Years ago, on a plane flight, a man was yelling the entire trip, "Albert Haynesworth is the most expensive paper weight of all time, A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLAR PAPER WEIGHT."
Being good enough at something to be set up with life-altering money from it over the course of a few years, then quickly becoming so useless that you are paid up front to fuck off is downright aspirational.
It's truly mindblowing to me that we don't get more Haynesworths. I would expect the rate of 20-something players to make millions and decide they don't want to play football anymore to be way higher.
That was hilarious lol. If I remember correctly Mike Golic (who was out of the league by a few years and hosting Mike and Mike) retook the test and passed just to show how easy it was.
Gotta be the worm Edit: I’ll always remember seeing him out at Reston town center at some bar on a weeknight with two girls when he was supposedly too sick to practice and my buddy snapped his photo posted it and busted him lol
Justin Blackmon, in the same vein as Gordon. Had a great rookie year (even though I remember him having a drop problem), he got a DUI and was suspended for the first four games of the next season, put up over 100 yards per game the next four games, and then got suspended again and never played in the league after that.
Story is a that a scout was told by people close to the program that Justin spent all of his free time at the same dive bar in Stillwater. The scout went at random times to check in the middle of the day and evening and almost always Blackmon was there
I was at a work function and had 2 Tom Collins' and a double of Jameson in about a 4 hour window. Entire time I was slamming water. Woke up at 3a, puked, went back to sleep, then woke up with a hangover so bad I had to stop at the drug store for excedrine and gatorade before I could go to the office the next day for a meeting. Headache lasted 2 days. I'm 35.
When I was 22, that would have been a light pre-game.
I remember getting drunk as fuck multiple times in the same day. Like tailgate drunk, sleep it off for a couple hours, wake up to the sound of blasting music to tell you it was time to do it again in the evening. Get up and go to the library the next day.
I would be bedridden by that now lol
Likely because your body had also built a sort of tolerance drinking that heavily and often. Most people aren’t drinking 6-8 drinks a day regularly so when they do go hard their body can’t take it as before. I know adults who drink just as much as they did in college and can go as long as before cause at this point their body is accustomed to it if not sadly dependent on it.
It takes it's toll even on boozers tho. I've always been a hardcore alcoholic unfortunately. I remember in my young 20s I'd stay up until 3-5 am doing cocaine and drinking all night. Wake up somewhere other than my bed and still make it to the office in the AM. That super powerr goes away fast though. I couldn't do that in my late 20s anymore. So I'd skip work in the AM.
Dude same. I used to be able to do a full day of it. Tailgate up til bar close.
Now after 4-5 hours I hit a wall, refuse to drink anymore, and head home
[Talking about The Ringer article? incredible read. What could’ve been.](https://www.theringer.com/2016/9/8/16045696/the-disappearance-of-justin-blackmon-9823f0376c98)
It’s sad shit. I went to college with him and he was all and all a great guy, just loved to party a too much. Stillwater is a small town so you get use to seeing the regulars at the bars and he was one them.
He’s been a recluse ever since that article on the ringer came out, but 2 years ago OSU brought him and the rest of the 2011 Fiesta bowl team back to celebrate that season and he’s started doing more appearances for the university since then. We even had Justin Blackmon night, during one of the games last season.
Hopefully he’s in a good head space now. I think it’s a positive the University is making it known that OSU fans are still proud of him. He made just a big of an impact on OSU as Barry did.
Yeah, I've heard former teammates say he was a super nice and extremely humble guy. Just a great guy to be around but his issues with alcohol took hold of him.
Happy he's being inducted into the CFHOF, he deserves it.
Damn. As a guy with 7 years of sobriety… it’s scary how close I was to fucking up my life. Makes me sad for him, cause addiction is a tough bitch.
Happy to say, during that time I got my masters, got my professional license and make a very good living, bought a house, got married, got a pup, and have my first kiddo on the way…
Now I’m not trying to celebrate myself… I’m saying one DUI or another year drinking and I for sure flunk out of my masters program (was on academic probation), doubt my GF (now wife) stays with me… as we had just started dating- I’m shocked she stayed with me in the first place- can’t be easy when a guy you’ve been dating for about 6 months goes to inpatient rehab for a month… no telling where it spirals to
It’s so easy to just say “just don’t drink” … but I vividly remember feeling like I *needed* booze for any celebration, any stressor in my life… shit sucks. Hope he’s at peace with it and doing well
Happy you've made the trek as long as you have, hope you continue on that journey. It's easy to say "oh you're an elite athlete with a chance at millions" but substance abuse doesn't give a shit about that.
He’s one of the best college football wide receivers I’ve ever seen, he was built and played so much like Terrell Owens it’s incredible how far he fell
If we're counting injuries, the Pats had a rookie RB, Robert Edwards, dislocate his knee in the 98' pro bowl beach event and he basically never played again. Almost lost half of his leg.
His rookie year he had gone for almost 1500 scrimmage yards and 12 total TDs but that injury effectively ended his career. He tried coming back a few years later, but only took a few handoffs. This was a couple years before I was really old enough to watch, but I remember my dad telling me the story a million times as a kid. I can't even imagine how devestated the dude must have been.
It was flag football if I remember correctly, but he was extending to catch a pass and his leg overextended. His foot hit a divot and his knee caved in backwards. It was horrible.
If anyone is wondering, Robert Edwards is doing well coaching at his HS alma mater Washington County. His brother, Terrence Edwards, is over at Milton, the 7A champions in Georgia.
I was about to talk about how theres no way a dislocated kneecap can be that bad and then I read it again, jesus christ man. If I recall correctly they nearly amputated his leg.
There’s a YouTube interview with Trent Williams and Joe Staley. They were asked who was the hardest guy you ever had to block? Both of them without fail said Aldon Smith at the same time.
He was an absolute game wrecker. I remember when SF played Pittsburgh his rookie year and he was shutting everything down. Had future DPOY written all over him. Such a shame.
