What a terrific career, champ! You’ve accomplished everything you set out to do, and now it’s time to ride off into that glorious sunset. Perhaps a future in broadcasting awaits you, or maybe a chain of car dealerships. But hey, before you go… there’s just ONE more thing you’ve decided to do…
This brings us to our question of the day. (All of us here at the TSD World Headquarters would like to thank Brett Favre for inspiring this one!)
Retirement is never an easy decision to make, especially if you are leaving something that you love, something that defines you, something that you focused on your entire life. Some people go out on a high note… John Elway comes to mind. He retired following his second Super Bowl victory… as the MVP of the game. He knew it was time to walk away. Others don’t leave the game as gracefully. Some players, like our dear friend Brett, just can’t seem to let go. Eventually, each athlete has to face the reality that the game has passed them by and they just can’t do it anymore.
So the question being posed to my esteemed colleagues today is…
Does the manner in which a player retires affect the legacy of their career?
This is not a simple question to answer. Your debaters will have to consider the delicate balance between in-game performance, and post-game actions. Whether it’s hanging on too long, becoming involved in some newsworthy scandal, or a career cut short by injury, Sports Geek and Loyal Homer will be discussing how much a player’s exit from their sport impacts the memory of the way they played the game.
I flipped a coin to determine sides, and decided that I loved it so much that I just couldn’t stop yet, so I flipped it again. Once that was done, I thought I could take just one more crack at it, because I didn’t want to admit that it had come to the end. So, I flipped it one more time, and somehow ended up choking on the coin! After coughing it back up (THANKS Dr. Heimlich!), I just picked sides.
Loyal Homer will argue that a player’s exit strategy does NOT influence their legacy while Sports Geek will argue that a player’s exit strategy DOES influence their legacy.
Before I take my leave, I just want to say thank you to my friends for their help, my fans for their support, and my family for putting up with all my crap! I LOVE YOU ALL!
Read Loyal Homer and Sports Geek’s opinion.
Posted by Bleacher Fan 
