. I thought I 0:16:22.840 --> 0:16:25.160 was gonna go, So I petition to the NFL to 0:16:25.160 --> 0:16:27.280 see where I would get drafted. They told me anywhere 0:16:27.400 --> 0:16:32.040 between late first in the early second round talk to 0:16:32.120 --> 0:16:34.720 some teams. I thought I was going to either Jacksonville 0:16:34.800 --> 0:16:38.640 or Dallas and it didn't happen. And Rex, I tell you, 0:16:38.960 --> 0:16:41.720 I had to remove myself from the room where all 0:16:41.800 --> 0:16:43.640 my family was watching the draft. I was like, I 0:16:43.720 --> 0:16:46.360 have to get away. I broke down, absolutely broke down crying. 0:16:46.400 --> 0:16:49.040 I was like, man, this is too much. So I 0:16:49.160 --> 0:16:52.040 like put my phones up and uh you know, you know, 0:16:52.320 --> 0:16:54.320 entitled little kid at this point, like it's just the 0:16:54.360 --> 0:16:57.560 first round, like relaxed, but in my mind it's everything. 0:16:58.400 --> 0:17:02.080 And uh so I go to the restroom and I'm 0:17:02.080 --> 0:17:05.120 actually using the restroom and I have my phone near 0:17:05.200 --> 0:17:11.320 me and the phone that I have dedicated for NFL exactly, 0:17:11.359 --> 0:17:14.880 So what have you? Goes off? So if you can imagine, 0:17:14.960 --> 0:17:18.919 without me being too detailed, I'm using it back, I'm grabbing, 0:17:19.359 --> 0:17:22.760 you know, both hands are working, and I'm talking to 0:17:22.880 --> 0:17:25.560 a GM And I've never told this story because it's 0:17:25.640 --> 0:17:27.360 you know, I don't want to put these guys out, 0:17:27.880 --> 0:17:30.720 but I'm like parts are halfway down and I just 0:17:31.280 --> 0:17:33.920 forget it. Yes, I would love to be a Cleveland Brown, 0:17:34.040 --> 0:17:36.399 Thank you lord, it happened. What you know, It's like, 0:17:36.440 --> 0:17:38.560 I don't know what pick it is. All I know 0:17:38.760 --> 0:17:40.720 is they called me. It was like, would you love 0:17:40.760 --> 0:17:43.240 to be a Cleveland Brown and Feel Savage? Kudos to 0:17:43.280 --> 0:17:45.639 Feel Savage. That's my guy for taking a chance on 0:17:45.720 --> 0:17:49.000 an undersize linebacker out of a school that didn't win 0:17:49.040 --> 0:17:51.560 a ton of games. And uh yeah, man, it was 0:17:51.600 --> 0:17:55.680 a classic story. Literally with your parts down. Yeah, that's 0:17:55.920 --> 0:17:59.200 pretty much great. Well, you're you're going into the uh 0:18:00.160 --> 0:18:02.960 was legends this year. So at the time, your time 0:18:03.040 --> 0:18:06.480 there was pretty special. You know, when did you feel like, Okay, 0:18:06.880 --> 0:18:09.000 I'm a pro. I know what I'm doing out here. 0:18:09.119 --> 0:18:11.639 I feel good and confident and this is what I do. 0:18:12.280 --> 0:18:14.760 So I got two parts of that that answer. The 0:18:14.840 --> 0:18:19.200 first answer when I realized I was a pro was 0:18:19.280 --> 0:18:22.280 when I was injured. I had told my pecks back 0:18:22.320 --> 0:18:25.840 to back years and I remember the guy who drafted 0:18:25.880 --> 0:18:29.399 me Feel Savage approaching me in the hallway once and 0:18:29.480 --> 0:18:31.720 telling me, Hey, if we're here next year, you'll have 0:18:31.840 --> 0:18:34.159 a new deal. And at that time, I was spending 0:18:34.240 --> 0:18:36.560 money that I thought I was gonna get and I 0:18:36.720 --> 0:18:39.119 was just living on the edge man, and not really 0:18:39.400 --> 0:18:42.879 buckling down and I understanding or promise is a promise. 0:18:42.920 --> 0:18:46.159 There's nothing gonna paper here, you know. So that was 0:18:46.200 --> 0:18:49.360 the first moment I realized, wait, this is a business 0:18:49.520 --> 0:18:51.679 and a new you know, he gets fired, A new 0:18:51.720 --> 0:18:54.720 guy comes in, Eric Mangini, and they're like, I don't 0:18:54.760 --> 0:18:57.400 care what the hell they promised you you were. They're 0:18:57.400 --> 0:18:59.240 looking at They're looking at me, and everyone else in 0:18:59.280 --> 0:19:01.320 that locker room is being part of the problem, not 0:19:01.440 --> 0:19:04.359 part of the solution. So, you know, that was the 0:19:04.440 --> 0:19:07.399 first instance I realized like, oh damn, this is different, 0:19:07.640 --> 0:19:10.600 this is different. But the moment I realized on the 0:19:10.720 --> 0:19:15.040 field that I had arrived was a year after those 0:19:15.080 --> 0:19:19.280 two injuries and learned going through that mental just anguish 0:19:19.359 --> 0:19:22.560 of not being where you wanted. They signed me to 0:19:22.680 --> 0:19:25.359 one year deal, and I remember that whole year, I 0:19:25.440 --> 0:19:28.040 was on tear. I was on a scorch Earth just 0:19:29.000 --> 0:19:32.879 tour of just killing people. And it was at practice, 0:19:33.200 --> 0:19:35.320 it was in the games X. I probably didn't have 0:19:35.320 --> 0:19:39.160 any friends that year. Everybody hated me. My teammates hated 0:19:39.200 --> 0:19:41.320 me because I practiced hard. It was like, I have 0:19:41.560 --> 0:19:45.239 one shot and this is a point where I did 0:19:45.320 --> 0:19:47.879 a deep dive. I was at i MG Academy and 0:19:47.920 --> 0:19:50.840 a guy named Trevor Muau, and I was going through 0:19:50.880 --> 0:19:53.480 a divorce at the time. I felt, you know, I 0:19:53.560 --> 0:19:55.720 didn't have a pre nup. You know, I'm thinking the 0:19:55.800 --> 0:20:00.199 world is crumbling at my fingertips. And this guy, who 0:20:00.280 --> 0:20:04.119 was a sports psychiatrist, he would always hang around the 0:20:04.200 --> 0:20:06.879 guys working out and he wasn't pushy at all. We 0:20:07.240 --> 0:20:10.440 built the rapport and I showed up in his office 0:20:10.520 --> 0:20:13.800 one day and he asked me what I wanted. He 0:20:13.920 --> 0:20:15.320 was like, what do you want? I'm like, what do 0:20:15.359 --> 0:20:17.320 you mean? What what do you He was like, what 0:20:17.560 --> 0:20:20.480 the f do you want? So we made this like 0:20:20.920 --> 0:20:24.560 diagram of everything I needed to do to get to 0:20:24.680 --> 0:20:27.159 the pinnacle of my goals, and my goals was a 0:20:27.240 --> 0:20:29.960 five year contract worth X amount for X amount of dollars. 