I'm Sorry

I'm sorry. 

I broke my promise not only to some of you but to myself as well and for that I sincerely apologize.  Not making any excuses, but the circumstances changed and so I feel that those of you who I may have let down deserve to at least know the reason.  Especially since you may be disappointed again this summer, only not by me.  Let me try to explain what happened when I played and is happening for a lot of players now.

Every single NFL team has opened their training camp for the 2012 season and for die-hard fans, which many of you are, heading to camp to see the guys up close and personal is a must.  There's no other time to get that close to your heroes, watch them go through drills or live hitting periods, and perhaps even get to meet some of them and get an autograph.  It is a truly special experience for any fan which is why the attendance numbers from the first weekend of camp were off the charts.

I know how cool it is because I was once one of you.  I used to go to Philadelphia Eagles training camp at West Chester University as a kid during the late 1980's/early 1990's every single summer and I loved it.  Not only watching practice but getting so close to stars like Randall Cunningham, Reggie White, and Keith Jackson that I could literally touch them.  I was really into autographs at the time and was on a mission to get as many as I could every single time I went.  When or where else was I going to see my favorite Eagles?

Like most of you, I never understood the players that would walk right past without signing anything.  What was their problem?  Didn't they like the fans or know how much we adored them?

Right then and there I made a promise to myself that if I ever somehow made it to the NFL that I would sign an autograph for every single person that asked.  I knew how it felt to get turned down or, worse, totally ignored.  Besides, if I were making that much money playing football for a living it was the least I could do, right?

So ... a funny thing happened.  I was blessed to become good enough as a player that I actually made it to an NFL training camp.  And then six more after that.

I did not sign every autograph.  In fact, I hardly signed any.  That may make you mad but please at least hear me out.

First of all, as an adult I think we all recognize that it is almost impossible to sign autographs for every single person at training camp that wants one.  Secondly and more importantly, I never realized this when I was a fan on the other side of the fence but training camp is by far the most important time of the year for most players.  You are there for fun but I was there fighting for a spot.

A couple of years my roster spot was secured and I was competing for a starting position on the interior of the offensive line.  Most of the time I was battling to just make the team and keep my dream alive.  My role was never defined going into camp.  Camp was when I had to carve it out.

That means that I was in the competition of my life to not only keep my dream of being a pro football player alive but also to earn a living.  It is an extremely serious business and I treated it as such.  Every single second was precious to me and in my mind an opportunity for a competitive advantage over, ironically, my teammates that were going for the same spot.  I had no time for autographs when that time could be spent either working on my craft on the field, getting in the cold tub after practice before anyone else, or getting back to my dorm room so I could get off my feet and get as much rest as humanly possible before the next practice.

That may sound a bit over the top but that was my mindset.  Camp was a grind and I always felt my attention to detail was going to allow me to perform at a higher level than my competition as they slowly wilted.  If I couldn't beat them up physically on the field since they were my fellow linemates I was going to wear them down every day mentally with my relentless process. 

This is back when camp was actually hard, mind you.  Not the current iteration which some vets have privately told me is "easy" and "boring".

The crazy thing about my reluctance to sign autographs during camp is that one day having somebody actually ask for mine was a dream come true.  I love the fact that some people still ask for it at times.  They always say "I don't mean to bother you ..." and I say, "No, no, bother me, bother me, please!".  That's how much I enjoy and appreciate it.

I just couldn't take the time to do it during training camp and I'm sorry for that.  Hopefully now you understand why.  Keep that in mind as you head out to camps if you get frustrated by guys turning down your autograph requests.  They've got a job to do.  Or get.

MAILBAG QUESTIONS: Send your questions either via email to ross@sportsusamedia.com or via Twitter to both @rosstuckernfl and @sports_usa.

Ross, love you on the ESPN Football Today podcast. Huge Jags fan, wondering if you think MJD's holdout will affect the continuity of the offense, and if you feel the upgrades of Robinson and Blackmon to that previously terrible wide receiver corps will catapult Gabbert towards the upper half of competent NFL starters?

 Trescot Gear via email

I don't think there is any question that it will affect the chemistry on offense because he is a true three-down back and a guy they count on to not only run the right route but more importantly get the job done and protect Gabbert in pass protection.  New Head Coach Mike Mularkey is bringing in a new offense to Jacksonville and the longer Maurice Jones-Drew holds out the less familiar he will be with the intricacies of that scheme.  As for Gabbert in the upper half of the starting quarterbacks, um, no.

There's a buzz in Detroit that Reilly Reiff will start, but where is yet to be known. Where do you think the logical spot on the line is for him this year since he can play guard or tackle on either side?

Mike from MI via email

That buzz about Reiff has been there since mini-camp which is a little perplexing since there is no contact allowed. My guess was that Reiff would beat out Gosder Cherilus at right tackle and play there but the thumb injury recently suffered by left tackle Jeff Backus could be significant enough that they need Reiff to play there, at least in the short term.

@RossTuckerNFL @Sports_USA Does VY become Buffalo's QB of the future...does his presence help of hurt our season.

From Rinaldo Stradiotto‏@rstrad via Twitter

I highly doubt it and if that does happen then things will have gone terribly wrong for the Bills this season.  I only think his presence helps if he beats out Tyler Thigpen and is then prepared and ready to go should Ryan Fitzpatrick get hurt.  Other than that, it is either inconsequential or will hurt the team.

@RossTuckerNFL @sports_usa Will Pete Carroll's contrarian approach to building a team set a new standard or blow up in his face?

From PDX Pain‏@PDXpain via Twitter

What exactly is the "contrarian approach" that you speak of?  Having three quarterbacks compete for the starting job?  I don't think that will become the new standard at all and in fact is much more likely to blow up in his face.  If you are just talking about the high level of roster turnover he has had since taking over, that is not all that unique after a regime change.