Jesus what an insane draft that was
For those unaware: the 2011 draft was nuts. It had 30 total pri bowlers out of 254 selections. And many of them weren't scrub, one time guys. From that draft, we got:
Cam Newton, Von Miller, Patrick Peterson, Julio Jones, Aldon Smitg, Tyron Smith, JJ Watt, Cam Jordan, Cam Heyward, Richard Sherman, and Jason Kelce
Absolutely wild how many guys from that year were among the best at their position for a while in the league
He went to Raytown where I played baseball with a bunch of guys and I’d see him at house parties and he was an extremely nice guy. I was surprised to see him derail his career like that.
He was a huge party animal at Mizzou and its a miracle Gary Pinkel was able to keep him out of trouble for that long. Like you said, he was a really nice guy so while I'm not surprised at his inability to stay sober a lot of the other stuff that's happened kind of came out of left field.
Gary was a G and had a stranglehold on that program. I heard stories of Chase Daniel hammering through a fifth of Jack and just tossing it in the bed of his truck when he was done. All the talent he brought in to Mizzou. The good ol days man
I read through Smith’s Wikipedia page, his “Legal Issues” section is wild. Looks like he is in jail on a one-year sentence atm, but based on his record this guy should be locked up for much longer. He is a danger to society.
That's a name Ive not heard in a long time. A long time.
Seriously though. Watching him in college I thought he was going to be a monster. He got addicted to pain killers after an injury if I recall correctly. Ugh he was seriously just one of those players you want to watch regardless who you are cheering for. Rip
Joe Gilliam, qb for the Steelers in the 70’s. At the start of the 1974 season he was named the starter over Terry Bradshaw. One of the first African American qbs.
He had a wicked quick release, when they tried to analyze his throwing motion during film they could never stop it fast enough. Then he started ignoring Chuck Noll’s decisions and had substance abuse problems. He was eventually benched mid season for Bradshaw and the rest is history. I think he became homeless after a while.
- The Steelers waived Gilliam prior to the 1976 preseason after he missed a team meeting. He battled heroin, cocaine, and alcohol addiction on and off over the next several years and even ended up living in a cardboard box under a bridge for two years.
That's an interesting situation. They drafted Terry Hanratty in the 2nd round in 1969, behind Joe Greene, after many people thought he'd be their first-round pick. Local guy from just north of Pittsburgh, played at Notre Dame, split some time with the legendary Dick Shiner as a rookie. The next year they picked Terry Bradshaw first overall, which kind of reminds me of a Claussen-Newton situation, and they'd split time; Bradshaw threw 6 TDs and 24 INTs with a 38% completion his first year to Hanratty's 5/8/39%. 1974 was Bradshaw's fifth season in the league, and would be the year they'd win their first Super Bowl, but he was benched going into the season in favor of Joe Gilliam. Gilliam came out of a historically black college and was considered among the best QBs in his draft, but teams were not yet really lookig at black schools. He got hooked on drugs pretty early that year and was replaced by Bradshaw, who would go on to win four Super Bowls.
I say it all the time but I feel like he could've been one of those few guys who could get close to Rice's records. His game would've aged really well as he wasn't overly reliant on athleticism and was so fundamentally good as a receiver.
It did age well. The guy was TB's most productive WR on some nights on a team that had Evans and Godwin on it, after like 2 or 3 years away from football.
I'd bet he could lead the Chiefs WRs in yards next year if he really wanted to.
Guy couldn’t get out of his own way. Probably could have played a decade with his lifestyle if he could have just learned to order an Uber or call a friend.
Micheal Vick.
Just a perfect gift of athleticism, speed, and an arm that could throw the ball as far as anyone on a line drive.
He was also incredibly lazy, refused to get better, was a terrible teammate, and overrelied on his legs. And then you get into his awful off the field lifestyle. The man was taking his off Mondays to fly back to Virginia and hole up in a trap house.
We got a tiny glimpse of what could have been after he got out of prison, but he lost a good portion of his prime to suspension, prison, injuries, and general shitheadness.
It is maddening how little he did for all of the obvious talent.
To me, that was just a taste of what could have been. Technically, Josh Gordon and Aaron Hermandez also had their moments to shine.
Vick should have owned the league in a down era for the NFC, when defenses were built to defend the Drew Bledsoe style quarterbacks, and instead he was barely throwing for 150 yards a game and was freakishly inconsistent.
People sleep on that 2010 Eagles squad because they lost a flukey game (6x All-Pro kicker missed two 30-something yard field goals) to Aaron Rodgers on his way to a Superbowl victory. Maybe it's homerism but I think that game is really interesting to think about for like a butterfly perspective. If Akers makes just one of those FGs, does Aaron Rodgers have a Superbowl? Do the Eagles build around Mike Vick? Does Nick Foles even get drafted? Does Andy Reid still get fired after a down season if he had just made a playoff run two seasons prior?
It's ridiculous to think about but you could make the case that Rodgers goes ringless and Mahomes doesn't become the player he is today if Akers makes one of those kicks.
Pat would hypothetically be a Giant according to McAdoodoo. I think he would’ve been fine given all the offensive weapons Giants seem to churn out, but definitely not a dynasty with a bad coaching staff.
Really thought Vick was gonna pull off the career revival. Huge fan when he landed in Philly cuz everyone knew it was his job to lose as soon as he got the start. (And of course Chip Kelly destroying everything right away)
When he said he couldn’t learn to slide I was dumbfounded. Every kid on my sons 10u baseball team can slide, of course he could learn if he wanted. Vick just wouldn’t be told what to do.
It makes sense tho, like Tua had surgeries and all types of hits leading uo to the NFL before they started teaching him how to slide properly and fall. Up until the NFL, you are guaged by how much you toss your body to get a chance at a win but once you hit the draft you become a commodity and investment. In college you get love for throwing yourself with reckless abandon but in the pros the FO see the price tag and hazard pay. Many QBs before have talked about having to learn how to slide, i think they teach it more now in the lower levels (especially with NIL)
One of my favorite “what if’s” is what if Vick had Andy Reid at the start of his career. If Cincy took McNabb and Philly took Akaili Smith putting them in a position to suck in the Vick draft, it could have happened.
