I don’t know about you, but I know that I was not fully
formed as a professional entering my field when I was 21. Hell, when I was 21 I
was actually still in school getting the preparation I needed to become a
professional in my chosen occupation.
Even at 31, I was not a fully developed professional; I
still made a lot of mistakes.
Today as I am in the midst of the first week at a new
job, at the tender age of 36 on the cusp of turning 37…I am still learning and
growing and changing.
I know, I know. I am in the field of education and not in
the field of professional athletics. Believe me, I am made aware of that fact
each and every day as I look at my bank account and my car.
I still feel, though, that the point in my lede stands: expecting
someone to be a fully developed, fully formed professional when one is barely
old enough to drink in most circumstances is ludicrous.
Yet when it comes to professional sports, and football in
particular, that ludicrous notion seems to be the expected norm.
