The story of ex-superstar linebacker Junior Seau is sad:
Junior Seau drove his SUV off a cliff in Carlsbad, Calif., on Monday, just hours after being arrested on suspicion of domestic violence toward his live-in girlfriend, reports KGTV-TV in San Diego.
The former NFL linebacker, 41, was reportedly released from the Vista Detention Facility at approximately 2 a.m. Shortly after, Seau then drove his Cadillac over the cliff.
Carlsbad police responded to a 911 call of a single vehicle off the road. Seau’s car was found on the beach 30 feet below the roadside. After being rescued, the athlete was taken to Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, Calif.
Aside from apparently beating his girlfriend severely enough that he was charged with a felony, he reportedly drove his Escalade off the cliff at a very high rate of speed without braking. The obvious speculation is attempted suicide.
But my initial thought upon hearing the story was: Holy crap, this man drove off a 30 foot cliff at 70 mph and walked away with barely a scratch! That tells you something about what it takes to play 20 years in the NFL.
Something like twenty-five years ago, I watched a program where Lynn Swann was talking about life as an NFL wide receiver. He said that a good way to practice for it would be to have a friend throw you footballs . . . and have a second friend hit you as hard as he could with a baseball bat while you where trying to catch them. The game has gotten faster and more violent since then.
