Calvin Johnson’s Retirement Reveals Pain Impossible to Ignore for NFL Players

July 8, 2016   ·   Mike Freeman   ·   Jump to comments

On the phone is a former teammate of future Hall of Fame receiver Calvin Johnson. The player remembers a conversation he once had with a small group of Lions teammates, including Johnson. It was about concussions.
The man on the phone says some Detroit offensive players had felt—going back several years—Johnson was going to retire not last season, but the season before. He was, the player said, showing more effects from the wear and tear of playing the most violent sport in the world than in the past. He was limping more. Spending slightly more time with the medical staff, the player said.
Johnson never complained about those various aches, the player said. Why? "He's the greatest leader I've ever seen," said the player, who asked not to be identified, "and leaders don't complain. He was also the toughest son of a bitch I ever saw."
Then came that one conversation, sometime last season, when a small group of Lions players were speaking about concussions.

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