Voluntary My Foot

Voluntary workouts...yeah, if you mean mandatory they're voluntary. I'm not sure who makes a bigger deal about a player not showing for an event they aren't required to attend: the media, team or the fans. I keep hearing three words, in my head, when I think about the complaining... "THIS IS BUSINESS"! And you know what this is the one time the players actually have an argument. They don't get paid, they're on vacation for all intents and purposes and you know what they just flat out aren't required to be there. Now if you think I'm making the argument that showing up and participating does no good and is in no way useful, you're looking in the wrong place. The chances of being successful with maximum effort are greater than chances with minimal. I'm just saying what should be obvious to anyone and everyone... it's simply this: if you are not required at your work, you will not be at work. Football is our entertainment but for the people who play, it's a Job and a reminder of that to the fans is needed. As for the teams, they just want to win at any expense because Wins = $. Finally the media, as a part of the mob I can speak on our behalf (unofficially) that a lot of the hubbub is just that. We need some football in our lives and in the news cycle, more importantly, so during these down times we report about this mumbo-jumbo. The bottom line is that players come to camp in much better shape than in years past. Year-round training is prevalent, our health and fitness savvy world is infiltrating all our daily lives and most players want to stay in shape. If it's voluntary... it's voluntary, the price of fame is higher than we know, lets let these guys have some invisible time too.

Glenn Younes
XM Satellite Radio