MY HUSBAND IS DYING EVERY DAY:
Ron Fellows played cornerback for the Dallas Cowboys and Los Angeles Raiders from 1981–1988. He intercepted 19 passes and scored three touchdowns, including two on interception returns. Now 61 years old and living in Sacramento, Calif., Fellows suffers from Alzheimer’s, and his cognition is gradually declining. What follows is a description of life from the perspective of Debra Fellows, Ron’s wife since 2002, as told to Dom Cosentino.
Just recently, Ron’s best friend, who played for the Raiders, called me and said, “He’s getting worse isn’t he, Deb?” And I said, “Yeah.” And he hasn’t seen him in person for a couple of months. He said, “I can hear it on the phone … He’s angry all of the time.” And I said, “Exactly.”
While quarterback Andrew Luck was recently given plenty of grief by Indianapolis Colts fans for walking away from the NFL at age 29, the article above by Fellows’ wife, whose husband left the game at about the same age, is a harrowing tale of what awaits far too many players (and the families who look after them) after their careers are over. Read the whole thing.
(Via Ace of Spades.)