Ricardo McDonald's Sportscity Blog

Former Cincinnati Bengal and Chicago Bears Line Backer Ricardo McDonald has joined the Sportscity.com team. Throughout each week, McDonald will bring his own perspective on all things NFL, from current games and news, to past experiences.

Remembering the Good Ol’ Days

Written by Ricardo McDonald on January, 17th 2008

From the moment you hear your name on “DRAFT” day, your life changes forever. You are thrust into an environment in which you are praised, criticized and humiliated all at the same time. The NFL, which any veteran will tell you means, “Not For Long” was very good to me and my family. I was extremely blessed and in some cases very lucky to have played the game of football professionally for nine years, especially since the average NFL career currently only lasts 2-3 years.

I remember getting a call from David Shula in 1992 and I recall the words he spoke like it was yesterday, “Rico, we just drafted you and we think you could be a great addition to our special teams!” I remember thinking, “Does he know who I am?” – Rico McDonald, one of five TRUE freshmen to ever start at the University of Pittsburgh in the company of such greats as Tony Dorsett, Dan Marino, Hugh Green, and Rickey Jackson.

Recalling mini camp and just sitting in the locker room with Anthony Munoz, Icky Woods, and others, the first thing I noticed was that a lot of the guys were in the training room using ice, taking pain pills, and getting a couple of toradol shots just to practice. These guys were in a lot of pain but the fear of telling the trainers how bad they were hurting was something they knew not to do. I once heard a buddy of mine say, “It’s either the game quits you or you quite the game!”

I enjoyed every moment of my career, but I must be frank – it was nine (9) of the most stressful years of my life. Let me give you a close-up picture of what I’m talking about. Earlier in my career, when I was with the Cincinnati Bengals, we returned to New York to play the Jets. I was so excited to be going back home since I grew up on the East coast. After curfew a couple of veteran players and me hung out all night partying (just so you know this is a normal occurrence in the NFL). We got in so late, the sun had almost fully set. We made it just in time for pre-game breakfast (barely). I was dog tired and could barely keep my eyes open, so I figured I’d drink lots and lots of coffee. Mind you, I have never been an avid coffee drinker – YUCK! I drank so much coffee that I started to shake and fidget like someone having a seizure. Once during the game, I recall coaches screaming “Get your head in the game!” That game turned out to be one of the worst football games I ever played.

On the flight back, all I kept thinking to myself was that I was going to get cut. I worried so much about my career with the team, I was thinking, “They’ll just bring a veteran in to take my place.” The next day, I reluctantly made that trip down to the facility to watch the film, and the first person I ran into was my coach. He rolled his eyes at me never saying a word. You can only imagine the things running through my young mind. As we watched the film, I was anticipating the horror to be displayed. It wasn’t as bad as I thought, although I graded out very poorly at 65%. A narrow escape in my mind, but duly noted for future reference.

I’ve seen good players’ careers end well before their time – long before they had a chance to show their full potential and that they could have been great for this game. I’ve seen grown men cry like babies when they were told they’re no longer a part of a team they tried so desperately to become a part of. It’s a feeling that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. I played with this fear and stress... I felt like with every practice, every game, I had something to prove, just to avoid getting that knock at the door or worse still, that phone call! The owners and the coaches hold your destiny in their hands. Ultimately it’s their call on whether you stay or go. For some of us that time comes all too quickly. In hindsight I guess I was one of the lucky ones.

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