0:20:30.480 --> 0:20:32.120 And when I tell you, it was the best thing 0:20:32.200 --> 0:20:36.080 that I could have done for myself mentally, because before 0:20:36.160 --> 0:20:38.080 that I had only known how to train my body, 0:20:38.840 --> 0:20:42.040 you know, and this was the first experience of my 0:20:42.240 --> 0:20:45.600 mind being trained. And we developed some techniques and I 0:20:45.760 --> 0:20:49.560 felt unstoppable when that happened. You know. Then you segue 0:20:49.720 --> 0:20:51.440 that spills over to the field and I was on 0:20:51.520 --> 0:20:55.800 this scorch you know, tour of just chopping every killing 0:20:55.840 --> 0:20:58.720 everyone man you know on the field. You know, and uh, 0:20:59.480 --> 0:21:01.080 I don't know if that was a specific moment, that 0:21:01.200 --> 0:21:05.880 year long was just just unbelievable, just unbelievable how focused 0:21:05.920 --> 0:21:11.480 I was. That's awesome. American football can be unforgiving on 0:21:11.680 --> 0:21:14.399 and off the field. The brutal nature of football and 0:21:14.480 --> 0:21:19.200 regards to contracts, injuries, lifestyles and more is arguably the 0:21:19.280 --> 0:21:23.080 most difficult of any professional athlete. A star today can 0:21:23.119 --> 0:21:26.760 be cut tomorrow, especially if their contract is not guaranteed. 0:21:27.400 --> 0:21:30.280 Can you imagine what that does to a person? And 0:21:30.400 --> 0:21:33.520 yet the train rolls on. We'll be right back after 0:21:33.600 --> 0:21:43.560 a word from our sponsors. Another NFL player, isn't some 0:21:43.680 --> 0:21:46.399 trouble with the law? Cold linebacker to Quell Jackson was 0:21:46.480 --> 0:21:49.879 arrested on Tuesday and charged with assault. How The incident 0:21:49.920 --> 0:21:53.159 happened in Washington, d C. Where Jackson allegedly punched a 0:21:53.320 --> 0:21:56.440 pizza delivery driver in the face and head. The driver 0:21:56.600 --> 0:21:58.960 reportedly told police he was going to use a parking 0:21:59.000 --> 0:22:01.399 space for a minute when Jackson told him to get 0:22:01.440 --> 0:22:04.560 out of his barking spot and then punched him on Monday, 0:22:04.640 --> 0:22:07.320 the Colte said they were disappointed in linebacker to Quell 0:22:07.440 --> 0:22:10.240 Jackson after he was found guilty in a two thousand 0:22:10.280 --> 0:22:14.720 and fifteen assault case. Jackson's sentencing is scheduled for April six. 0:22:15.200 --> 0:22:17.639 He could face up to one and eighty days in 0:22:17.760 --> 0:22:21.000 jail for simple assault. That that sentence could be reduced. 0:22:24.920 --> 0:22:27.040 You know, obviously this is charges we talked about the 0:22:27.080 --> 0:22:30.840 good talk about the bag. You know, tell me about 0:22:30.960 --> 0:22:34.160 what happened in in d C and with the parking 0:22:34.200 --> 0:22:37.080 space at the back of your place. Yeah, so this 0:22:37.359 --> 0:22:39.480 was on the hills. I just made my first Pro Bowl, 0:22:39.800 --> 0:22:42.359 you know, I was with Indie, you know, had a 0:22:42.480 --> 0:22:45.920 great year. Um, I intercepted Tom Brady an f C 0:22:46.040 --> 0:22:49.200 Championship game. No talking about the flight gate and you 0:22:49.280 --> 0:22:52.119 know my name is on the top of everyone's lips, 0:22:52.480 --> 0:22:54.320 like I didn't have a care in the world. So 0:22:55.000 --> 0:22:58.119 that incident you're talking about where the Pro Bow was 0:22:58.160 --> 0:23:01.000 in Arizona. My wife and my family we fly back. 0:23:01.560 --> 0:23:03.359 We all go our separate ways. My wife and I 0:23:03.960 --> 0:23:06.159 win d C and she was taking a spin class. 0:23:07.040 --> 0:23:09.280 You know, this was two fifteen. So I picked up 0:23:09.320 --> 0:23:12.240 from spin class and where our apartment is in d C. 0:23:13.840 --> 0:23:16.119 The one one reason I love d C is I 0:23:16.240 --> 0:23:20.239 love the uh I hope I say this word right, anonymity. Right, 0:23:20.280 --> 0:23:22.600 It's like you're exposed to the elements. Right, it's like 0:23:23.000 --> 0:23:24.639 you're just a free bird if you sit at a 0:23:24.680 --> 0:23:27.160 bar or someplace and people don't assume you're an athlete. 0:23:27.400 --> 0:23:30.240 I love that part of it, right. But our condo, 0:23:31.040 --> 0:23:36.320 our parking space was on an alleyway. So if you 0:23:36.400 --> 0:23:38.600 ever been to d C that you street cord or 0:23:38.680 --> 0:23:41.760 area is busy, you know from it's packed to the 0:23:41.840 --> 0:23:46.280 brim from Howard students and people just joined the you know, elements, 0:23:46.760 --> 0:23:48.960 and we deal with a lot of people parking our 0:23:49.040 --> 0:23:51.560 parking space and now we're used to it. So this 0:23:51.680 --> 0:23:54.000 particular day, I picked my wife up from spin class 0:23:54.080 --> 0:23:57.000 and like normal, you know, we're getting ready to park. 0:23:57.040 --> 0:23:59.399 There's a car in our in our parking space. So 0:23:59.560 --> 0:24:02.119 you hit the horn, you know nothing. Usually when you 0:24:02.200 --> 0:24:05.240 hit the horn, you flash the lights. They realize, oh, 0:24:05.320 --> 0:24:07.560 they shouldn't be there. They leave because it's a sign 0:24:07.640 --> 0:24:11.840 that says no trustpassing. And so the guy isn't moving 0:24:12.000 --> 0:24:13.840 and now my wife is in a passion of seat. 0:24:14.440 --> 0:24:16.600 So this is a mistake. I May I got out 0:24:16.640 --> 0:24:19.560 of the car. I get out of the car, his 0:24:19.680 --> 0:24:22.560 windows up. I'm knocking on the window. Hey, you know, 0:24:23.080 --> 0:24:26.600 this is my parking space. You gotta move. He looks 0:24:26.680 --> 0:24:28.639 and just kind of ignored me. And now I'm getting 0:24:28.680 --> 0:24:31.119 I'm getting piste. Now I'm knocking a little harder. Now 0:24:31.160 --> 0:24:33.920 I'm talking a little out of Hey, get that out 0:24:33.960 --> 0:24:37.040 of my parking space. Nothing is happening. He's still looking 0:24:37.080 --> 0:24:38.680 at me, and I'm like, what the heck is going on? 0:24:39.359 --> 0:24:41.160 And all of a sudden, out of the blue Brex. 0:24:41.359 --> 0:24:44.000 I can see it. I can put myself in that moment, 0:24:44.040 --> 0:24:46.880 and gives me chills just thinking about it. He rolls 0:24:46.960 --> 0:24:51.280 the window down, and as the windows rolling down, he's grabbing. 