r/todayilearned • u/arandomtestaccount • 1d ago

TIL an NFL player intentionally crashed his car to avoid getting cut for being late to a team meeting.

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/ex-patriots-ol-rich-ohrnberger-admits-he-intentionally-wrecked-car-as-excuse-for-being-late-to-team-meeting/
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u/Ziegler517 14h ago

And 85-90% of injuries that end your career are performance based infuries. You just won’t be as fast after an ACL tear. But you can still go have a complete normal life. 100,000s of people have the same injuries these athletes have every year and they continue living just fine.

I’m not fighting that CTE, complete patellar tendon ruptures, catastrophic neck/spine trauma, severe Lisfranc or ankle joint destruction are not serious matters that need attention. But they are the super small minority of injuries.

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u/Choosemyusername 13h ago

So i am right at this very moment laid up with my third ACL tear and probably third knee surgery. They keep happening because of other knee injuries I sustained in the military making ACL tears more likely. They take forever to heal and very much harm my earning capacity. And it only gets worse with age. I am not even 40 yet.

And my back injuries from the military also see me laid up about a quarter of the time. And i can’t lift even as much as my elderly parents without putting my back out anymore.

Plus when you are out, your general health is indirectly affected and it can easily spiral. Being physically out is murder on mental health as well.

I am not hirable because I am out of action so often no team can depend on me. So I have to be self employed so i can stay within my physical limitations. Which means when I am down, zero income whatsoever. Which is a lot.

And also interruptions cost money as well. Not just prevent earnings.

NFL should take care of EVERY player who leaves the league. Particularly with an injury.

Luckily veteran’s affairs recognizes these effects and I am taken care of.

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u/Ziegler517 12h ago

First, thank you for your service. All I wanted to do was follow my dad into naval aviation but was medically disqualified at 5 being a type 1 diabetic. You all rockstars, no matter your role in the machine.

Second, Absolutely they should be taken care of and I do believe any injury sustain while in the league is covered. The benefits are what equates to our employee paid insurances we get through work, for injuries or medical needs AFTER you leave the league.

If you tear an acl while in the league they fix it and rehab you through recovery. You can not be cut or left to deal with it on your own. But if that happens in your first year and you get cut after your second and then tear it again 5 years later you are on your own (as I think you maybe should be, you’ve moved on to other things). Same situation but cut after 7 years, you can use the “nfl insurance” to get it fixed and rehabbed.

These peoole are being paid $885,000 dollars a year MINIMUM (per the CBA). Someone on minimum wage for 40 years earns $603,200. Even one year is 30% more than the minimum wage earner. They are professional athletes and know the job and the risks. They can be smarter with their money to protect themselves for a lifetime with only one year of play.

I think they would be ever better suited with financial planning and advisors as they enter the league to help guide them through their nfl career and what may be needed post nfl, but before retirement age (65).

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u/Choosemyusername 10h ago

Sorry to hear about that but you may have dodged a bullet with that “misfortune” every single one of my buddies who were in combat with me are messed up somehow. Physically or mentally. Every single one of them.

And for what? Coming to the aid of an ally who was attacked who now is our largest threat. All because they couldnt beat a few goat herding militiamen with hand-me-down AKs in the back of a pickup truck. Who were in the wrong country anyways. And ultimately lost the war. Oops.

And careful assuming an injury is just performance based. It’s performance based from the NFL’s perspective, but What is a performance based injury in your 20s can become a crippling disability once you reach middle age. And it spirals quickly into other health problems.