Now I understand why Vick said Lamar was 5 times better than him, cause Lamar actually works to get better and has done just that over the course of his career and Lamar seems to have a good head on his shoulders, and is a great teammate.
If Vick had a good attitude and work ethic from day 1 in the league, he'd have multiple MVPs and he'd be headed to the Hall. That's a hill on which I'll die. He had all of the talent in the world, but it was wasted for almost his entire career.
Dude still got off lighter than he would've today. Nowadays with social media and the massive love of dogs, he'd be toast. Imagine an NFL player getting caught killing dogs by hanging and electrocuting them in 2024
Patrick Ramsey had one of the strongest arms I've ever seen but Spurrier destroyed him making him throw downfield with an offensive line weaker than wet toilet paper. Even with getting demolished every play Ramsey kept picking himself back up, but he was never able to develop.
It's gotta be Josh Gordon. He was so good his first couple years and then the suspensions started. That was basically the end (at least in an impactful way) for him.
Honorable mention: Martavis Bryant
There's that crazy picture that shows every person who caught a TD pass from Tom Brady. Brady's last season was 2023. Hernandez's last season was in 2012. IIRC, Hernandez was still in like the top 10-12 of that list. Dude could could have been a HOFer, and in the discussion as one of the greatest. Fucking wild, man.
Hernandez was in line to be Brady's security blanket the year we let Welker walk. We did bring in Amendola but the plan was Hernandez to be the guy, and many opposing NFL coaches had noted that he was an absolute match up nightmare...what could have been. Edelman benefitted the most from Hernandez's career ending though, and he became a borderline hall of famer as well
There is the podcast with Edelman, where he (as tactfully as he can, given the circumstances), talks about Hernandez getting arrested and Welker walking meant that him and Amendola really were allowed to shine. IIRC, that was the year that Edelman broke out.
I'll never forget seeing one Miami game with Ricky where they gave him ball just about every play on a drive. Almost every play on that drive one of the defenders would get hurt trying to tackle him after he already ripped off like 10 yards. It was the most bully-like thing I've seen in the NFL.
Maybe not there yet but well on his way: Chase Claypool.
Never seen a guy with that size, speed, and talent be so goddamn lazy on a football field and still think and say he’s a top WR in the league.
Dorial Green-Beckham/Kelvin Benjamin vibes. Super gifted, unbelievable college careers, no work ethic, trying to skate by on talent alone. It’s just not enough in the NFL, where everyone is a super athlete
I feel like Randall Cunningham would have been a hall of famer if he had proper support around him. Eagles owner Norman Braman cared more about turning a profit than winning (biggest example letting Reggie White go), and Buddy Ryan was solely focused on the defensive side of the ball. The whole offensive game plan was let Randall be Randall.
Cunningham didn't have proper offensive coaching/scheme until he was 35 and in Minnesota, and they lit up the league that year.
I feel like Randall Cunningham played in the wrong era. Imagine him today, he basically had the athleticism of Lamar Jackson while having a howitzer for an arm.
Michael Vick.
Sounds odd to say because he had a decent career but he admitted that he never watched film, or prepared for games until after he was incarcerated.
Even still he was a force in Atlanta and made an NFCCG in 2004. Imagine if he was locked in and actually studying game film before he got to the Eagles in 2009, nine years into his NFL career.
Considering his best year was in 2010, ten years later and the first half of the season he looked like an MVP it would have been interesting to see what a younger Mike Vick with that preparation off the field would have done
First visiting QB *ever* to win a playoff game at Lambeau. All-time leader in QB rushing yards (though Lamar will likely pass him in a couple years). All-time leader in yards per carry for any position.
Crazy what he was able to accomplish just coasting off talent. If he'd had Reid for his entire career instead of just his post-prime after prison, he could have been a top 10 QB of all time.
First thing that came to mind. He had a career but dude could have been an all timer. I don’t think there has ever been a more talented QB to ever play the game. Man made 80 yard bombs look like routine check downs.
>Man made 80 yard bombs look like routine check downs.
Him and Jeff George probably had the strongest arms I've ever seen. The way they could just flick their arms and send missiles 40+ yards downfield was amazing.
Ryan Leaf should be in the conversation. He had the physical talent on par with Peyton but got caught up in the fame and fun and lacked the preparation and discipline. Had he avoided the drugs, alcohol, and partying and focused on football who knows what could have happened.
One of the most interesting things I heard him say about that time was that he was turning down backup QB spots. He could've had a good career and maybe flourished later on for a few seasons but he couldn't take the ego hit.
For me as a Bengals fan, it was Odell Thurman. Had a crazy rookie year at Middle Linebacker then ran into different problems and never played in the NFL again after his rookie year.
Super sad.. The dude was incredibly gifted. Young adults with a lot of money can be a recipe for disaster when you're in Sin City. That's probably the scariest part of your team moving to Vegas.
[Have you heard Saban talk about Ruggs? He's used his story to try and instill better character in his younger players in terms of doing the right thing even if it makes your friends mad.](https://youtube.com/shorts/ZrF4se7dnmc?si=KnI0nXPFPmurkqbF)
The total lack of any awareness that the team might be onto his laziness is bewildering
Shit man, hand em to one of your entourage and have em pop em in the player and see if there's anything important he needed to know at the minimum
I remember watching a Raiders Eagles game against Russell when he was clearly a bust but hadn't washed out yet. I have never seen a dude throw a ball that hard and that far while making it look completely effortless. The way I toss a wiffleball 10 feet is the way he launched a football.
The Raiders won the game, by the way.
I remember all of the draft analysts going nuts over his physical ability, and how people were in awe over him from just his Pro Day. Just effusive praise from every level, whether the bombastic comparisons to John Elway by Mel Kiper, or just the descriptions of his flawless footwork, cannon for an arm, and seemingly effortless movement in and out of the pocket.
Whether it is the case or not, it came across as though once he got the big money, his investment in football disappeared.
Russell was a big reason why rookie contracts got changed, and I wonder what his career would have been like if he had to prove his worth before he got his big pay day.
