NFL (49ers) Off-Season : Chris Borland Retirement/Quitting

Oh, I know the PR move would be to “clarify” what he meant, but I think “quit” is a sufficient description for what Borland did.  I don’t think that he meant it as a criticism of Borland’s decision to do what, he believes, is in his best interests.  The fact of the matter is that, for the fraction of his life that he would be a member of the San Francisco 49ers, we — as a fan base — would support and adore him (so long as he was playing well, haha).  But, typically, once a player retires or moves to another team, we have very little interest in these guys.  That’s just the way that it goes: you are a hero to us, until we have no purpose for you anymore (unless you become a legendary player a la Rice, Montana, and so forth).  There will always be an up-and-coming guy to switch our focus to – so I don’t get hurt or offended when guys decide to retire/leave the game when they feel that it’s in their best interests, because they are the ONLY ones who are looking out for their best interests in this business, haha.

That said, what does bother me is that 1) for a guy who – I believe – has only received 3 concussions in his entire life — two he referenced from high school, and one he believed came from a practice this summer — to cite that fear as the reason that he’s not going to play anymore is questionable, to me — furthermore, to reference and consult with players FROM A DIFFERENT ERA in the game as the examples of what he didn’t want to end up like (later in life), is just absurd – to me.  The equipment has changed; the rules have changed; the way players are taught to tackle has changed, all with the emphasis of NOT sustaining head injuries.  Hell, Jamal Charles got benched IN A PLAYOFF GAME because they were concerned that he suffered a concussion….which, may not have cost the Chiefs the game (since he exited very, very early in the game), but it certainly didn’t help them win it.  He shouldn’t be “banging” his head into people all day, as he alluded to; so that sounds like an excuse more than an explanation.

And, 2) why bother going through the NFL Draft if you were concerned about the health implications that the profession would have on your future? Why not just play college ball, get your education provided, and then go professional in something other than sports? It’s not like the presence and implication of concussions just got revealed in January, spurring this reflection on one’s future — this has been WELL-DOCUMENTED for several years, now, at the very least.  Hell, the NFL veteran lawsuit was settled last summer, before he ever played a DOWN in the NFL.  So, to cite a fear of concussions as the reason for leaving the game, in my opinion, is totally bogus.

This may be just my opinion, but here is why I think that he decided to leave the game:

It was well-documented from before the Draft, up through pre-season, and all the way through the season when he finished with an incredible rookie performance: he is an under-sized LB (at 5’11” 248lbs…but may be smaller, in actuality) – which was gaining concerns for his longevity, due to his physical style, at the position from Day One.  When Willis’ season (and career) came to an end, I think that he gave it 100% to fill-in, and certainly took a lot of physical punishment in the process — figuring that Willis would return next year and he’d slip into more of a support role — as Willis had stated, when he opted for season-ending surgery, that he had 5-6yrs left of great football in him.  That makes sense.

However, when Willis abruptly retired, and everyone began talking about building around him, he realized that he couldn’t play LB in the NFL as a career, and so he quit. I think that he came to realize that the amount of physical strength that the position required (that he learned first-hand last season) was too much for him to handle, physically…… without getting hurt…… and so the only options he had was either: a) request or otherwise lose the starting job that he had been, essentially, promoted; b) continue to play the position and risk injury — especially, since fear of injury was already on his mind (you can’t play football while scared of injury); or c) “retire” from the game, citing the media “hot topic” of concussions in order to not get portrayed negatively.  He took Option C, and I can’t blame him, too much.  After all, nowadays, once you cite concussions and football, you have an advocacy group backing you, the media can re-run reports and interviews on the topic again, and the NFL isn’t going to challenge you on it….because Goodell has had a rough time with the PR-part of his job in the past year, so you’re not going to face serious criticism from anyone by citing a fear of concussions as a reason to leave the game.

That said, he did sort of screw us out of our 3rd round pick in the Draft (especially, since he said that the fear of injury had been on his mind throughout college…. that’s probably something you should have told prospective employers).  And, yeah, he ends up having to give us back the prorated part of his contract, but no team is investing a 3rd round pick in a guy who is going to play for a year, so, of course, had we known that, we certainly would have drafted someone else. So, that’s a bummer.

Furthermore, I wish he would have discussed this fear and contemplation of retirement with the team during the season — rather than in March — as we could have planned better for it.  At this point, though, we are bound to the Draft in order to replace this guy, now; and having options is always better.  But, I get it — he didn’t know (no one did) that Willis was going to abruptly retire when his parting words in October was that he felt, physically, like he had another half-decade on the field and wanted to get his toe healthy for it.  Had he mentioned it something during the season, he just puts a target on himself to get less playing time or on the list of potential cuts after the season.  Because, again, you can’t play this game while you’re scared of getting hurt, especially, at the LB position.

What’s done is done.  People are freaking out about our season but, again, we knew Chris Borland wasn’t going to be a career-guy (citing his smaller size and reckless physicality), but we had hoped he could be a sufficient patch (with Wilhoite) for a year or two until we figured out a long-term solution.  Our season is over because we are hosting Super Bowl 50 — the Football Gods will make sure of that, and, hopefully, all of this turnover and “turmoil” is Their work.  I’ll take a season of adjusting to a new system over a Bounty-Gate or Kaepernick sitting out all season for 4 neck surgeries….as they have struck in the recent past.  This is the season to be a casual fan, if that’s your sort of thing.  #GoNiners

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