0:24:51.400 --> 0:24:54.880 He's reaching for his glove box. And where I'm from, 0:24:55.080 --> 0:24:57.159 how I grew up and you hear things in d 0:24:57.280 --> 0:24:59.800 C that means danger to me. And so when he 0:25:00.040 --> 0:25:02.119 in that he reached I grabbed him, I admitted to 0:25:02.200 --> 0:25:04.159 the corp. I grabbed around his neck, I grabbed his arm, 0:25:04.200 --> 0:25:06.160 like what do you what are you doing with restrained 0:25:06.240 --> 0:25:09.840 him and immediately, which is terrible, my wife is still 0:25:09.920 --> 0:25:12.760 in the car. I run to you street, where as 0:25:12.760 --> 0:25:15.760 a ton of foot traffic cops. I grab a cop. 0:25:16.000 --> 0:25:17.680 I tell him, hey, I got this crazy guy in 0:25:17.720 --> 0:25:20.600 my parking space. He won't leave. Yeah, I thought he 0:25:20.680 --> 0:25:22.920 was reaching for a weapon or something. I grabbed him. 0:25:23.200 --> 0:25:25.879 That was it. We come back, the guys trying to 0:25:25.920 --> 0:25:28.639 pull out of the parking space. He stops him. He 0:25:28.800 --> 0:25:31.320 asked the guy his version of the story, and this 0:25:31.440 --> 0:25:34.560 guy basically said I did everything to him other than 0:25:35.600 --> 0:25:37.760 I mean, it was ridiculous. It was so ridiculous to 0:25:37.840 --> 0:25:39.560 the point where I was like kind of chuckl him, 0:25:39.600 --> 0:25:41.119 like you cannot. I was like, look at me, and 0:25:41.200 --> 0:25:43.800 look at him. If my intentions were to hurt this person, 0:25:44.880 --> 0:25:46.480 I would like to think he would he would be 0:25:46.520 --> 0:25:51.560 on the ground still. So next thing, you know, sir, 0:25:51.720 --> 0:25:55.520 put your hands behind your back. I'm getting cuff. You know, 0:25:55.760 --> 0:25:57.240 a lot of the cops didn't know, you know. And 0:25:57.320 --> 0:25:59.480 now it's the scene, and now we're in an alleyway. 0:26:00.040 --> 0:26:02.639 This is a you know, a nice neighborhood, you know 0:26:02.760 --> 0:26:05.359 in d c Is and you know, everyone lives among 0:26:05.440 --> 0:26:08.800 each other. And I just remember just having that feeling 0:26:08.840 --> 0:26:12.000 of just like, out of all my years I've avoided 0:26:12.200 --> 0:26:15.160 and tried to be a few steps ahead of any 0:26:15.440 --> 0:26:19.800 never in your life, never been in trouble in my life. Never. Never. 0:26:20.480 --> 0:26:23.560 I'm thirty plus years old. I'm going home. It's not 0:26:23.680 --> 0:26:25.680 a weekend. This is like an eight o'clock on like 0:26:25.760 --> 0:26:28.680 a Tuesday. I'm not drunk, I hadn't had anything to drink. 0:26:29.440 --> 0:26:31.840 I'm as clear headed as I can be. And I 0:26:31.920 --> 0:26:35.520 get arrested trying to park in my parking space. And 0:26:37.720 --> 0:26:40.000 the stories you heard after that was just you know, 0:26:40.200 --> 0:26:42.600 the quail beats up with pizza man, because you know, 0:26:43.960 --> 0:26:47.439 you know, just it was so just not the truth. 0:26:48.000 --> 0:26:50.480 And when I was basically in a situation where I 0:26:51.200 --> 0:26:54.480 thought I was going to be killed potentially, I was 0:26:54.560 --> 0:26:57.679 protecting myself. I take it to trial. I lose the trial. 0:26:58.000 --> 0:27:00.440 The guy was so based on what happened, thought you 0:27:00.520 --> 0:27:03.280 could beat it. Uh, that's why you went to trial, right. 0:27:03.480 --> 0:27:05.159 So the guy tried to sue me for over a 0:27:05.240 --> 0:27:09.800 million dollars over a million dollars, and he refused medical care. 0:27:09.880 --> 0:27:11.720 There was no medical care. So all the things that 0:27:11.800 --> 0:27:14.480 he said that I apparently did, he said I threw 0:27:14.560 --> 0:27:16.399 him over the hood, I kicked him, I did all 0:27:16.440 --> 0:27:19.840 these different things. We lose basically because in d C 0:27:20.080 --> 0:27:24.880 if you admit unwanted touch is considered a simple assault 0:27:25.080 --> 0:27:28.119 a misdemeanor. So I was there was no fine, there 0:27:28.240 --> 0:27:31.399 was no probation or anything like that. The NFL find me, 0:27:31.800 --> 0:27:34.320 I think like ten or fifteen thousand dollars and the 0:27:34.359 --> 0:27:36.840 guy end up getting six figures. Thank goodness, I had 0:27:37.359 --> 0:27:41.359 really great insurance. But the guy collected six figures off 0:27:41.440 --> 0:27:46.760 of And here's the thing. When I was in Indie planing, 0:27:47.240 --> 0:27:49.600 my wife was in d C working, so she dealt 0:27:49.640 --> 0:27:51.520 with a lot of this all the time. And I 0:27:51.560 --> 0:27:53.880 would tell her, do not get out of the car, 0:27:54.040 --> 0:27:56.480 called the police, and I didn't listen to my own 0:27:57.480 --> 0:28:01.400 freaking you know. But it is just an unfortunate event, man, 0:28:01.520 --> 0:28:05.520 And and she was being stalked at her job. Well, 0:28:05.680 --> 0:28:08.240 I can see I can feel the regret in your voice. 0:28:08.320 --> 0:28:11.240 And yeah, man, story, I'm so sorry. You know what. 0:28:12.240 --> 0:28:17.200 I own it. And it's just like you realize on 0:28:17.320 --> 0:28:19.760 the back night of my career when I'm not doing 0:28:19.800 --> 0:28:25.320 anything to throw you know, I'm not doing that to 0:28:25.440 --> 0:28:28.639 Quell Jackson mainly in the NFL and tackled, but he 0:28:28.720 --> 0:28:31.879 won't be seeing any playing time in the next four weeks. 0:28:32.440 --> 0:28:35.640 The Colt linebacker is suspended from the league for violating 0:28:35.760 --> 0:28:42.120 its policy on performance enhancing substances. Now you go through 0:28:42.200 --> 0:28:47.479 the arrest. It's a following season twenty sixteen, I believe. Uh, 0:28:47.640 --> 0:28:51.320 tell me about the p D suspension. You suspended four games? Uh, 0:28:52.000 --> 0:28:54.160 how did that come about? What was happening? Man? I 0:28:54.280 --> 0:28:58.400 invested into my recovery playing a simple I'm a guy 0:28:58.800 --> 0:29:02.480 that I'm a huge on it of growth hormones h 0:29:02.560 --> 0:29:05.680 g H. I think every guy that has an injury 0:29:06.480 --> 0:29:10.240 um that requires surgery should be prescribed a certain a 0:29:10.320 --> 0:29:14.040 healthy dose of growth hormone. Our body produces it at 0:29:14.080 --> 0:29:17.800 the right dosage. It's healthy, it helps repair those broken 0:29:17.840 --> 0:29:22.880 down ligaments, and it's nothing but beneficial if taken right. 0:29:23.440 --> 0:29:25.480 And I was a guy. If you asked anyone whoever 0:29:25.520 --> 0:29:27.680 played with me rex Hell, the quote was like a 0:29:27.760 --> 0:29:29.840 gym er. He would try anything that I thought that 0:29:30.000 --> 0:29:33.440 could help me. And if the line was right here 0:29:33.480 --> 0:29:35.480 in front of me, I was towing the line. You know, 0:29:35.600 --> 0:29:38.560 when it comes to my recovery, because you realize the 0:29:38.680 --> 0:29:42.320 position I played. I played a there was no avoiding contact, 0:29:42.680 --> 0:29:45.000 there was no avoiding the collisions. So I had to 0:29:45.040 --> 0:29:47.520 do what was best for me to provide for my family, 0:29:48.040 --> 0:29:50.000 and when you love something so much, you're willing to 0:29:50.040 --> 0:29:53.440 do anything to to succeed at it. And there was 0:29:53.440 --> 0:29:55.720 another embarrassing moment in my career where it was like, 0:29:55.880 --> 0:29:58.400 oh my gosh, like how did I let this happen again? 