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49'ers LB Chris Borland Retires
- Thread starter SteelBuckeye
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And some people are missing the point that Borland is completely healthy. He's not some old vet who's had 10 concussions and twice as many knee surgeries.
This guy can do whatever he wants. I don't care either way, but people are acting like he's Rosa Parks and did something courageous.
I feel sad that a young man who could have made a good deal of money and provided a comfortable life for himself has been so scared by a constant media narrative that he is walking away. Listen to his own statements. He is making this move out of fear. I'd say irrational fear at this point.
Austin Collie was a young guy who retired. He had multiple concussions, so he was smart to walk away. But Borland with no injury history? I'm sorry but this is a shocking overreaction.
What if Borland goes into coaching? What happens to the moral pedestal the media has placed him on?
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I think people are making WAY too big a deal out of this.
The thing that's getting me is some people (PFT and the liberal Mike Florio) are insinuating the 49ers should not get back $463,000 out of his $617,000 signing bonus. Like because Borland is now some "example" he gets to keep his money and the "evil" billionaire franchise should just be nice because of the "social issue".
That's horshshit.
Borland HAS to give his signing bonus back. You can't have the icing and eat your cake too. You can't hide behind your health and then expect to pocket that kind of money and only fulfill 1/4 of the years the team expected from you.
I'm very curious how this plays out. Not only in reality but in the court of public opinion.
The thing that's getting me is some people (PFT and the liberal Mike Florio) are insinuating the 49ers should not get back $463,000 out of his $617,000 signing bonus. Like because Borland is now some "example" he gets to keep his money and the "evil" billionaire franchise should just be nice because of the "social issue".
That's horshshit.
Borland HAS to give his signing bonus back. You can't have the icing and eat your cake too. You can't hide behind your health and then expect to pocket that kind of money and only fulfill 1/4 of the years the team expected from you.
I'm very curious how this plays out. Not only in reality but in the court of public opinion.
T
TAS
Guest
Why wouldn't he have to give the whole signing bonus back?
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Why should you feel sad? You don't have to live with the consequences of his decision, he does. It is easy for other people to say his fear is irrational but at the end of the day no one but him has to live with the consequences. There are some players who love the game so much they'd probably play for nothing but the love of the game. If you can't fully commit to something best to just walk away.
he played for a year, so he should keep some of it.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/dandiam...s-borlands-retirement-should-terrify-the-nfl/
I think most people's reaction to this is like that of Chuckie on Good Will Hunting: "You are sitting on a winning lottery ticket and you are too much of a ***** to cash in".
While that doesn't exactly apply since he did take his shot, most people look at it like this: he has something special that millions of people would give their left nut for, and he's pissing it away by not using that special talent.
While that doesn't exactly apply since he did take his shot, most people look at it like this: he has something special that millions of people would give their left nut for, and he's pissing it away by not using that special talent.
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Do you realize how much a pain in the *** having to sign a check back over to the 49ers for $463,000.00?
He didn't even "pocket" that much in the first place after taxes, fees and agent payments.
He almost has to take a cash loan, get 3/4 of his agent's fee back (somehow), then file a very weird tax return that will likely pay a huge refund. Not even sure how you get back FICA and some other fees on wages.
Luckily I don't think the signing bonus issue effects all the individual state income taxes they have to pay (they have to pay taxes in each state they play a game).
I wouldn't be surprised if his tax fee for an accountant is $5000 to $10,000 this year.
He didn't even "pocket" that much in the first place after taxes, fees and agent payments.
He almost has to take a cash loan, get 3/4 of his agent's fee back (somehow), then file a very weird tax return that will likely pay a huge refund. Not even sure how you get back FICA and some other fees on wages.
Luckily I don't think the signing bonus issue effects all the individual state income taxes they have to pay (they have to pay taxes in each state they play a game).
I wouldn't be surprised if his tax fee for an accountant is $5000 to $10,000 this year.
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A friend of mine said he heard on an ESPN radio station that Borland comes from a pretty well off family and money really isnt a factor for him. Could explain a lot if true.
