Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

I know of no precedent for this in sports history for non-injury reasons, for an athlete with a long career (Davis was in his tenth season) to retire mid-game. I'm sure he has a story to tell.

It's not uncommon at all for players once they get late into their career to just take it on a year to year basis on rather they want to play anymore or not. However most of the time when they do decide to hang it up they decide in training camp or before. I'm sure it was the same with him where he went into this season really indecisive on rather he wanted to play anymore and had and continued to have trouble deciding going into the early part of the season.

Yes it is irresponsible to do this during the middle of the season and I'm sure it will have an effect on any future business ventures he may try to do. However we are living in an age now where a lot of these guys are making so much money that they can afford to quit anytime they want to and they will never have to work another day in their life if they choose to do so. So it wouldn't really surprise me if we start seeing more of this happen from time to time given that they don't really 'need' the pay check.

Apparently, Davis was a healthy scratch from the season opener, per ESPN:

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/2470 ... s-chargers

So he most likely was having some kind of issue regarding attitude or quality of play. He also mentioned that he didn’t feel right, though not sure what that actually means. He also said he wanted to get out while his health was still good and that he “shouldn’t be out there anymore:”

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/bill ... e-anymore/

Per CBS Sports, anyway. Not sure what that really means.

This kind of thing seems unprecedented, however.

He ended up playing ten seasons. Honors profile is 0/2/none, so he’s not HoF bound. But seems like he had a good, solid career and made plenty of money. Could be worse.

I..... have no words for this. Someday I'll have a conversation with my kids about giving 100%, having character, and doing the right responsible thing even when things aren't going right. I will use Don Beebe in Super Bowl 27 as an example. I will use Vontae Davis as an example of who not to be.

Rupert Patrick wrote:I know of no precedent for this in sports history for non-injury reasons, for an athlete with a long career (Davis was in his tenth season) to retire mid-game. I'm sure he has a story to tell.

Does Steve Tasker count?

Bryan wrote:

Rupert Patrick wrote:I know of no precedent for this in sports history for non-injury reasons, for an athlete with a long career (Davis was in his tenth season) to retire mid-game. I'm sure he has a story to tell.

Does Steve Tasker count?

No. He was ejected in this last game.

Here's an interesting related story from 1944. Holy Cross fullback John Grigas was in his second NFL season with the Cardinals. Despite playing for the woeful combined Chicago-Pittsburgh Card-Pitts, he trailed the Giants Bill Paschal by just 10 yards rushing for the league leadership going into the team's season finale against the Bears. However, the night before the game, Grigas left Pittsburgh to return home to Massachusetts because the losing had gotten too much for him. He had played in every Cardinal game in 1944 and 1945 and the team had lost all 19 of them.

Grigas left a note for his roommate Dan Currivan and another for his coaches. In the coaches letter, he explained: “The human mind is the faculty of the soul, which is influenced by the human body. When your mind is changed because of the physical beating, week in week out, your soul isn’t in the game. My mind has been influenced this past week, and I tried to stick it out, but it has reached the stage where the mind is stronger than the will. In all justice to the management and to myself, I am leaving because I couldn’t play the whole game.”

Coach Phil Handler noted that Grigas was also working in a steel mill by day and that probably contributed to his exhaustion. In the offseason, the Boston Yanks acquired Grigas' rights, and the fullback played for three more seasons with them

Rupert Patrick wrote:I know of no precedent for this in sports history for non-injury reasons, for an athlete with a long career (Davis was in his tenth season) to retire mid-game. I'm sure he has a story to tell.

Johnny Paycheck is smiling.

Not quite the same, but close ... and another Buffalo Bill ( ... shaking my head ...)

https://www.businessinsider.com/kyle-or ... es-2014-12