0:29:58.880 --> 0:30:02.280 And it was embarrassing from family, my wife. It was like, 0:30:02.640 --> 0:30:05.160 and you're gonna always have people to say, oh, he 0:30:05.320 --> 0:30:09.840 was only good because he took whatever, and we all 0:30:09.960 --> 0:30:12.480 know there's no magic pill, there's no magic shot, there's 0:30:12.480 --> 0:30:15.040 no magic anything that can make you average to a 0:30:15.480 --> 0:30:19.120 Kobe Bryant or Tom Brady or someone like that, that 0:30:19.320 --> 0:30:21.040 there's no such thing. You still have to put in 0:30:21.120 --> 0:30:23.840 the work. I was embarrassed, yes, because I got caught, 0:30:23.920 --> 0:30:26.720 but I knew and that undercurrent of the NFL, there's 0:30:26.760 --> 0:30:29.200 a lot of guys like myself who played the game 0:30:29.280 --> 0:30:32.400 at a with a level of recklessness that you have 0:30:32.520 --> 0:30:38.480 to play also with the gentleman's respect, but you realize 0:30:38.720 --> 0:30:41.920 you have to be able to recover. And that was 0:30:42.000 --> 0:30:44.080 a component that a lot of young guys don't understand. 0:30:44.360 --> 0:30:46.880 And I was heavily invested into that. I'm with you 0:30:47.000 --> 0:30:48.960 if if I could get it shot up. When I 0:30:49.080 --> 0:30:51.880 played I got it shot up. If if if nobody's 0:30:51.920 --> 0:30:55.880 no Overcain, if it was gonna not do no permanent damage, 0:30:56.080 --> 0:30:58.400 I was doing it so And I think what a 0:30:58.480 --> 0:31:01.520 lot of people don't understand is that, you know, the 0:31:01.760 --> 0:31:05.360 job is is so cutthroat. If you're not in you know, 0:31:05.520 --> 0:31:08.960 if you don't if you missed two days, for most players, 0:31:09.640 --> 0:31:13.640 somebody's gonna take your job, and you know, and they're 0:31:13.720 --> 0:31:17.080 probably doing whatever they can do right behind you. So 0:31:17.360 --> 0:31:20.280 it's tough. A lot of people don't understand that little 0:31:20.360 --> 0:31:23.600 nugget of information you just let out because the pressure 0:31:24.600 --> 0:31:28.640 of knowing if you don't perform, they're gonna replace you. 0:31:29.680 --> 0:31:32.880 If you're injured, which everyone who plays a professional sport, 0:31:33.000 --> 0:31:36.680 you're not healthy, you're dealing with something. You know. That's 0:31:36.720 --> 0:31:38.960 a lot of pressure on on young people, you know, 0:31:39.440 --> 0:31:42.080 when you're young and you so much as expected of you, 0:31:42.520 --> 0:31:45.680 you know, and that's while I think a lot of guys, 0:31:45.920 --> 0:31:48.080 you know, we train our bodies, but we don't invest 0:31:48.160 --> 0:31:51.080 heavily into the above the shoulders, man in the head 0:31:51.160 --> 0:31:54.280 and the mental side of it, because that's a lot 0:31:54.360 --> 0:31:56.360 of the game is the mental side. So when you 0:31:56.600 --> 0:31:59.600 when it happens, you realize that's it. My career is over. 0:32:00.200 --> 0:32:03.560 When did you first start noticing maybe something is different 0:32:03.640 --> 0:32:07.280 with my brain? Man? You know, that's one of those 0:32:07.400 --> 0:32:12.120 topics where you hear so much throughout the NFL, you 0:32:12.200 --> 0:32:15.280 know the last you know, every year during training camp 0:32:15.360 --> 0:32:17.560 they'll have someone come in and talk about c T 0:32:17.720 --> 0:32:20.880 E and the head trauma. That's the moment to ask 0:32:21.000 --> 0:32:24.240 questions and there's no way of fixing it. It's like, 0:32:24.960 --> 0:32:27.640 once you lose it, you can't get it back. Can 0:32:27.720 --> 0:32:31.040 we find information about how to repair and keep what 0:32:31.200 --> 0:32:33.480 we have? Like? There has to be more to it. 0:32:33.640 --> 0:32:37.560 So it's always been on my mind of how can 0:32:37.680 --> 0:32:40.880 I maintain what I have? And that has to be 0:32:41.280 --> 0:32:45.120 a more positive rhetoric out here in terms of brain 0:32:45.240 --> 0:32:48.440 issues when it comes to professional athletes. So for me, 0:32:49.320 --> 0:32:51.720 it was always on my mind, and even more so 0:32:51.840 --> 0:32:54.800 when I was finished. When you lose that, what do 0:32:54.920 --> 0:32:57.320 you say when you when you play the game for 0:32:57.400 --> 0:32:59.560 so long, you're used to being a team and when 0:32:59.600 --> 0:33:02.600 you know what you know what Steve Nash told me 0:33:02.720 --> 0:33:05.520 one time, and I'm sorry to interrupt you, but Steve 0:33:05.760 --> 0:33:08.880 he uh we were talking and and you know, I 0:33:09.000 --> 0:33:11.920 had been long retired and he had recently retired, and 0:33:12.280 --> 0:33:13.680 you know he was going through a little you know, 0:33:13.840 --> 0:33:16.840 just a that first year or two being out that 0:33:17.040 --> 0:33:19.320 sort of and I said, how you doing He said, well, 0:33:20.160 --> 0:33:22.120 you know, I missed being around the team. He said, also, 0:33:22.800 --> 0:33:26.240 I miss going in every day and with no matter 0:33:26.360 --> 0:33:29.000 what's going on in your life, those two hours you 0:33:29.080 --> 0:33:32.400 can run around running into people, taking out some frustration, 0:33:32.560 --> 0:33:36.960 taking out some aggression. When that's gone, because that's a 0:33:37.080 --> 0:33:41.720 habit since you're five years old, right, and so when 0:33:41.800 --> 0:33:45.320 that's gone and you can't do that anymore, that void 0:33:45.520 --> 0:33:48.720 is gotta be deep. And especially for you guys in 0:33:48.800 --> 0:33:51.120 the sport you play. Yeah, there's a ton of I 0:33:51.200 --> 0:33:54.160 have some friends now that now I'm on the other 0:33:54.240 --> 0:33:58.320 side of things that have been suicidal when they've had 0:33:59.480 --> 0:34:03.400 to that point. They missed that, that brotherhood and that camaraderie, 0:34:03.600 --> 0:34:06.640 and it's all taken away from you like that, and 0:34:06.760 --> 0:34:09.800 now you're thrown about it. Yeah, you don't think about 0:34:09.880 --> 0:34:12.640 no one. It's like having a baby. You can read 0:34:12.680 --> 0:34:15.560 all the books, but you have no idea of how 0:34:15.640 --> 0:34:18.200 to take care of this little baby until this baby arrives. 