I just want to know what is so "disappointing" about this???
Do I need to draw another parallel??? Yes, NFL players - no, scratch that, ALL PROFESSIONAL athletes "abuse their bodies for money". The dedication that it takes to play in the top 1% of, and I'm switching back to professional American Football, is, in the eyes of those simply desiring to play the game - it is abusive. One has to get up and train, personally, early in the morning before he goes in to train w/ the team and coaches. His diet is not like that of the average man - because in order to play at the level that he does - you just can't put anything into your mouth, digest it and hope for a productive outcome - so, your body abuses itself from old desires and cravings when it comes to food.
How can one play every Sunday or even hope to stay on the roster - if he is constantly in the ice tub??? If you want to "make the big money" most players play thru injuries that we, the common man, will takes weeks or months to overcome. Here's an example, lest ye have forgotten - T.O. breaks his fibula around Week 6 or 7 the year that the Eagles went to the Superbowl. After hypoberic treatments and a gogi bean and gogi juice diet - the man was back on the field and playing - uh, not just playing, He DOMINANTED (even though they lost) in the Superbowl.
We all know the lucrative gains that playing professional sports can bring---and as I stated earlier, to have the courage to walk away from even more financial gain---that takes a hero. A hero that I can recommend my son to look up to.
Does one need a college degree, regardless of it being a history degree, to succeed in life??? No. And just like it was suggested - proper investments with the current "money in the bank" could and most likely will prove to make life a lot more comfortable than working a 9-5 job...
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It's disappointing because we have a young player walking away from a highly rewarding, highly lucrative career, as a result of heightened anxiety towards a problem that MAY or MAY NOT develop with that particular player. We're not talking about a guy like Willis, who's played a decent amount of time in the league, we're talking about a 22-23 yr old, a KID, making a decision that he may very well regret in his future because he's afraid he might become a vegetable from playing football. If the guy had 3-4 concussions over the last calendar year, sure, fine go ahead; but that's not the case at all. To see such a development is disappointing because when a player of his caliber walks away in such a fashion, teams lose value in terms of quality of football, and for fans like myself who put a high premium on the quality of the game itself (which seems to be eroding after each passing season), this isn't something to celebrate.
And cut the crap with him being a "hero"; my God, that word gets more overused than just about any word we toss around in our society these days. A role model? Okay, if you say so. But he's no hero for making the decision to retire from football, believe that.
Can't argue w/ your first response - nice post.
As far as him being a "hero" - just because he didn't physically save a life doesn't mean that he doesn't qualify. Who's to say that some kid out there doesn't see this story and realize that "money isn't everything" - and it stops the kid from robbing a bank or someone's home. Who's to say that some kid out there doesn't see this story and realize that "money isn't everything" - and that kid finds his inter potential and starts the next Google.com instead of abusing his body???
Yes, he's a role model - but, you're wrong, we don't use the "hero" word enough---just ask one of us vets...
I think in the case of veterans, police, firefighters you get the drift hero is an apt term. In the case of singers actors football players etc it is not. Those folks on occasion do things that will qualify them as role models that can influence kids to be more but that is not an act of heroism.
noun, plural heroes; for 5 also heros.
1.
a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities.
2.
a person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal:
He was a local hero when he saved the drowning child.
3.
the principal male character in a story, play, film, etc.
4.
Classical Mythology.
a being of godlike prowess and beneficence who often came to be honored as a divinity.
(in the Homeric period) a warrior-chieftain of special strength, courage, or ability.
(in later antiquity) an immortal being; demigod.
5.
hero sandwich.
6.
the bread or roll used in making a hero sandwich.
I like some others consider those folks that get the name hero applied to them to very special, and do not think it should be tossed around for deeds that are just good or wise choices.
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Should I ask myself, since I too, am a vet?
I stand by my contention, "hero" is far too commonly used when it doesn't necessarily need to be used.
And, sorry for being so haughty in my original retort about the word "hero", I hadn't had my coffee yet lol. You know you're my dude, Berm
