Journeyman; the Untold Story of Professional Football.

Do you ever wonder what happens to your favorite NFL players after they get cut?  Do you ever release a player in Madden 10 and wonder if he will get picked up again?  Do you ever wonder where all 20 or so players cut from training camp go after they have been released?  It is an untold part of the game though a very real element that most fans don’t ever consider.

            In many cases a player will be right back on a plane the next day and fly to some other team to workout; run a 40, do some position work, maybe throw in an agility drill and vertical leap test.  If the workout goes well, a roster spot will be found and that player will continue their career.  They will move their family, pack up their belongings, maybe rent an apartment or in some cases, with the big money guys, purchase a home and start a new life. 

            Well what about those less fortunate players?  Or what about the guy whose spot on the team was given to the big money veteran?  A whole new journey begins; one less magnificent than the pro athlete’s tale you see on TV.

            A decision has to be made at this point.  Sure there will be a workout here and there.  Sure there will be an agent filling the player’s head with dreams and visions of making the next team.  Sure there will be hope.  However, this does not make this journey any easier. 

            Fresh out of camp or fresh off a roster a player is feeling good.  They are feeling healthy and feeling confidence and in most cases are in the best shape of their life; playing shape.  The dream is still alive and still very much worth fighting for.  But reality sets in; there are bills to be paid.  Part-time jobs and savings from their playing days save face for a short time while they stay available and in condition.  Constant uncertainty however eats at their sanity.  As calls don’t come or workouts don’t pan out relationships are tested.   Is the dream still worth the pain and unknowing?  

            A weekly event for pro football teams is flying in 6-10 potential signees.  In most cases it is to keep their current roster honest and remind them that no one’s job is safe, and in many cases teams do this to keep up on their homework, making sure they are prepared if someone gets hurt.  

            What the average fan is never told and never truly acknowledges is the role these players play in the success of their team.  Day in and day out these players do battle with the starters; running the oppositions plays to help prepare the pro bowlers for the game.  These players have left everything they know to chase the fantasy of playing pro football.  They have left their wives and children back home.  They have left their friends and possessions in another state.  They have given it all up to be part of that team, to be part of a dream.  And how are they repaid?

            Contracts are not guaranteed in the NFL, as most fans know.  A three-year deal is good for no more than a week as many players are tossed around team to team with no certainty of where they will play; or even if they will ever get a chance to play.  Practice squad and special teams players are all journeyman that spend their days living out of suitcases and in hotel rooms.  Never knowing whether they will fill in for an injury or be sent home to make room for another scout-teamer; an extra running back for a team playing San Diego or a mobile Quarterback to prepare for the Wildcat. 

            This is a story that needs to be told.  The sacrifices these players make to ensure a good show for the fan on Sunday.  The many talents that go unnoticed by the media and fans.  How easy it is to cut a player and bring in a new young star.  How easy it is to dip into the cookie jar of talent and find a fresh set of legs to simulate Randy Moss and run countless seam routes.  How easy it is to forget about the guy from last week that acted as Adrian Peterson and allowed his defensive teammates to shut out a legend in the making.  Who are these players?  Why have we never heard their story?