0:34:18.400 --> 0:34:22.200 And it's similar in a sense where everything is taken away. 0:34:22.280 --> 0:34:24.120 Now you don't know how do you prepare it for? 0:34:24.360 --> 0:34:26.080 You thought you'd prepared for it, but there's no way 0:34:26.120 --> 0:34:30.439 of preparing for just feeling feeling a void, of trying 0:34:30.480 --> 0:34:32.920 to feel a part of something. And for us athletes, 0:34:33.040 --> 0:34:34.800 a lot of it is self driven. I want to 0:34:34.840 --> 0:34:38.600 feel like I'm I'm contributing. And I've had friends who 0:34:39.120 --> 0:34:43.600 were So you're grieving your career, you know, you're you're 0:34:43.600 --> 0:34:46.960 in grief. That's something I had to learn. We all do. 0:34:47.120 --> 0:34:49.239 I think I think we all do um. You know, 0:34:49.360 --> 0:34:52.279 So when did CTE really become something in your life? 0:34:52.560 --> 0:34:55.040 Like did guys talk about it in the locker room? 0:34:55.080 --> 0:34:58.120 Because all that stuff with the lawsuit and the settlement 0:34:58.160 --> 0:35:01.200 and Will Smith movie, when was that While I was 0:35:01.320 --> 0:35:04.320 playing guys, it was taboo. Guys didn't really talk about it, 0:35:04.840 --> 0:35:07.000 you know. It's like you didn't want to just feed 0:35:07.120 --> 0:35:10.960 that negative, that negative rhetoric. You know, Like we really 0:35:11.000 --> 0:35:14.000 didn't talk about it much. But I talked about it 0:35:14.040 --> 0:35:16.680 a ton with my agent. I talked about a ton 0:35:16.760 --> 0:35:20.239 with former guys who were kind of including me in on, Hey, 0:35:20.560 --> 0:35:22.280 this is how we need to take care of ourselves. 0:35:22.640 --> 0:35:25.920 You know, I've actually you know, I live in here 0:35:25.960 --> 0:35:28.759 in d C. And I've met a lot of different people, 0:35:29.000 --> 0:35:32.239 and I'm actually later next month, I'm going to a 0:35:32.360 --> 0:35:37.000 place to specifically address what's could possibly going on in 0:35:37.120 --> 0:35:40.160 my head. Now I don't feel any lingering effects, but 0:35:41.080 --> 0:35:44.120 I want to be proactive on trying to figure out. 0:35:44.239 --> 0:35:47.120 And this is separate from the NFL, because I've had 0:35:47.440 --> 0:35:50.480 it's like a love hate relationship with the NFL. Whatever 0:35:50.760 --> 0:35:53.400 whatever information they get, I want to go toward someone 0:35:53.719 --> 0:35:59.880 completely independent to give me results that doesn't affect a lawsuit. 0:36:00.440 --> 0:36:05.239 You know, It's just I feel more just what have 0:36:05.680 --> 0:36:09.080 So you haven't really had any um, you know, effects 0:36:09.160 --> 0:36:11.920 of it that you can point to or even if 0:36:12.000 --> 0:36:14.920 you can't, do you have and not names? But do 0:36:15.000 --> 0:36:17.440 you have I'm sure you have friends that are going 0:36:17.560 --> 0:36:19.360 through some things. What are some of the things that 0:36:19.400 --> 0:36:22.399 are going through? Um? You know, one of my friends 0:36:22.440 --> 0:36:25.680 had a liver transplant before the age of forty and 0:36:26.000 --> 0:36:29.839 it was I think it was between the he played 0:36:29.880 --> 0:36:32.720 linebacker and the trauma of he was in a culture 0:36:32.719 --> 0:36:38.399 where you self medicated, right and pills, pills, alcohol, um, 0:36:39.120 --> 0:36:41.960 you know, all these different things to cope you know 0:36:42.080 --> 0:36:45.920 and deal with you know, uh, injuries and mental you 0:36:45.960 --> 0:36:49.320 know stress. I saw my buddy on his deathbed and 0:36:49.920 --> 0:36:52.920 that really we didn't think he was gonna make it. 0:36:53.040 --> 0:36:56.120 And now he's three four years of sobriety, doing well, 0:36:56.760 --> 0:36:59.200 it's had two kids. I mean, it was tough to 0:36:59.239 --> 0:37:01.239 see that. It was it was really tough to see 0:37:01.280 --> 0:37:05.040 that man, and and know that hell, we were doing this, 0:37:05.520 --> 0:37:08.120 doing these things together at one point, you know, and 0:37:08.239 --> 0:37:10.560 I and I felt myself going down a dark place. 0:37:11.280 --> 0:37:16.239 And luckily for me, I was still playing and he retired. 0:37:16.440 --> 0:37:18.880 So the things that we talked about just kind of 0:37:19.719 --> 0:37:24.560 just manifested and just you know, winning the overdrive and uh, 0:37:25.280 --> 0:37:27.120 you know, it was a dark time, man, It really 0:37:27.239 --> 0:37:29.440 was a dark time and we went down some It 0:37:29.600 --> 0:37:33.279 was like fun when it was happening, but with you, 0:37:34.000 --> 0:37:36.719 you know it just you know, you want to live 0:37:36.840 --> 0:37:38.960 now we have kids. You want to live for your kids, 0:37:39.040 --> 0:37:41.360 and you want to be here. You want to enjoy life, 0:37:41.440 --> 0:37:44.040 and that enjoyment of life is not the fun that 0:37:44.160 --> 0:37:46.400 I want to go back to. You know, I'm with you. 0:37:46.920 --> 0:37:53.080 That's growth, yeah, man. Yeah. When the lights are the 0:37:53.160 --> 0:37:56.560 brightest and being broadcast around the world on game day, 0:37:57.040 --> 0:37:59.360 you have to succeed or the team will find someone 0:37:59.680 --> 0:38:03.239 that will fill your spot. Sadly, it's the recovery and 0:38:03.400 --> 0:38:07.320 sometimes steps to the extreme that have to be taken 0:38:07.440 --> 0:38:10.080 to ensure you still have your talent and even slot 0:38:10.200 --> 0:38:14.160 on the roster tomorrow. Competition amongst brothers in the league, 0:38:14.480 --> 0:38:17.880 but even against ourselves eternally and internally, is a battle 0:38:17.960 --> 0:38:22.040 that happens behind the scenes. Some handle it better than others, 0:38:22.360 --> 0:38:25.839 but especially in the warlike conditions of the National Football League, 0:38:26.080 --> 0:38:30.000 the effects can be debilitating. We'll be right back after 0:38:30.080 --> 0:38:40.640 this word from our sponsors. I know this is a 0:38:40.760 --> 0:38:43.120 tough question and not something that can be summed up 0:38:43.520 --> 0:38:46.920 very quickly, probably, but what do you think the NFL's 0:38:47.120 --> 0:38:51.440 responsibility is in all of this with CTE? What do 0:38:51.520 --> 0:38:53.640 they need to do? Is there anything they can do? 0:38:55.080 --> 0:38:57.800 I'll tell you what, if they really cared about their athletes, 0:38:57.880 --> 0:39:01.880 state would give us. First of all, the information they 0:39:01.960 --> 0:39:04.400 provide for the players needs to be on par with 0:39:05.960 --> 0:39:08.800 with what's going on. You know this, there's this huge 0:39:08.920 --> 0:39:12.080 undercurrent of just mixed emotions about the NFL and how 0:39:12.120 --> 0:39:15.680 they handled the initial information about CTE and did they 0:39:15.719 --> 0:39:18.239 hold it did they not? You know, I'm friends with 0:39:18.360 --> 0:39:21.040 an owner and I can't name his name. And you know, 0:39:21.960 --> 0:39:24.320 I feel like the NFL has known about it, and 0:39:24.920 --> 0:39:29.279 now of recent we're hearing about, you know, the Will 0:39:29.360 --> 0:39:32.440 Smith movie. You know, we're hearing about you know, we 0:39:32.560 --> 0:39:34.680 have to hear about the junior sayals of the world 0:39:34.840 --> 0:39:38.560 committing suicide. You know, if you ever gonna rad affect you, guys, 0:39:38.719 --> 0:39:41.560 how does that affect you? Guys? You're I mean, we've 0:39:41.600 --> 0:39:46.080 lost some amazing, amazing and talented special people in football, 0:39:46.280 --> 0:39:49.040 you know, especially you know recent and in recent years. 