Former Packers cornerback Sam Shields was a staple of the defense for years. He spent seven years in Green Bay and is probably most known for being the defender on the Dez Bryant no-catch in the playoffs. Shields recently went on Dan Le Batard’s show and talked about his time in the league. He didn’t hold back on his comments. Former Packers CB Sam Shields had some shocking statements about his time in the league.
Former Packers CB Sam Shields’s Shocking Statements
#SouthBeachSessions Before the concussions started, Sam Shields was one of the fastest cover cornerbacks in football. He spent nearly a decade in the NFL…
He wishes he hadn’t.🎙 https://t.co/R0FWmNoVpJ 🎙 https://t.co/eeT3L3SObf pic.twitter.com/6N8sxF6tni
— Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz (@LeBatardShow) November 1, 2022
The most shocking statement Sam Shields made was one word. When asked if he would do it all over again (meaning play in the NFL), Shields simply responded, “No.” Most of his discussion centered around how many concussions he had during his time in the league and how he was treated because of them. Shields claims that his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, encouraged him to play even though he complained of blurred vision and light sensitivity. He talked about how he had to spend his waking hours in the dark and his head was in pain. However, teams and his agent kept pushing him to get out on the field.
Not The End Of Sam Shields’s Shocking Statements
The whole interview is eye-opening. He talks about how friends abandoned him after he left the league at age 31 due to all of the concussions. “I don’t even talk to most of my family members. Once football was over, everybody was over with me,” Shields said. He went on to say that he pretty much has one friend that has stuck with him since he left the league. This compounded his head injuries with a feeling of loneliness. Everyone was focused on the money and not on the health of Shields.
This Interview Does Not Look Good For The League
The injury to Tua Tagovailoa has reignited the concussion conversation. Shields thinks this is all lip service. He argues that players are pushed to play hurt. This quote from Shields sums up the mindset well.
“New guys going right back out there. Because you can get this. Oh, you can get four more million, all you got to do is play one more year. So in your mind, you think, ‘Hell yeah,’ because you already been taking risks throughout the years in football, so that’s all you know,”
Players are incentivized to play through injuries to make generational wealth. Family, friends, and even agents push players constantly to get that extra million on the next contract.
I highly encourage listening to the whole interview. There are some good moments where Shields talks about his time with the Packers in a positive light. Hearing Shields make these shocking statements gives one a different view of the league. It will be interesting in the coming years whether more players start to speak out like this about their time in the league.
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