I have great admiration for athletes. They are just like actors in a lot of ways. They have tremendous pressures and conflicts. They have to compete, and they can't stay home just because they have a head cold.
You are fully capable of deciding your own destiny. The question you face is: which path will you choose? This is something only you can decide.
What is necessary is never unwise.
I read a lot of scripts, so I know by page 25 if I like it or not.
You get thought of in terms of your last job. So if my last job is that of a meat cleaver-wielding character, I will hardly be cast as some benign, older gentleman.