0:39:49.080 --> 0:39:51.920 How does that affect you and your brethren? It's scares 0:39:51.960 --> 0:39:53.719 the ship out of us, man, it scares the ship 0:39:53.800 --> 0:39:57.200 out of us, because you never know, that's probably weekly 0:39:57.280 --> 0:39:59.000 that I have a conversation with my wife if I 0:39:59.040 --> 0:40:02.800 can't remember anything. I'm like hyper sensitive about it is 0:40:02.840 --> 0:40:05.800 just a trend. Like like I'm I'm always thinking about it, 0:40:06.160 --> 0:40:08.400 always thinking about it. So I try to keep myself 0:40:08.440 --> 0:40:12.320 as mentally stimulated as possible. I'm not a big reader. 0:40:12.400 --> 0:40:15.359 I've read so much since the pandemic, you know, It's 0:40:15.400 --> 0:40:19.360 like I have to keep my my brain turning. And 0:40:20.040 --> 0:40:23.080 to answer your question about the NFL and what I 0:40:23.200 --> 0:40:25.719 think they need to do. That needs to be a 0:40:25.760 --> 0:40:31.200 better transitional um effort for guys when you're done, because 0:40:31.600 --> 0:40:33.600 and it's gonna come from a former guy, it has 0:40:33.680 --> 0:40:37.520 to because we have rookie transition. Why don't we have 0:40:37.760 --> 0:40:41.719 veteran transition? Make that only makes sense, right, it only 0:40:41.800 --> 0:40:44.320 makes sense, right. We can be better just to understand 0:40:44.480 --> 0:40:49.960 what you're right there? Right, there's no symposium for that transition, 0:40:50.080 --> 0:40:52.799 and there's different resources you can connect. This is there. 0:40:52.880 --> 0:40:55.239 But if you're going through something, you don't realize you're 0:40:55.239 --> 0:40:59.000 going through something everyone else mandatory as a rookie. It's 0:40:59.080 --> 0:41:02.600 mandatory as rookie, right right, right, I mean that's the 0:41:02.680 --> 0:41:05.960 first step, right, And now you now as that create 0:41:06.040 --> 0:41:09.880 some buzz. Now you have doctors and and sports psychiatrists. 0:41:10.200 --> 0:41:13.319 We have to create this platform of disarming ourselves too 0:41:13.440 --> 0:41:16.680 in order to be better for ourselves. And that's you know, 0:41:16.719 --> 0:41:20.200 a lot of guys are weird about seeing a psychiatrist. 0:41:20.320 --> 0:41:23.000 Hell like that. I wish I would have seen one 0:41:23.160 --> 0:41:27.000 years ago, you know. So I think the culture is 0:41:27.080 --> 0:41:30.840 slowly changing in terms of how barbaric it used to 0:41:30.920 --> 0:41:33.840 be and how it is now with social media and 0:41:33.920 --> 0:41:37.360 everything like that, that you can't the NFL has to respect, 0:41:37.360 --> 0:41:39.279 you know, with the social change that's going on and 0:41:39.680 --> 0:41:43.600 all these other different platforms these players have. But well, 0:41:43.680 --> 0:41:47.200 how many times would you deliver a hit in a 0:41:47.320 --> 0:41:52.839 game or get hit in the game where you knew 0:41:52.920 --> 0:41:57.000 you should come out for a second, but you didn't, 0:41:57.160 --> 0:42:00.239 you know, because that that was nothing that you as 0:42:00.320 --> 0:42:03.000 did at that point, right. I mean, now they've got 0:42:03.120 --> 0:42:06.759 spotters and they know it's a little different now. But 0:42:07.120 --> 0:42:09.080 I used to watch you guys all the time, and 0:42:09.160 --> 0:42:11.919 I'm surprised you guys aren't hurt on every play, every 0:42:12.000 --> 0:42:15.720 single play. So but I just wonder how many times 0:42:15.800 --> 0:42:18.439 you're out there, and for a player too, if not more, 0:42:18.600 --> 0:42:22.200 you're you don't really remember what's going Yeah that, I mean, 0:42:22.239 --> 0:42:24.680 I can't even count how many times that's happened, you know, 0:42:24.880 --> 0:42:29.800 Until probably my fifth of six year, you see a 0:42:29.880 --> 0:42:32.000 shift in the NFL of how they address things. You 0:42:32.080 --> 0:42:34.880 mentioned the spotters, and there's this emphasis and push on 0:42:35.520 --> 0:42:39.040 player safety all of a sudden, why, you know, because 0:42:39.080 --> 0:42:42.120 the lawsuits were creeping up, so they have to protect themselves. 0:42:42.200 --> 0:42:46.239 And I remember an instance I was in um this 0:42:46.320 --> 0:42:48.480 is when I knew the league had changed. I was 0:42:48.520 --> 0:42:50.680 playing in Indy and I think we were playing a 0:42:50.800 --> 0:42:55.200 Giant's and I read a play a backside puller was 0:42:55.280 --> 0:42:57.680 pulling and I met him in the hole. I saw 0:42:57.760 --> 0:43:01.480 it coming. All I remember is taking a step. And 0:43:01.600 --> 0:43:04.440 then when I saw the film later, I got hit 0:43:04.520 --> 0:43:07.759 in the temple and I blacked out right and I 0:43:07.880 --> 0:43:10.600 got up and me being the person that I am, 0:43:11.680 --> 0:43:14.040 you know, you come to and all these people are 0:43:14.080 --> 0:43:15.720 looking at you and to ask you all these questions. 0:43:15.760 --> 0:43:17.799 Now I'm getting pissed at them because they think I'm 0:43:18.239 --> 0:43:21.279 they know something. I've been blacked out, But in my mind, 0:43:21.320 --> 0:43:23.160 I'm like, I'm not coming out like blah blah blah, 0:43:23.200 --> 0:43:25.480 you know, to ask me all these questions. What's your name? 0:43:25.760 --> 0:43:28.000 Who do you play for? You know? And I at 0:43:28.080 --> 0:43:31.160 that moment I heard some players, a guy named Dere's butler. 