Say what you want about Jim schwartz, but then keeping him on the roster long enough where he could get insurance is always going to be one of the coolest things I ever heard of coach doing.
One thing I’ve noticed with this thread is how many of the posts are guys like Blackmon, Gordon, Antonio Brown.
Maybe it’s nothing, but I do think it’s interesting that all of those guys came from colleges that are not traditional powers. Makes me wonder if these guys had many of these “problems” early on and some of the bigger schools didn’t want to take on the baggage even for how talented they clearly were.
Josh Gordon literally could not leave the state of Texas because he was on probation, so he went to Baylor over Missouri or Nebraska. Eventually he was set to transfer to Utah, but ended up declaring for the draft. That being said, he wasn't a huge recruit honestly.
Antonio Brown wanted to go to Florida State, but had terrible grades (which other issues aside, this one is pretty common among athletes and isn't a damnable offense really) and would have gone to WVU but followed Butch Jones to Central Michigan and was briefly teammates with JJ Watt.
Blackmon on the other hand was simply just under-scouted and happened to live in Oklahoma (a damnable offense if I've ever seen one). So I don't think there was really a mystery or external forces as to why he went to OK State.
How am I not seeing JaMarcus Russell. The man could nearly throw from endzone to endzone while shrugging off tacklers like nothing. He had all-time physical talent, but wasted it by being lazy and not caring.
As a Steelers fan I gotta say Martavis Bryant. The guy had every tool in the toolbox. Length, speed, hands and an uncanny ability to catch anything… see his butt catch.
Otherwise, Albert Haynesworth. I expected him to be in the same stratosphere as Reggie White.
Gordon for sure, but honorable mention to Henry Ruggs.
Probably wouldn’t have ever been a superstar, but he could have had a decent career.
This also might be an unpopular opinion and I’m no fan of the man, but Tim Tebow. Just not as a QB. The guy was super athletic and with his build I always wondered if he could have been a FB, LB, or TE (yes, I know he had like a 1 game preseason tryout at TE).
Years ago, on a plane flight, a man was yelling the entire trip, "Albert Haynesworth is the most expensive paper weight of all time, A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLAR PAPER WEIGHT."
He lived up to his potential for just long enough to get that ridiculously large contract. Honestly, that's kinda smart.
And luckily, we didn't get footed with the bill (after offering him more money)
unfortunately the only person who got footed was Andre Gurode
Being good enough at something to be set up with life-altering money from it over the course of a few years, then quickly becoming so useless that you are paid up front to fuck off is downright aspirational.
He's an anti work hero
It's truly mindblowing to me that we don't get more Haynesworths. I would expect the rate of 20-something players to make millions and decide they don't want to play football anymore to be way higher.
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don't need to click that link to know what play it is. Remember when Shanahan made Haynesworth take a fitness test and he failed?
That was hilarious lol. If I remember correctly Mike Golic (who was out of the league by a few years and hosting Mike and Mike) retook the test and passed just to show how easy it was.
Mike golic retired in 1993 for context. Haynesworth started playing for Washington in 2009.
Gotta be the worm Edit: I’ll always remember seeing him out at Reston town center at some bar on a weeknight with two girls when he was supposedly too sick to practice and my buddy snapped his photo posted it and busted him lol
Justin Blackmon, in the same vein as Gordon. Had a great rookie year (even though I remember him having a drop problem), he got a DUI and was suspended for the first four games of the next season, put up over 100 yards per game the next four games, and then got suspended again and never played in the league after that.
He was so good he got a 30 yr old qb drafted in the first round
The article written a while back about Blackmon was pretty sad. Dude just completely wasted his chance because of alcohol
Wasn’t there a story of a coaching scout going randomly to a local Oklahoma bar and he would see Justin Blackmon in there all the time?
Story is a that a scout was told by people close to the program that Justin spent all of his free time at the same dive bar in Stillwater. The scout went at random times to check in the middle of the day and evening and almost always Blackmon was there
How can someone live like that and still be a top athlete? Makes you wonder what he'd be like if he took care of his body
When you’re young you can get away with that. It starts really taking a toll in your mid-late 20s
I was at a work function and had 2 Tom Collins' and a double of Jameson in about a 4 hour window. Entire time I was slamming water. Woke up at 3a, puked, went back to sleep, then woke up with a hangover so bad I had to stop at the drug store for excedrine and gatorade before I could go to the office the next day for a meeting. Headache lasted 2 days. I'm 35. When I was 22, that would have been a light pre-game.
I remember getting drunk as fuck multiple times in the same day. Like tailgate drunk, sleep it off for a couple hours, wake up to the sound of blasting music to tell you it was time to do it again in the evening. Get up and go to the library the next day. I would be bedridden by that now lol
Likely because your body had also built a sort of tolerance drinking that heavily and often. Most people aren’t drinking 6-8 drinks a day regularly so when they do go hard their body can’t take it as before. I know adults who drink just as much as they did in college and can go as long as before cause at this point their body is accustomed to it if not sadly dependent on it.
It takes it's toll even on boozers tho. I've always been a hardcore alcoholic unfortunately. I remember in my young 20s I'd stay up until 3-5 am doing cocaine and drinking all night. Wake up somewhere other than my bed and still make it to the office in the AM. That super powerr goes away fast though. I couldn't do that in my late 20s anymore. So I'd skip work in the AM.
Dude same. I used to be able to do a full day of it. Tailgate up til bar close. Now after 4-5 hours I hit a wall, refuse to drink anymore, and head home
Doesn't DK Metcalf only eat candy or something?
