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Posts tagged as “men’s pro football”

NFL’s McCourty Twins Raise Awareness and Funds via "Tackle Sickle Cell" Campaign (VIDEO)

NFL QB Russell Wilson, 1st Contributor to Derek Jeter’s Website, Speaks Out Against Domestic Violence

Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson wrote about domestic violence on Derek Jeter’s new website. (JOHN CORDES / ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson became the first contributor to Derek Jeter’s new website, The Players’ Tribune, on Thursday, using the forum to urge people to donate money to an organization that deals with the problem of domestic violence.
When Jeter started the website Wednesday he promised to offer athletes a forum to communicate with fans without the filter of the news media. He followed through quickly with an essay by Wilson, whose profile was boosted by Seattle’s Super Bowl victory in February. Wilson described himself as a “recovering bully” in the essay, and called for people to talk more openly about the problem of domestic violence.
“This issue is much bigger than N.F.L. suspensions,” Wilson wrote. “Domestic violence isn’t going to disappear tomorrow or the next day. But the more that we choose not to talk about it, the more we shy away from the issue, the more we lose.”
Wilson, 25, said that he was a bully as a child, but that he dealt with his anger issues and now believes there is no place for violence off the field.

Wilson did not address the Ray Rice incident specifically, but he did write that “recent incidents of domestic violence have forced the league, its fans and the players to take a hard look into our collective conscience.” And he urged fans to join his new foundation’s Pass the Peace initiative and donate money to the National Domestic Violence Hotline.

article by Lynn Zinser via nytimes.com

Ravens Player Retires to Give Kidney to Younger Brother, a Retired Steelers Player

The Kemoeatu family post-transplant surgery. (Photo: Amani Martin)
The Kemoeatu family post-transplant surgery. (Photo: Amani Martin)

BALTIMORE — Ma’ake Kemoeatu missed his final collegiate football game because the NCAA suspended him for improperly providing textbooks to his younger brother.
He was a four-year starter at Utah on scholarship and his little brother Tevita was a walk-on. Their parents didn’t have enough money to buy books, so Ma’ake bought them for him and therefore couldn’t play in the Las Vegas Bowl against USC.
But Ma’ake wasn’t trying to cause trouble. The oldest of seven kids, he steps up for his family when they need help.
So when his brother Chris needed a kidney transplant this past August, Ma’ake, a former nose tackle for the Baltimore Ravens, didn’t hesitate when he heard the news. He was going to donate.
When Chris was in eighth grade, he started having kidney pain. Over the years, as he grew into a 6-foot-3, 385-pound lineman for Utah and go on to win two Super Bowls with the Pittsburgh Steelers, the pain got worse.
He played through it. Training camp, regular season practice, games and playoffs. With what was later discovered to be a form of kidney disease. He grew up in a tough family. A family that rarely said ‘I love you’ not because they didn’t have feelings, that’s just how it was.
“I’ve seen him struggle and the last three years of his career, fighting through a lot because of his kidney,” Ma’ake said at a press conference at the University of Maryland Medical Center on Wednesday. “When we found out he needed a transplant, we had to stop our careers because his health was most important to us.”
After the 2011 season, the pain was too much and Chris stopped playing football. Ma’ake ended his career with the Ravens after the 2012 season to be with his brother.
(USA TODAY Sports)
(USA TODAY Sports)

In early 2013, Chris met with Dr. Matthew Weir, a nephrologist at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Chris learned then that he had advanced kidney disease and needed a transplant. Ma’ake immediately said he would be the donor. And he was a 99% match.
“The doctor said we could pass as twins to do this surgery,” Ma’ake said. “My dad wanted to do it, and we kind of got into it because I didn’t want him to do it. I’m the oldest of seven kids so it was my responsibility to take care of my younger brothers and sisters.
“If my brother or any of my siblings needed blood, they have to have my blood. If any of my siblings needed a kidney, it would have to be my kidney.”
Ma’ake had to pause for a second as tears welled in his eyes.
“My dad wanted to do it so bad,” he said. “I had to stop him. But the credit goes to my brother because he had so many flare ups. He had to go into training camp and had to fight through the pain and get ready for the season.”

Carolina Panthers RB DeAngelo Williams Dyes Hair Pink for Late Mom and Breast Cancer Awareness

DeAngelo Williams
DeAngelo Williams (Sam Sharpe/USA TODAY Sports)

Before Sunday’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Carolina Panthers running back DeAngelo Williams dyed his trademark dreadlocks pink and painted his toenails pink in honor of his late mother, Sandra Hill, who lost her battle with breast cancer in May.

Williams has been at the forefront of the NFL’s breast cancer awareness campaign and is credited with persuading the league to allow players to wear pink in October for breast cancer awareness month.

Williams hasn’t done interviews since his mother’s death, other than a first-person article in May for Peter King’s “Monday Morning Quarterback” website.
IScreen Shot 2014-09-09 at 7.01.45 PMn the piece, Williams discussed with great passion what his mother meant to him and how his four aunts also died of cancer. He talked about his mother’s smile, how she always was there for others fighting the cancer.
“Breast cancer, whether I like it or not, is part of my family’s story,” wrote Williams. “That’s why I am so passionate about raising awareness, because I have seen firsthand how it can impact others.”
Williams helped Carolina overcome the absence of injured quarterback Cam Newton on Sunday, rushing for a team-high 72 yards in the Panthers’ 20-14 victory.
article by Adam Scheffer via espn.go.com
ESPN.com Panthers reporter David Newton contributed to this report.

After Brief Time with Rams, Michael Sam Signed To Dallas Cowboys Practice Squad

Michael Sam, who made international headlines last spring as the first openly gay athlete to be drafted to an NFL team, has been signed to the Dallas Cowboys practice squad, having passed his physical exam, team officials said today.

Sam, 23, who was signed to the St. Louis Rams as a seventh-round draft pick, but got cut from that team over the weekend, came out to the public at the end of his NCAA season at Mizzou earlier this year.
After being cut by the Rams, no NFL team stepped forward to pick the defensive lineman up–until yesterday. Sam flew to Dallas on a moment’s notice last night, for today’s physical, and Sam will wear jersey #46 for the team this season.
“Michael Sam is just too good–he was the [SEC Defensive player of the Year] at Mizzou, there’s just no way he can’t play at the NFL level,” said Super Bowl winning, former Baltimore Ravens QB Brandon Ayanbadejo, a longtime advocate of LGBT rights.
After coming out, Sam’s draft ranking plunged, leading many observers to wonder if the NFL was really ready for an openly gay player. “the fact that no team took the opportunity to sign Sam after the Rams cut him, speaks volumes,” OutSports editor Cyd Ziegler observed, but added, “The Cowboys make a great fit for him.”

Although Dallas is in the heart of a state seen by the LGBT community as among the most homophobic in the country, Cowboys officials “welcome [Sam] to our football family, as we do every other player who signs with us.”Head coach Jason Garrett said Sam would be an asset to the club. “We just want to give him a chance to come in and help our football team,” Garrett noted. “That’s where our attention is (football). What people say outside the organization is up to them.”
The Cowboys joined NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s Respect At Work program, developed with the help of Wade Davis, an out former NFL player who now heads the You Can Play project.
The program is designed to create a “safe, welcoming environment” for gay athletes. Sam’s addition to the Cowboys’ practice squad also opens up opportunities for him to make the main team, whose defensive line has performed poorly in recent years.
Sam says the Cowboys were his favorite team while he was growing up in Texas.
article by Nathan James via gbmnews.com