Similar background. 5 years of Big Ten football & I experience a lot of the same anxiety. I’m really appreciative of the opportunities football provided me, but holy shit, the things it took from me too... There’s learned behavior developed from it that’s proven really helpful and advantageous for me in the real world … Read more

There is something odd about being in a very regimented lifestyle, then shifting to nothingness overnight. Veterans experience the same phenomenon. When you spend so much of your life with hard rules, clear goals, and absolute consequences, the freedom of common life feels more like floating in the vacuum of space. Read more

I’ve heard ex military types mutter a lot of the same things. Hard to adjust after a lifetime of regimented behavior. Hard to break ingrained habits, too. Read more

I haven’t played organized sports since high school, but God yes on the on-time thing. Even beyond that, the saying “80% of success is showing up,” is so very true. I can’t tell you how many times I have hired somebody or selected a contractor, landscaper, realtor, or something similar because the other three people… Read more

This was a lovely read, thanks!
I have always suspected that America’s collective obsession with football is driven by the fact that everything in that realm is so orchestrated.
Football is discipline, manifested. It is timely and orderly and predictable. You do what works until they stop it!
Contrast this with the… Read more

Hey Nate, great post. Read more

Hey man we are all floating through life looking for a purpose. Plenty of guys (and girls) peak at their high school varsity team, then go work in the steel mills (or internet start-ups now?) It is an interesting perspective on how MAKING IT in the NFL is really just a temporary stop. The everyday slob probably… Read more

The prison metaphor is pretty powerful. I’ve also heard stories similar in tone from ex-military trying to work a desk job after multiple tours. Read more

Great post Nate -- I feel more disconnected every day Read more

Never made it to the NFL, but I played 5 seasons in college for a Pac-12 school. I feel you on the “trying to assimilate” front. For years after graduation I would get anxiety at work if I happened to be one of the only people in the common room of the office. My mind would immediately assume I was missing a meeting… Read more

C’mon, complaining about millennials, your better then that. Read more

It’s a rare talent that can turn writing into a contact sport. Read more

I say this as a life long Mets fan, whose day to day mood is unfortunately partially dictated by the team: This is not at all surprising. This sort of dysfunction has been steady through several GMs, managers, and rosters. The mood of the team for years has been a place where good players go for their careers to die.… Read more

C’mon, Barry, you know the answer to this question. It’s in his name...

Eeverything the Mets’ front office does is built around having scapegoats in place. Look at this past weekend. Callaway looks like an asshole, Jeff Wilpon gets to descend from the heavens and gush about how sorry the team is and how rude this was, and the NY media focuses on how much Callaway sucks both as a person… Read more

The real kicker is that the men really don’t have a lot to lose by speaking out here, since the money they make for the MNT is a tiny fraction of what they’ll make in a year, and the increased visibility (and resulting sponsorship money) of being on the MNT means it’s likely a good financial decision even if they were… Read more

How very soccer to have the result of the request for comment be nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil-nil. Read more

Man, these guys really won’t defend anything. Read more

We had to destroy the team’s fanbase to save it!
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So the idea is you don’t need a domed stadium in Tampa but they’ll potentially be playing their November games in Montreal? That should work out perfectly. Read more