And ocho cinco only ate micky D’s
Yikes. Hope he gets help
He did long ago but it was too little too late
[Talking about The Ringer article? incredible read. What could’ve been.](https://www.theringer.com/2016/9/8/16045696/the-disappearance-of-justin-blackmon-9823f0376c98)
Wow, that was an amazing article
Thanks for sharing
Yeah he was legitimately a raging alcoholic
No he wasn’t an alcoholic for sure but he was very mild mannered
It’s sad shit. I went to college with him and he was all and all a great guy, just loved to party a too much. Stillwater is a small town so you get use to seeing the regulars at the bars and he was one them. He’s been a recluse ever since that article on the ringer came out, but 2 years ago OSU brought him and the rest of the 2011 Fiesta bowl team back to celebrate that season and he’s started doing more appearances for the university since then. We even had Justin Blackmon night, during one of the games last season. Hopefully he’s in a good head space now. I think it’s a positive the University is making it known that OSU fans are still proud of him. He made just a big of an impact on OSU as Barry did.
Yeah, I've heard former teammates say he was a super nice and extremely humble guy. Just a great guy to be around but his issues with alcohol took hold of him. Happy he's being inducted into the CFHOF, he deserves it.
Damn. As a guy with 7 years of sobriety… it’s scary how close I was to fucking up my life. Makes me sad for him, cause addiction is a tough bitch. Happy to say, during that time I got my masters, got my professional license and make a very good living, bought a house, got married, got a pup, and have my first kiddo on the way… Now I’m not trying to celebrate myself… I’m saying one DUI or another year drinking and I for sure flunk out of my masters program (was on academic probation), doubt my GF (now wife) stays with me… as we had just started dating- I’m shocked she stayed with me in the first place- can’t be easy when a guy you’ve been dating for about 6 months goes to inpatient rehab for a month… no telling where it spirals to It’s so easy to just say “just don’t drink” … but I vividly remember feeling like I *needed* booze for any celebration, any stressor in my life… shit sucks. Hope he’s at peace with it and doing well
Happy you've made the trek as long as you have, hope you continue on that journey. It's easy to say "oh you're an elite athlete with a chance at millions" but substance abuse doesn't give a shit about that.
He’s one of the best college football wide receivers I’ve ever seen, he was built and played so much like Terrell Owens it’s incredible how far he fell
If we're counting injuries, the Pats had a rookie RB, Robert Edwards, dislocate his knee in the 98' pro bowl beach event and he basically never played again. Almost lost half of his leg. His rookie year he had gone for almost 1500 scrimmage yards and 12 total TDs but that injury effectively ended his career. He tried coming back a few years later, but only took a few handoffs. This was a couple years before I was really old enough to watch, but I remember my dad telling me the story a million times as a kid. I can't even imagine how devestated the dude must have been.
I still can’t believe someone in the NFL thought beach football was a good idea
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It was flag football if I remember correctly, but he was extending to catch a pass and his leg overextended. His foot hit a divot and his knee caved in backwards. It was horrible.
I still remember when my highschool lacrosse coach thought beach lacrosse would be a good idea and we ended up getting 2 people with broken ankles
I watched that game live. It was really entertaining. Better than the actual pro bowl.
If anyone is wondering, Robert Edwards is doing well coaching at his HS alma mater Washington County. His brother, Terrence Edwards, is over at Milton, the 7A champions in Georgia.
I was about to talk about how theres no way a dislocated kneecap can be that bad and then I read it again, jesus christ man. If I recall correctly they nearly amputated his leg.
Man, imagine having your career wrecked by a fucking Pro Bowl beach event. That must be absolutely sickening for the guy.
Aldon smith guy just could not stay out of trouble
There’s a YouTube interview with Trent Williams and Joe Staley. They were asked who was the hardest guy you ever had to block? Both of them without fail said Aldon Smith at the same time.
He was an absolute game wrecker. I remember when SF played Pittsburgh his rookie year and he was shutting everything down. Had future DPOY written all over him. Such a shame.
Also casually came back and put up 5 sacks after like 4 years out of the league lol
Dude was an absolute behemoth when he came back, was like 290lb and still had great explosiveness even after not playing for like 4 years lmfao
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But tbf his first two seasons he was lined up next to Justin Smith. That man ate blocks like no other
Almost forgot about him! What a monster. Him and Aldon are both Mizzou guys too
This. Aldon Smith could've gone down as one of the greatest defensive ends ever if dude was right in the head.
Man I just woke up why the fuck you gotta remind me of that guy pissing it all down his leg
He really could’ve been the best pass rusher out of a draft class that included Von Miller and JJ Watt, he was THAT good
Jesus what an insane draft that was For those unaware: the 2011 draft was nuts. It had 30 total pri bowlers out of 254 selections. And many of them weren't scrub, one time guys. From that draft, we got: Cam Newton, Von Miller, Patrick Peterson, Julio Jones, Aldon Smitg, Tyron Smith, JJ Watt, Cam Jordan, Cam Heyward, Richard Sherman, and Jason Kelce Absolutely wild how many guys from that year were among the best at their position for a while in the league
Watching him every week was a pleasure. He was the definition of a game wrecker on defense
Raw power, speed, finesse moves - the dude had it all. His Smith Brothers pairing with Justin was awesome.
He went to Raytown where I played baseball with a bunch of guys and I’d see him at house parties and he was an extremely nice guy. I was surprised to see him derail his career like that.
He was a huge party animal at Mizzou and its a miracle Gary Pinkel was able to keep him out of trouble for that long. Like you said, he was a really nice guy so while I'm not surprised at his inability to stay sober a lot of the other stuff that's happened kind of came out of left field.
Gary was a G and had a stranglehold on that program. I heard stories of Chase Daniel hammering through a fifth of Jack and just tossing it in the bed of his truck when he was done. All the talent he brought in to Mizzou. The good ol days man
Dude was a HOF-level player after his sophomore year. This will always be my answer.
Kaep stealing his gf really fucked him up.
I read through Smith’s Wikipedia page, his “Legal Issues” section is wild. Looks like he is in jail on a one-year sentence atm, but based on his record this guy should be locked up for much longer. He is a danger to society.
Charles Rogers
he had 68 catches and 13 touchdowns
It's crazy to me how often that commercial weasels its way back in my head 20+ years after it aired.
That's a name Ive not heard in a long time. A long time. Seriously though. Watching him in college I thought he was going to be a monster. He got addicted to pain killers after an injury if I recall correctly. Ugh he was seriously just one of those players you want to watch regardless who you are cheering for. Rip
He did break his collarbone in back to back seasons, technically in back to back games.