0:43:31.200 --> 0:43:34.280 When it happened, they were screaming, come god. I remember 0:43:34.360 --> 0:43:37.800 that vividly. And uh. There was another instance where I 0:43:37.840 --> 0:43:42.160 got my bill wrong and same guy he approached me 0:43:42.280 --> 0:43:44.480 was like, hey, man, you you got one more snap 0:43:44.560 --> 0:43:47.239 and I'm letting the right people know you know you're 0:43:47.239 --> 0:43:49.239 not right. I'm like, no, man, I need this, I 0:43:49.360 --> 0:43:51.400 need this man. You know my money is tied up 0:43:51.440 --> 0:43:54.359 and it's incentive base. You know. I was like, man, 0:43:54.440 --> 0:43:56.480 I need this man, and it's a conflict. It's a 0:43:56.520 --> 0:43:59.839 conflict of venturess. And you know, there's some things I've 0:43:59.840 --> 0:44:02.560 done to my body when I was much younger trying 0:44:02.600 --> 0:44:05.960 to figure out, you know, how to survive. And when 0:44:06.000 --> 0:44:10.040 my contract was literally I made money based on if 0:44:10.080 --> 0:44:13.520 I would play on Sunday. If you're available, I give 0:44:13.560 --> 0:44:15.840 I give you, give you a quick story. So I 0:44:15.920 --> 0:44:17.839 had never had shin splint. This is early in my career. 0:44:17.840 --> 0:44:19.759 I never had shin splints before in my life. I 0:44:19.880 --> 0:44:21.680 used to thank people who got shin splints with just 0:44:22.680 --> 0:44:25.920 overreacting and I wake up right until I wake up 0:44:26.000 --> 0:44:30.279 one Sunday morning and my shins are on fire, and 0:44:30.320 --> 0:44:33.600 I'm like, what the hell is this? So I knew 0:44:33.640 --> 0:44:36.960 a nurse. I call a nurse. He's like, hey. I 0:44:37.120 --> 0:44:38.920 was like, I need some toward all, I need some 0:44:39.000 --> 0:44:41.520 toward all pills. I need some perkose at And she 0:44:41.680 --> 0:44:45.080 got me both. And when I tell you the worst 0:44:45.560 --> 0:44:47.400 like those are the one of those moments in my 0:44:47.560 --> 0:44:50.200 career where I look back and like, man, you were 0:44:50.800 --> 0:44:53.359 like that was the dumbest thing I could have done, 0:44:53.880 --> 0:44:56.879 but during that time it made the most sense. I mean, 0:44:56.920 --> 0:45:00.239 I had taken three or four Perkose said, you know 0:45:00.320 --> 0:45:02.200 I had, you know, toward all. You know, toward all. 0:45:02.200 --> 0:45:05.160 You don't feel anything? Hey me and I won't say 0:45:05.200 --> 0:45:08.520 the name, but a teammate of mine late in our career, mum, 0:45:09.560 --> 0:45:12.799 for the last two years, our doctor would give us 0:45:12.880 --> 0:45:17.040 toward all at home before the game, but they wouldn't trust. 0:45:17.280 --> 0:45:19.239 You know, we couldn't do it on the road. So 0:45:19.960 --> 0:45:23.800 we would pack two syringes of toward all and he 0:45:23.920 --> 0:45:26.200 and I would give each other toward all shots before 0:45:26.239 --> 0:45:29.319 the game. Same same. That was my That was my life. 0:45:29.800 --> 0:45:32.480 That was my life. I did it for many years, man, 0:45:32.600 --> 0:45:35.120 just to survive. You know, talk about for a minute, 0:45:35.160 --> 0:45:37.960 the self experiments and things you're doing. You know, why 0:45:38.040 --> 0:45:40.239 you're doing them, and what do you hope comes out 0:45:40.280 --> 0:45:43.000 of them? Yeah? Man, So you know, one of the 0:45:43.480 --> 0:45:46.040 ways I'm trying to help myself and help other people 0:45:46.800 --> 0:45:49.400 that are transition and some of my buddies particularly, is 0:45:49.480 --> 0:45:53.279 to start the podcast The Athletes Unplug. You know, I realized, 0:45:53.840 --> 0:45:56.800 if we can have these conversations with each other and 0:45:56.920 --> 0:46:00.319 we can compare similar stories, you and I it's there utick, 0:46:00.960 --> 0:46:03.879 and you feel like you're wanted, you feel like you're 0:46:04.000 --> 0:46:08.600 part of something. I've never been afraid to Even when 0:46:08.640 --> 0:46:10.520 I was playing Rex, I knew I was on my 0:46:10.640 --> 0:46:12.960 way out sort of because the things that I was, 0:46:13.280 --> 0:46:17.280 you know, for instance, I haven't really talked about this openly, 0:46:17.440 --> 0:46:22.200 but there's this undercurrent of veteran players in the National 0:46:22.239 --> 0:46:25.359 Football League who advised some of these younger guys if 0:46:25.360 --> 0:46:29.800 they're injured, right Like, I had a rocky, you know, 0:46:29.920 --> 0:46:34.360 experience with team doctors. So I've always taken a stance 0:46:34.480 --> 0:46:38.680 of if you're diagnosed with something, go get a second opinion. 0:46:38.719 --> 0:46:40.319 They'll pay for it, they'll fly you out, Go get 0:46:40.320 --> 0:46:43.080 a second opinion. And now I haven't been in the 0:46:43.160 --> 0:46:45.200 locker room in five years, but I'm quite sure this 0:46:45.480 --> 0:46:50.359 element of that culture still exists where they look down 0:46:50.440 --> 0:46:53.359 on you, you know, as a veteran coaching these guys 0:46:53.400 --> 0:46:55.440 of how to take care of their bodies and how 0:46:55.520 --> 0:46:58.200 to be an independent contractor, you know. And I was 0:46:58.400 --> 0:47:00.879 a huge component of that. The older I can put 0:47:00.880 --> 0:47:02.920 because I had saved my money, I had done the 0:47:03.040 --> 0:47:05.040 right things, and if you're gonna kick me out based 0:47:05.120 --> 0:47:08.600 on that then I was okay, but I didn't want 0:47:08.719 --> 0:47:10.800 My fear was I didn't want this young person to 0:47:10.960 --> 0:47:14.040 ever for us to ever cross paths years later into 0:47:14.200 --> 0:47:17.200 and and be mad or resent me for not telling 0:47:17.280 --> 0:47:21.200 him how to manage this business. So I would have 0:47:21.360 --> 0:47:24.640 these conversations with coaches you know you've had. I've been 0:47:24.680 --> 0:47:27.680 put in situations where hey, a guy has a baby. 0:47:28.120 --> 0:47:29.960 You know, Hey, you're the leader. Hey can you just 0:47:30.040 --> 0:47:32.120 training camp? Hey? You know, we really want them to stay. 0:47:32.160 --> 0:47:33.520 I'm like, what, what the hell you want me to 0:47:33.560 --> 0:47:35.640 tell him? If you want what I'm gonna tell him, 0:47:35.719 --> 0:47:37.319 you better go see your baby because you gotta live 0:47:37.360 --> 0:47:39.080 with your baby's mother for the rest of your life. 0:47:39.440 --> 0:47:41.360 You know I'm not doing that. You know, It's like, 0:47:41.760 --> 0:47:43.759 what are we doing here? I'm gonna be the bad 0:47:43.800 --> 0:47:47.480 guy for you, right, That's not happening. It's not happening. 