I could sit here forever trying to write the perfect opening for this article, but it would never ever live up to the man I’m writing about. I thought about comparisons to superheroes with famously subdued alter egos like Superman with Clark Kent, or the Hulk with David Banner, and it just never felt right, or it felt like sensationalizing a man who’d never want that. Luke Kuechly in everyday life was ultimately like many of us... just a regular person. Despite being a living football god at the linebacker position, his personality couldn’t have possibly been more unchanged by it off the field.
Luke Kuechly had the most humble football career by a man who despite just eight seasons of play, may very well be a first-ballot hall of famer. His name is recorded in the NFL record books on many pages, and he basically owns all relevant team records outright. He’s the only player in NFL history, besides the legendary Lawrence Taylor, to be selected to a league high seven All-Pro teams in his first eight seasons. Defensive rookie of the year in his first season, defensive player of the year in his second... his accolades read like a Madden create-a-player whose been maxed to 99 everything.
In fact, he cites one of the major reasons he’s leaving the game as that he believes he isn’t playing the way he USED to play, implying that playing at anything less than 99 Overall isn’t good enough for him.
“In my heart, I know it’s the right thing to do.” pic.twitter.com/mSDyJ0iEMw
— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) January 15, 2020
“There’s only one way to play this game, since I was a little kid... to play fast, to play physical, and to play strong... and at this point I don’t know if I’m able to do that anymore.”
— Luke Kuechly, retirement video (1:48)
By the way... you have a heart of stone if you can watch that video without getting at least a little choked up. It’s a hard watch, and a difficult concept to accept that someone so incredibly good at something can have it taken away from him at any moment, because that thing is incredibly hazardous to their health. You won’t find many sports where that rings more true than football, a game that so many incredible people have had to walk away from due to career or even life-threatening injuries.
Luke Kuechly, as hard as it will be for us as his loyal supporters to accept (on a team level), made the right decision for his life last night. I say that without a doubt. The evidence is overwhelming that as you play football longer and advance from college to professional, the odds exponentially increase that your body and brain will decay into a state of constant pain, confusion, and ruin due most likely to an advanced case of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Do not be misinformed, do not try to convince yourselves otherwise, the studies are conclusive, and it is the greatest threat to football as we know it. Luke Kuechly having been the victim of multiple concussions, only stood to make his odds even worse by continuing to play one of the most violent positions in the game.
In the video, Luke continually circles back to the term “relationships” and their importance in his life. He describes football as a conduit to building meaningful relationships. He says (paraphrased) that moments off the field are even more memorable than some of the moments on.
“That’s why you play this game. To form relationships, and if you form strong relationships, they never go away.” — Luke Kuechly, retirement video (1:10)
Based on his comments, it would be reasonable to infer that... despite being the greatest on-field talent at linebacker that I’ve ever witnessed, that the game was of secondary importance to Luke. That’s a perspective you have to admire, that anyone should admire, and it’s a lesson that we’d all do well to understand. No one does anything forever, and it’s the people that endear themselves to you along the way that stick to your heart, mind, and bones until the day you pass.
We, the fans, will remember Luke Kuechly for on-field heroics first, and that’s a reasonable thing to do. None of us have had the window into his life that the people who know him personally possess. The man doesn’t even have a social media account that we know of. Not even a dedicated Amazon Prime special following the Carolina Panthers could crack into his shell a whole lot. I personally will remember him for providing one of my favorite GIFs of all time...
Ladies and Gentlemen... Luke Kuechly is NOT ready for the regular season. But may this GIF live forever, in honor of a legend who left the game too soon for us, but never too soon for him. #Panthers #KeepPounding #Luuuuke pic.twitter.com/0X1LQu8Ryx
— Erik Sommers #Panthers (@Tater596) January 15, 2020
... among other feats of greatness. But the thought that will stick with me, the piece of him that I’ll carry, is that so many things “are greater than football.” Football substituted for whatever you and I devote ourselves to, whatever thing that we’re better at than most people. Know when to walk away. Know when to draw the line... when to say “you know what, these long hours away from my family and friends aren’t doing it for me.” Do it sooner than later, do it while you still have your health, and before it’s too late.
In other words, be like Luke Kuechly. Be smart. Be grounded. Be true to you and your loved ones.