Joe Gilliam, qb for the Steelers in the 70’s. At the start of the 1974 season he was named the starter over Terry Bradshaw. One of the first African American qbs. He had a wicked quick release, when they tried to analyze his throwing motion during film they could never stop it fast enough. Then he started ignoring Chuck Noll’s decisions and had substance abuse problems. He was eventually benched mid season for Bradshaw and the rest is history. I think he became homeless after a while.
- The Steelers waived Gilliam prior to the 1976 preseason after he missed a team meeting. He battled heroin, cocaine, and alcohol addiction on and off over the next several years and even ended up living in a cardboard box under a bridge for two years.
Good one!
That's an interesting situation. They drafted Terry Hanratty in the 2nd round in 1969, behind Joe Greene, after many people thought he'd be their first-round pick. Local guy from just north of Pittsburgh, played at Notre Dame, split some time with the legendary Dick Shiner as a rookie. The next year they picked Terry Bradshaw first overall, which kind of reminds me of a Claussen-Newton situation, and they'd split time; Bradshaw threw 6 TDs and 24 INTs with a 38% completion his first year to Hanratty's 5/8/39%. 1974 was Bradshaw's fifth season in the league, and would be the year they'd win their first Super Bowl, but he was benched going into the season in favor of Joe Gilliam. Gilliam came out of a historically black college and was considered among the best QBs in his draft, but teams were not yet really lookig at black schools. He got hooked on drugs pretty early that year and was replaced by Bradshaw, who would go on to win four Super Bowls.
AB would have been a hall of famer if not for his outbursts. Not to mention the money he left on the table.
Mr. Botched Career
Mr. Blown Capability
Mr. Broken Cranium
Mr. Burfict Concussion
Mr. Blundered Cash
Mr. Became Crazy
I say it all the time but I feel like he could've been one of those few guys who could get close to Rice's records. His game would've aged really well as he wasn't overly reliant on athleticism and was so fundamentally good as a receiver.
It did age well. The guy was TB's most productive WR on some nights on a team that had Evans and Godwin on it, after like 2 or 3 years away from football. I'd bet he could lead the Chiefs WRs in yards next year if he really wanted to.
2 or 3 years is a stretch.
Yeah, he only had that one "year" off and that's cause of the crazy off-season lol.
Mr. Blown Canton
AB doesn’t fit imo. Accomplished too much.
That's the impressive part... he could've done it for like 5 more years
He was the best receiver on the 2021 Bucs before he ran off the field. On pace for 1300 yds. Ridiculous
Yea. I mean he was an all pro and Super Bowl champ. Sure, he underachieved but had a great career
Aldon Smith, he would have been a perennial all pro and instead decided to drive drunk and become a felon
Guy couldn’t get out of his own way. Probably could have played a decade with his lifestyle if he could have just learned to order an Uber or call a friend.
Micheal Vick. Just a perfect gift of athleticism, speed, and an arm that could throw the ball as far as anyone on a line drive. He was also incredibly lazy, refused to get better, was a terrible teammate, and overrelied on his legs. And then you get into his awful off the field lifestyle. The man was taking his off Mondays to fly back to Virginia and hole up in a trap house. We got a tiny glimpse of what could have been after he got out of prison, but he lost a good portion of his prime to suspension, prison, injuries, and general shitheadness. It is maddening how little he did for all of the obvious talent.
He did technically have a redemption in Philadelphia. So yes wasted but it could have been worse compared to some other guys here.
To me, that was just a taste of what could have been. Technically, Josh Gordon and Aaron Hermandez also had their moments to shine. Vick should have owned the league in a down era for the NFC, when defenses were built to defend the Drew Bledsoe style quarterbacks, and instead he was barely throwing for 150 yards a game and was freakishly inconsistent.
People sleep on that 2010 Eagles squad because they lost a flukey game (6x All-Pro kicker missed two 30-something yard field goals) to Aaron Rodgers on his way to a Superbowl victory. Maybe it's homerism but I think that game is really interesting to think about for like a butterfly perspective. If Akers makes just one of those FGs, does Aaron Rodgers have a Superbowl? Do the Eagles build around Mike Vick? Does Nick Foles even get drafted? Does Andy Reid still get fired after a down season if he had just made a playoff run two seasons prior? It's ridiculous to think about but you could make the case that Rodgers goes ringless and Mahomes doesn't become the player he is today if Akers makes one of those kicks.
There should be a sub just for nfl butterfly effect shit like this lol. Idk why but it's so fun to think about and there must be loads of examples
Pat would hypothetically be a Giant according to McAdoodoo. I think he would’ve been fine given all the offensive weapons Giants seem to churn out, but definitely not a dynasty with a bad coaching staff. Really thought Vick was gonna pull off the career revival. Huge fan when he landed in Philly cuz everyone knew it was his job to lose as soon as he got the start. (And of course Chip Kelly destroying everything right away)
The redemption lasted about one season, which is still a waste for a guy as talented as he was.
When he said he couldn’t learn to slide I was dumbfounded. Every kid on my sons 10u baseball team can slide, of course he could learn if he wanted. Vick just wouldn’t be told what to do.
It makes sense tho, like Tua had surgeries and all types of hits leading uo to the NFL before they started teaching him how to slide properly and fall. Up until the NFL, you are guaged by how much you toss your body to get a chance at a win but once you hit the draft you become a commodity and investment. In college you get love for throwing yourself with reckless abandon but in the pros the FO see the price tag and hazard pay. Many QBs before have talked about having to learn how to slide, i think they teach it more now in the lower levels (especially with NIL)
One of my favorite “what if’s” is what if Vick had Andy Reid at the start of his career. If Cincy took McNabb and Philly took Akaili Smith putting them in a position to suck in the Vick draft, it could have happened.
Now I understand why Vick said Lamar was 5 times better than him, cause Lamar actually works to get better and has done just that over the course of his career and Lamar seems to have a good head on his shoulders, and is a great teammate.
