A Superstar's Fall off the Mountain

A professional athlete’s ego is fueled by many characteristics, from the daily security that “your the man”, your peers propping you up on an invincible pedestal, fans cheer your name and wear your jerseys, and every coach, at your prime, shy’s away from doubting your play because your salaries so high and when there’s that initial doubt they say to themselves, “they will figure it out”. Then one day everything comes crashing down and changes your career forever. It might come suddenly when you least expect it or it might linger for months even years before someone has the nerve to take you from the starting line up. In 2008 it happened to me. I wasn’t a starter anymore. It happens to every athlete. Was it because my play had slipped? Was it the young 3rd round draft pick that the team drafted? Was it the new coach that the team brought in that year? I don’t think you really ever get the answer you want to hear. Although the explanations are broad and sometimes unclear, when a team decides to go a different direction, as an athlete, your never ready. It could be the 1st game of the season, the game after the bye, after a 3-game skid, and even the deciding Game 5 of the American League Divisional Series.  You could be a $10 million QB, a $275 million 3rd baseman, or a veteran minimum tight end. The thing is, your check might be guaranteed, but your starting spot and your career is not. When it finally happens, and it will happen for all of us, everybody in the media, all the fans, and even your family has there opinion on how you feel. Well the big question is, “How do we feel?”. There’s many emotions that an athlete feels. First there’s always denial, “It can’t happen to me?”, or “The coach is f***ing crazy”, or even the old “Johnny doesn’t have half the skill I do”. Then there’s the external team guy. This is the guy that says all the right things to the media. The guy that high fives his teammates and continues to support them till the end of the season. But internally there is a burning fire. Holding in every emotion till he gets in his car when he drives home from practice or the game, calls his wife or his best friend and vents for hours, days, even month’s rationalizing the reasons why he should be the starter or still playing. Fact of the matter is whether its father time or slumping during a championship run, a professional athlete is always expendable and in a position to be replaced. Us athletes that are lucky to play in our respective leagues for multiple years and make lots of money for it, must prepare our minds for that change. That high profile starter being asked to step aside and let the next guy replace you is not an easy pill to swallow. Age, slumps, tenure, coaching changes or no explanations at all, your time will come. Its not fun and the longer you play it doesn't get any easier. So athlete’s I ask you, “How will you handle it when your time comes? That’s my take and it’s coming out of my Mouth.