I've been a pro football player for twelve years, and my end-of-season story hasn't changed in a decade: it's always been tough for me to fall asleep when there are no more games to play. You get used to the frantic NFL schedule, one that's akin to cramming for sixteen different tests in sixteen weeks. There are workouts and meetings in the mornings, practices in the afternoons, and extra film study in the evenings. There is a lot of information to absorb in a short amount of time, all leading to the ultimate high of playing in a game once a week. It usually takes my body a few weeks to adjust to the off-season schedule. This explains why, one day after I returned from the 2005 Pro Bowl, the late-night glow from a television could be seen in the master bedroom at 21 Red Oak Road. It was one o'clock in the morning, and as Heidi slept, I sat in bed watching a repeat. Not only was it a repeat that many fans in America ... read full excerpt from Never Give Up: My Stroke, My Recovery, and My Return to the NFL ebook
