Retirement sneaks up on you

This season, the Grim Reaper of Sports has visited many a player. Some are still contemplating retirement, and others have already cut the umbilical chord and left the game behind. That's all well and good, but why does this happen right around training camp. This comes upon the heels of Tarik Glen calling it quits, Minter leaving, and Strahan pondering. Of course the most famous has to go the running backs: Barry Sanders and Ricky Williams.

Sure, it's their prerogative to walk away from the game whenever they want, and in fact many stay much longer than their invitation. But, where do they get off retiring just before the season is about to start. Don't they have almost all summer to figure out that they don't feel like playing anymore? Most of these players don't even play in February, and here they are, ta-da, they no longer feel like playing after three months of thinking about it.

I think it's a selfish thing to do. It's not a problem that they do it, it's a problem when they do it. They're basically throwing their entire team under the bus, a team, and players that depend on this player showing up. Coaches and GMs don't get days off, all summer they are planning what their two-deep should be, and setting everything up, then out of nowhere, no warning, no nothing, they retire. Many of them don't even give a courtesy call saying that they might retire, and to make plans. It's equivalent to an employee not giving a two week notice to his employer. You don't do it because you have to, you do it as a courtesy.


Minter quits [SI.com]
Tarik Glenn retires [SI.com]
Strahan bluffing retirement [NY Times]