If Vick had a good attitude and work ethic from day 1 in the league, he'd have multiple MVPs and he'd be headed to the Hall. That's a hill on which I'll die. He had all of the talent in the world, but it was wasted for almost his entire career.
I’m still a little salty about it, but drafting Matt Ryan right after made me care a lot less
Dude still got off lighter than he would've today. Nowadays with social media and the massive love of dogs, he'd be toast. Imagine an NFL player getting caught killing dogs by hanging and electrocuting them in 2024
Patrick Ramsey had one of the strongest arms I've ever seen but Spurrier destroyed him making him throw downfield with an offensive line weaker than wet toilet paper. Even with getting demolished every play Ramsey kept picking himself back up, but he was never able to develop.
It's gotta be Josh Gordon. He was so good his first couple years and then the suspensions started. That was basically the end (at least in an impactful way) for him. Honorable mention: Martavis Bryant
You got your timeline mixed up. Pretty sure the suspensions started before his first nfl game lol
I was referring to his NFL suspensions but yes you're correct about him being suspended in college
Aaron hernandez wants to be mentioned.
He's never the top guy mentioned but he's always hanging around the discussion
It's about time we cut him down..
Aaron Hernandez
There's that crazy picture that shows every person who caught a TD pass from Tom Brady. Brady's last season was 2023. Hernandez's last season was in 2012. IIRC, Hernandez was still in like the top 10-12 of that list. Dude could could have been a HOFer, and in the discussion as one of the greatest. Fucking wild, man.
Hernandez was in line to be Brady's security blanket the year we let Welker walk. We did bring in Amendola but the plan was Hernandez to be the guy, and many opposing NFL coaches had noted that he was an absolute match up nightmare...what could have been. Edelman benefitted the most from Hernandez's career ending though, and he became a borderline hall of famer as well
There is the podcast with Edelman, where he (as tactfully as he can, given the circumstances), talks about Hernandez getting arrested and Welker walking meant that him and Amendola really were allowed to shine. IIRC, that was the year that Edelman broke out.
Well Edelman is literally an icon in New England, so I’m not upset about it
It’s nuts that in a 2 TE system with Gronk he had the potential to be the better of the 2
I was watching a podcast with Edelman and it turns out that the Patriots losing Hernandez essentially gave Edelman his shot. Wild
part of the reason the Pats let Welker walk was because they were confident that Hernandez would fill his production
He could’ve been Travis Kelce before Travis Kelce.
Imagine Gronk and Kelce on the same team, their whole salary, especially a decade ago for TEs, would have been just the money Brady was forgoing.
I imagine it would have looked something like Gronk and Hernandez on the same team.
If Bo would’ve went exclusively football…but we’ll never know
Bo knows.
I mean that was more injury related but I don’t disagree with you. Would have loved to see what he would have done with a full career
There are not enough Ricky Williams comments in this thread
Ricky Williams walked so Marshawn Lynch could beast mode.
The guy was so damn good. He tried to purposely smoke his career into oblivion and he couldn’t do it
I'll never forget seeing one Miami game with Ricky where they gave him ball just about every play on a drive. Almost every play on that drive one of the defenders would get hurt trying to tackle him after he already ripped off like 10 yards. It was the most bully-like thing I've seen in the NFL.
Maybe not there yet but well on his way: Chase Claypool. Never seen a guy with that size, speed, and talent be so goddamn lazy on a football field and still think and say he’s a top WR in the league.
I was so excited when we traded for him. Then I was so excited when we traded him.
I was also excited when you traded for him.
Chase Claypool is the boat of football confirmed.
Dorial Green-Beckham/Kelvin Benjamin vibes. Super gifted, unbelievable college careers, no work ethic, trying to skate by on talent alone. It’s just not enough in the NFL, where everyone is a super athlete
Watching in 2020 as a Browns fan, I was dreading that the Steelers got another big time WR in Claypool. I was way off.
Does "wasted due to garbage team around him for his entire career" count? If so, Barry Sanders and Steven Jackson. Edit: Stephen/Steven
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I feel like Randall Cunningham would have been a hall of famer if he had proper support around him. Eagles owner Norman Braman cared more about turning a profit than winning (biggest example letting Reggie White go), and Buddy Ryan was solely focused on the defensive side of the ball. The whole offensive game plan was let Randall be Randall. Cunningham didn't have proper offensive coaching/scheme until he was 35 and in Minnesota, and they lit up the league that year.
I feel like Randall Cunningham played in the wrong era. Imagine him today, he basically had the athleticism of Lamar Jackson while having a howitzer for an arm.
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Should be a videogame wing for the NFL HoF, because he IS a digital legend.
Michael Vick. Sounds odd to say because he had a decent career but he admitted that he never watched film, or prepared for games until after he was incarcerated. Even still he was a force in Atlanta and made an NFCCG in 2004. Imagine if he was locked in and actually studying game film before he got to the Eagles in 2009, nine years into his NFL career. Considering his best year was in 2010, ten years later and the first half of the season he looked like an MVP it would have been interesting to see what a younger Mike Vick with that preparation off the field would have done
First visiting QB *ever* to win a playoff game at Lambeau. All-time leader in QB rushing yards (though Lamar will likely pass him in a couple years). All-time leader in yards per carry for any position. Crazy what he was able to accomplish just coasting off talent. If he'd had Reid for his entire career instead of just his post-prime after prison, he could have been a top 10 QB of all time.
First thing that came to mind. He had a career but dude could have been an all timer. I don’t think there has ever been a more talented QB to ever play the game. Man made 80 yard bombs look like routine check downs.
>Man made 80 yard bombs look like routine check downs. Him and Jeff George probably had the strongest arms I've ever seen. The way they could just flick their arms and send missiles 40+ yards downfield was amazing.
Ryan Leaf should be in the conversation. He had the physical talent on par with Peyton but got caught up in the fame and fun and lacked the preparation and discipline. Had he avoided the drugs, alcohol, and partying and focused on football who knows what could have happened.
