No, his story is very different. This man's name is John Moffitt, and he was the guard for the Denver Broncos until November of this past season. He played for the Seattle Seahawks last season.
But he will not be playing for either Denver or Seattle on Sunday, nor will he be on the sidelines for either side.
The reason? He walked away from the game.
And in this era of football, where the reports of injuries caused specifically by the game of football, and what the appropriate response by NFL should be, are gaining traction, Moffitt's decision to walk away from a game that was rewarding him handsomely in terms of money makes bigger news. For that matter, that he is the only player this year to have played (even if only during the preseason) for both Super Bowl teams, makes this an especially relevant and high profile case, because the toll that the game was taking on his body was a factor in why he left it all behind.
That was not the only reason that he left. He told John Elway he was walking away from the Broncos because he had lost his passion for the game. But he also was uncomfortable with some aspects, such as the idol worship, the fame that he felt simply went too far. These men were playing a game, and had not done things to greatly improve society, although they were treated almost as such.
He also cited the writings of Noam Chomsky, as well as Tibetan Buddhism, both of which he had studied while majoring in sociology at the University of Wisconsin.
Moffitt was selected as a third round pick out of Wisconsin by the Seattle Seahawks, and remained there until he was traded this past August to the Denver Broncos. The Broncos were a hot team all season long, and many people favored them to go, and to even win, the Super Bowl. Moffitt might have had his chance to play in the big game, but he said that he didn't care about the Super Bowl.
Whether he cares or not, as a member of the team (actually both teams) he is supposed to get a ring from at least one of the teams. He was technically a member of both the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos this season.
Here, in his own words, are some of the quotes from a couple of different articles (see the links below) from the Raw Story and Yahoo's Shutdown Corner:
Quotes from Shutdown Corner (by Frank Schwab, November 6, 2013):
"I just really thought about it and decided I'm not happy. I'm not happy at all," Moffitt told The Associated Press in a phone interview from Seattle. "And I think it's really madness to risk your body, risk your well-being and risk your happiness for money.
"Everybody, they just don't get it and they think it's crazy. But I think what I was doing is crazy."
"I just want to be happy," Moffitt told the AP. "And I find that people that have the least in life are sometimes the happiest. And I don't have the least in life. I have enough in life. And I won't sacrifice my health for that.
"I'm not trying to be the poster boy for 'Oh, I thought I should leave because of concussions.' I'm just saying, it's a valid point. I love the game and I respect the game and everybody who plays it knows what they risk and I knew what I risked when I played, and I'm no longer willing to risk it."
"Once you tear away all the illusions of it, it's hard work. And it's dangerous work. And you're away from your family. And it's not good for families. It's very tough on families," he said, according to the AP.
Quotes from the Raw Story (Travis Gettys, November 12, 2013):
“I’ve saved enough. It’s not like I’m sitting here and I’m a millionaire,” Moffitt said. “That’s what I kind of realized. I’m sitting here and I got to this point and I was like, what is the number that you need? How much do you really need? What do you want in life? And I decided that I don’t really need to be a millionaire.”
“I don’t care about the Super Bowl. I don’t,” Moffitt said. “I used to. I mean, anytime I played this game, I gave my heart to it and I’m a person that does thing with his heart. … I don’t need the Super Bowl experience. I played in great stadiums and I played against great players. And I had that experience and it’s enough.”
John Moffitt is trying out radio, wanting to make his living doing that now, in his post-football life.
Here are the links to three articles about Moffitt's story:
"NFL player cites reading Noam Chomsky among reasons he quit playing pro football" by Travis Gettys of Raw Story,Tuesday, November 12, 2013:
"Broncos' quiet O-line makes loud statement" by By ARNIE STAPLETON (AP Pro Football Writer), January 28, 2014:
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/broncos-39-quiet-o-line-230314026--nfl.html;_ylt=AwrBEiHAd.tSTXMAfElNbK5_
"Offensive lineman John Moffitt walks away from the NFL, says he’s ‘not happy at all’." by Frank Schwab By Frank Schwab of Yahoo Sports Shutdown Corner, November 6, 2013:
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/offensive-lineman-john-moffitt-walks-away-nfl-says-211429267--nfl.html;_ylt=AwrBEiHAd.tSTXMAe0lNbK5_
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