Gene UPshaw
so if you read the sports news as often as I do, you probably read that Gene Upshaw died today, at a relatively early age of 63…
my first thoughts were good riddance…after all, this was the leader of the NFL’s Player Union, who refused to lend a helping hand to the retired players, only concentrating his efforts for current players in the league…
i read countless articles and watched numerous TV segments about broken NFL players who were now a shell of their former selves, physically crippled, and unable to pay for basic needs due to the exorbant amounts of monies spent on health related issues…
these tear jerking stories angered me of course…these were the pioneers of the sport, before there were things such as multimillion dollar contracts and endorsements…why couldn’t the NFL or at least the NLPA, put out some monies to help out their former brethren…
Especially Gene Upshaw…the guy was a former player, who was one of them…why did he not have a heart to help???
well, today i came across an article (http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1109275/index.htm) that presented a different side of the Gene Upshaw story…and it was a bit enlightening. in the least, it opened up a different perspective of a person who has been ripped up in the media and by the retired players…perhaps despite this article, Gene UPshaw deserves the crap that he gets…it doesn’t help that he pulls in 6Mill. a year.
but its always good to not jump the gun, and try to hear the whole story, isn’t it?
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