When you make that crossover from life to real life, when you're not treated as a child anymore but as a man, and you are no longer given the benefit of the doubt, it takes some courage to face that.
Coaches want so many things from a back. It's hard to find someone like Edgerrin James or Marshall Faulk, someone you can trust to block, catch and be physical. But I can do all those things.
What I would tell young players is that as you get older, the best thing you can do is try to have other interests and have opportunities.
Football is my job, not my life, but it's a job I'm going to give my all for as long as I'm in it.
My helmet is off; I'm not afraid anymore.
It's funny, people say 'Welcome back' when I haven't gone anywhere.
My whole thing in life is I just want freedom. I thought that money would give me that freedom. I was wrong. It bound me more than it freed me, because now I had more things to worry about, more people asking for money, I thought I had to buy a house and nice cars and different things that people with money are supposed to do.
I've always been shy, but in New Orleans there were times my shyness would cause me actual physical pain. I'd get so claustrophobic around people that I'd bend over from the sickness in my stomach. That's not a good way to be when you're famous, obviously.
One of the biggest things I've done is learn how to love myself, flaws and all. Even the things I don't like about myself, I accept. People have made fun of me and made me self-conscious about talking so softly, for example, but I accept that as who I am and I'm not changing it for anybody. I'm at peace with who I am now, and once you've achieved that, all the other stuff disappears.
I don't believe in regret.
I realized a while back that I have an innate ability to be compassionate, and I saw that the strength of compassion is something that healers have and healers use.'
When I retired, I felt that I lived more in that year than I had the previous 27 years of my life.
Tomorrow doesn't really exist.
As an athlete, you figure you work your whole life to have what you have, and to be able to show the world what you have and how proud you are of it, that's always fun.
If I was doing something for the money, I'd be quite miserable.
Sometimes success will get in the way of maturity - at least temporarily.
The moment I started treating my social anxiety disorder, I started feeling better.
I allowed myself to think if I could be doing anything in the world, what would I be doing? And what came to mind is I'd be traveling a little bit, I'd be going to classes and I'd be going back to school.
Well, I don't think I've necessarily ever been a passionate football player or a passionate person.
If I can walk, I'll play.
It's good to do things slow in the bush. It makes you appreciate everything a lot more.
Well, I am now convinced there is no kind of fear or anxiety anyone has to live with.
I've followed freedom for a long time and I finally feel I've got more of it. People talk about the money that I've given up and the money that I've lost. But the knowledge and the wisdom that I've gotten from this experience is priceless.