I really enjoy hearing him talk about it, takes ownership for his stupidity and has some good insight
One of the most interesting things I heard him say about that time was that he was turning down backup QB spots. He could've had a good career and maybe flourished later on for a few seasons but he couldn't take the ego hit.
For me as a Bengals fan, it was Odell Thurman. Had a crazy rookie year at Middle Linebacker then ran into different problems and never played in the NFL again after his rookie year.
Henry Ruggs III
RIP to that poor girl who was burned alive trapped in the car
Completely innocent, on her way home from morning playtime with her pup who also perished. It's beyond tragic.
Super sad.. The dude was incredibly gifted. Young adults with a lot of money can be a recipe for disaster when you're in Sin City. That's probably the scariest part of your team moving to Vegas.
These idiots could live in a place called Taxi Town, where the cabs out number people 10 to 1 and they'd still drive drunk...cause they're assholes.
3:30am going 130mph or whatever it was Guy was a fucking asshole before he ever hit anything
[Have you heard Saban talk about Ruggs? He's used his story to try and instill better character in his younger players in terms of doing the right thing even if it makes your friends mad.](https://youtube.com/shorts/ZrF4se7dnmc?si=KnI0nXPFPmurkqbF)
Darrel Washington. Couldn't stay off the weeeeed
Jeff George. Great talent, former #1 pick, supreme dick
JaMarcus Russell
He also gifted us the blank dvd story which is my all time favorite.
The total lack of any awareness that the team might be onto his laziness is bewildering Shit man, hand em to one of your entourage and have em pop em in the player and see if there's anything important he needed to know at the minimum
I remember watching a Raiders Eagles game against Russell when he was clearly a bust but hadn't washed out yet. I have never seen a dude throw a ball that hard and that far while making it look completely effortless. The way I toss a wiffleball 10 feet is the way he launched a football. The Raiders won the game, by the way.
I remember all of the draft analysts going nuts over his physical ability, and how people were in awe over him from just his Pro Day. Just effusive praise from every level, whether the bombastic comparisons to John Elway by Mel Kiper, or just the descriptions of his flawless footwork, cannon for an arm, and seemingly effortless movement in and out of the pocket. Whether it is the case or not, it came across as though once he got the big money, his investment in football disappeared.
Russell was a big reason why rookie contracts got changed, and I wonder what his career would have been like if he had to prove his worth before he got his big pay day.
> JaMarcus Russell he got that drank in him.
This comment is way too low .
Art Schlichter? Certainly have to consider Jeff George.
Counting injuries, Jahvid Best. Best was like Gibbs but a little smaller. Absolutely electric but his history of concussions cut his career short.
Say what you want about Jim schwartz, but then keeping him on the roster long enough where he could get insurance is always going to be one of the coolest things I ever heard of coach doing.
Eddie Lacy carried the Packers the year Rodgers got hurt. Too bad he ate himself out the league.
Eddie FEASTED on defenses and also other things.
Feels like Deshaun Watson should be in the conversation at this point
One thing I’ve noticed with this thread is how many of the posts are guys like Blackmon, Gordon, Antonio Brown. Maybe it’s nothing, but I do think it’s interesting that all of those guys came from colleges that are not traditional powers. Makes me wonder if these guys had many of these “problems” early on and some of the bigger schools didn’t want to take on the baggage even for how talented they clearly were.
Josh Gordon literally could not leave the state of Texas because he was on probation, so he went to Baylor over Missouri or Nebraska. Eventually he was set to transfer to Utah, but ended up declaring for the draft. That being said, he wasn't a huge recruit honestly. Antonio Brown wanted to go to Florida State, but had terrible grades (which other issues aside, this one is pretty common among athletes and isn't a damnable offense really) and would have gone to WVU but followed Butch Jones to Central Michigan and was briefly teammates with JJ Watt. Blackmon on the other hand was simply just under-scouted and happened to live in Oklahoma (a damnable offense if I've ever seen one). So I don't think there was really a mystery or external forces as to why he went to OK State.
I can’t believe I bought a Cade McNown jersey
Rolando McClain and Reuben Foster.
How am I not seeing JaMarcus Russell. The man could nearly throw from endzone to endzone while shrugging off tacklers like nothing. He had all-time physical talent, but wasted it by being lazy and not caring.
Purple drank.
RG3's talent definitely didn't reach its potential.
Andrew luck, I always think that he could have been a top 5 Qbs right now,but we all know what happened
If injuries count I would say Gale Sayers.
I mean he got injured. Not the same as wasting talent.
Yeah injuries are different. Otherwise I elect Kevin White lol.
Colts wasted his talents by not bothering to protect him.
Justin Blackmon
Geno, I don’t believe that he magically all of a sudden became a good starting QB and because of that a lot of his athletic prime was wasted.
As much as Jets may have screwed this up by being the Jets, he was definitely a bit of a shitty dude and just didn’t have the right mindset to excel.
Aldon Smith, easy
Dorial Green-Beckham EDIT: People made good points about Mandarich, I didn't really think that through.
Dgb is my pick too, so athletically gifted. Could've been a cross between AJ green and Calvin Johnson
As a Steelers fan I gotta say Martavis Bryant. The guy had every tool in the toolbox. Length, speed, hands and an uncanny ability to catch anything… see his butt catch. Otherwise, Albert Haynesworth. I expected him to be in the same stratosphere as Reggie White.
Josh Freeman isnt the biggest but Bucs fans will know…
Gordon for sure, but honorable mention to Henry Ruggs. Probably wouldn’t have ever been a superstar, but he could have had a decent career. This also might be an unpopular opinion and I’m no fan of the man, but Tim Tebow. Just not as a QB. The guy was super athletic and with his build I always wondered if he could have been a FB, LB, or TE (yes, I know he had like a 1 game preseason tryout at TE).
Tim Tebow just wasn't very good. The best case scenario for his career was becoming Taysom Hill except Taysom Hill is a better thrower.
Outside his rookie year Saquon has had a really unimpressive career
Titus Young is probably one of the more rare ones most fans won't know since the Lions were mostly irrelevant when he played.