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Rashard Mendenhall: NFL team was worried about me reading books
Nfl is the absolute worst
Rashard Mendenhall: NFL team was worried about me reading books
Rashard Mendenhall is a player who retired early (26) mainly because of his interests outside of football. He likes to read, and especially likes to write considering he contributes to the HBO show "Ballers."
Coming out of college, teams were concerned about his off-field interests. Speaking to MEL Radio, Mendenhall said teams were worried about him having thoughts that didn't always pertain to football.
"When I was going through the NFL Combine there was a team that asked me, 'If you have all these other interests — like reading, dancing or art — what makes you a football player?' There is this idea of what a football player is and what he looks like. Especially playing in a place like Pittsburgh, where the Steelers are such a part of the history of the town; the fans live, die and breathe it.
"While I respected that culture totally and knew that I was a part of it, it was tough for me personally. I would tweet a picture of a book that I was reading and there would be people who would write, like, 'Why are you reading books? You should be reading a playbook.' I was like, 'Dang, this is the offseason.' It’s just crazy that like — it was a bit much for me. I felt hemmed in; I wasn’t able to fully be me and express myself, because if I did, people questioned my love of the game. That was always a tough thing for me."
Maybe they were right, considering Mendenhall did retire early, but when he was playing he was all-in. In the three seasons from 2009-11, the running back put up 3,891 combined rushing and receiving yards and scored 30 total touchdowns. If he read a few books during the offseason, who cares? He was a solid contributor on the field when he was there.
Host John McDermott pointed out how front offices often complain about players who are out all night at the clubs, but that's not always the reality. Instead, they're worried about someone who has other interests.
"As much as they say, 'We don’t want a guy who’s in trouble, blah, blah, blah,' that guy is familiar to them," Mendenhall said. "He is comfortable to them because they understand him better than a football player who has different interests. A guy with an expanded worldview, now that’s fearful
Nfl is the absolute worst
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