0:47:48.120 --> 0:47:51.080 And so you know, I became a little not that rebellious, 0:47:51.120 --> 0:47:54.880 but I realized, like, man, this it's not all about 0:47:55.000 --> 0:47:57.920 the game. I love it, unequivocally, love it, love everything 0:47:57.960 --> 0:47:59.800 about it, but you know I'm not gonna lose my 0:48:00.000 --> 0:48:03.520 self in it. No, and that it is powerful to share. 0:48:03.640 --> 0:48:05.200 I mean, there are plenty of things that I saw 0:48:05.360 --> 0:48:08.440 going in the locker room that you know, I couldn't 0:48:08.480 --> 0:48:12.160 fly today, that I didn't say shit about, you know, 0:48:12.640 --> 0:48:17.000 and that I look back like, man, I uh, you know, 0:48:17.080 --> 0:48:19.440 and you have regrets about that. You know, you're you're 0:48:19.480 --> 0:48:22.560 older than I guess that's just maturity. What do you 0:48:22.600 --> 0:48:25.040 think about the game of football, nolte Quell, What advice 0:48:25.320 --> 0:48:28.480 would you get parents or young people playing the game today? Yeah, 0:48:28.560 --> 0:48:31.120 I think it's a great tool for young people. Young 0:48:31.200 --> 0:48:33.520 people playing, I think it's a great tool to teach 0:48:33.600 --> 0:48:38.080 them about how to keep pushing forward and push through fears, 0:48:38.640 --> 0:48:41.479 push through failure. Right, I think it's a great tool 0:48:41.560 --> 0:48:46.560 for that. However, I would suggest any parent that wants 0:48:46.640 --> 0:48:52.359 to put their kid into a contact sport like football. Listen, 0:48:52.400 --> 0:48:55.279 I played eleven years and I'm indifferent. If my son 0:48:55.360 --> 0:48:58.359 wants to play, I can't stop him, but I would 0:48:58.400 --> 0:49:01.040 wait until his later years to throw him into that 0:49:01.200 --> 0:49:04.320 contact spoort. And I think it's a great game, And honestly, 0:49:04.920 --> 0:49:07.160 I don't want him playing football, I really don't. I 0:49:07.239 --> 0:49:09.480 know the ugly side of it and the pressure of 0:49:09.560 --> 0:49:11.719 that mounts on it, and if you're not built for it, 0:49:12.320 --> 0:49:14.480 you're not gonna last. It could tear you down. And 0:49:14.760 --> 0:49:16.759 I'm not trying to, you know, make it seem like 0:49:18.280 --> 0:49:21.200 feel sorry for professional athletes. Listen, they make a lot 0:49:21.239 --> 0:49:23.640 of money doing what they love, but it's an exorbitant 0:49:23.640 --> 0:49:26.200 amount of sacrifice that goes into it that everyone pays 0:49:26.239 --> 0:49:29.600 the price and when you're done playing. You know, we 0:49:29.680 --> 0:49:31.560 talked about a lot of those different things, but what 0:49:31.640 --> 0:49:34.880 I would tell people do your homework. Do your homework, 0:49:34.960 --> 0:49:38.000 Understand the level of stress and the level of danger 0:49:38.080 --> 0:49:41.080 you're putting your kid through, and you assess it there. 0:49:41.120 --> 0:49:43.680 Because for me, I don't want my son playing. Honestly, 0:49:43.719 --> 0:49:45.319 I love the game of football, but I don't want 0:49:45.360 --> 0:49:49.520 my son playing football. I just don't. I just don't. 0:49:49.600 --> 0:49:52.239 I've been through so many dark days and I don't 0:49:52.280 --> 0:49:55.120 feel comfortable with that right now. I'm proud that you're 0:49:55.120 --> 0:49:59.560 able to voice this because think about it, you guys 0:49:59.600 --> 0:50:03.799 are the first generation to have this information, right, I mean, 0:50:04.000 --> 0:50:07.640 essentially you're the first generation to have this information as 0:50:07.719 --> 0:50:11.360 young people. Right. Are there any causes, any organizations you 0:50:11.400 --> 0:50:15.440 want to bring attention to the quill? You know, not 0:50:15.600 --> 0:50:18.239 at this moment, but can I bring some attention to 0:50:18.360 --> 0:50:22.960 my podcast as well. Absolutely listen. Um, I'm trying to 0:50:23.000 --> 0:50:25.239 create a platform like you and I to talk about 0:50:25.280 --> 0:50:27.960 everything underneath the sun. You know it's that it's called 0:50:28.000 --> 0:50:31.800 Athletes Unplugged. Uh. That's three things that most people that 0:50:32.000 --> 0:50:35.080 know me know I enjoy doing. I like smoking a cigar. 0:50:35.840 --> 0:50:38.160 I like some red wine, and I love my whiskey. 0:50:38.520 --> 0:50:42.800 And I try to I try to create that platform, 0:50:42.960 --> 0:50:45.279 that space is. I feel like I've had some of 0:50:45.360 --> 0:50:48.600 the most meaningful conversations at my house by the fire 0:50:48.680 --> 0:50:52.520 pit when those three things were involved. Obviously under control, 0:50:52.600 --> 0:50:57.280 but but it's therapeutic. I want people to just experience 0:50:57.360 --> 0:50:59.440 it in and we have fun. We have last we 0:50:59.520 --> 0:51:01.960 talked about real stuff similar to what you're doing. And 0:51:02.040 --> 0:51:04.719 I'm bringing all my friends on the ride with me. Man, 0:51:04.840 --> 0:51:06.960 that's great. I can't wait to check it out. You 0:51:07.080 --> 0:51:10.200 let me know I'll come on any time you want. Thanks. 0:51:10.480 --> 0:51:12.200 I can't thank you enough to Quell for being on 0:51:12.280 --> 0:51:14.880 the show, sharing your story with all of us. You 0:51:14.960 --> 0:51:17.080 know we're rooting for you and your health. And if 0:51:17.120 --> 0:51:20.399 there's ever anything I can do, my door is always open. 0:51:20.640 --> 0:51:23.480 Thanks my guy, Rex, I really appreciate it. Man. I 0:51:23.520 --> 0:51:26.640 get to talk to a NBA star. Man. That that's 0:51:26.680 --> 0:51:28.279 great man, So I would love to have you on 0:51:28.320 --> 0:51:31.680 the podcast. We could talk more about anything you want 0:51:31.680 --> 0:51:34.440 to talk about. And I'm here for anything you need 0:51:34.520 --> 0:51:37.320 for me. I'm here for you brother. Thanks man, I 0:51:37.400 --> 0:51:40.719 appreciate you. Got it Charges Serving no run ins with 0:51:40.800 --> 0:51:43.760 the law charges she Lee send the tenors and balls 0:51:43.880 --> 0:51:47.640 and charges the celebrity gank formals charges we came along 0:51:47.680 --> 0:51:51.880 with from Living Lawless Charges. Serving no runians with the charges, 0:51:52.320 --> 0:51:55.360 Lee send the tenors and balls and charges the celebrity 0:51:55.440 --> 0:51:59.200 gank forlormals charge we came along with from Living Lawless charge. 0:52:00.160 --> 0:52:04.799 Job Charges is created by Portlay and Control Media. It's 0:52:04.840 --> 0:52:08.280 produced by DV Podcasts in association with I Heart Radio 0:52:08.640 --> 0:52:11.520 or more podcasts. For my heart Radio, visit i Heart 0:52:11.600 --> 0:52:16.160 Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts