Out at the One: Steve Gleason

Gleason is probably not a name you'll immediately recognize, and without this photo you might not even know that he plays for the New Orleans Saints. A career special teams player, he finished with only 71 tackles to show for a seven year career, and not a single NFL touchdown. Several days ago, at the age of 31, he retired. The reason I am dedicating an 'Out at the One' feature to him is not for individual accomplishments, but rather because he represents the best of the sport of football. 

Gleason represented football at its most dangerous. Special Teams plays consist of punt and kick return and coverage units. Often with 60 to 80 yards separating the two teams at the beginning of play. In a game where the typical play is three to four yards, these are immense distances. The amount of speed and momentum and athlete, even an overlooked one such as Gleason, can generate over such a distance is incredible. Even more incredible are the forces unleashed on another human body, with little more than several plastic pads in between them, when they collide. As we tragically witnessed this football season with Kevin Everett, a single wrong tackle or hit can leave a player without the use of the his legs or other parts of his body. Although this is true for all of football, the speeds demanded by Special Teams make them especially dangerous. In this danger, however, lies a paradox. Players who can run at another person are a dime a dozen, and typically the lowest paid people in the NFL. Yet it is they who have the most to lose. An instant can transform a career, and while accidents such as that which ended Joe Theismann's career are tragic, they are even worse for players who earn fractions of what the stars earn. Players like Steve Gleason. 

In this way, Gleason represented football at its most noble. I have heard the game simplified as eleven men trying to push a ball 4 yards against another eleven men, and at its most basic level, this is what football is. Nonetheless, this demands a tight economy of effort. Each player must put everything he has on the line to nullify the efforts of his competitors, often not even touching the ball at all. Such teamwork demands sacrifice and risk, and it is Gleason and players like him who truly represent this. 

Gleason represented football at its most dedicated and loving. It is an athletic competition, and Gleason, at 5'11 and 212 lbs., had few athletic advantages against his giant opponents. Nonetheless, in a league filled with players who earn millions because they have the potential to be stars, and in a league with players who we watch actively squander that potential, Gleason made the most of what little he had. There are elite players who have the luxury of long-term contract security, and earn enough that if they were to retire tomorrow they would never have to worry about money again. This was not Gleason. Football is often cruel, and effort given does not always equal the reward one gets. For constant effort on what few opportunities he had on the football field, Gleason consistently risked everything for what is comparatively a meagre reward. He plays the game not for the attention, as players like him get precious little, or the money, as they earn even less of that, but for his sheer love of his team, the fans, and the sport itself. 

Gleason also represented football at its most spectacular. The picture above shows just one of four blocked punts he caused during his seven year career. This one in particular occurred in the Louisiana Superdome in its first game after Hurricane Katrina. This blocked punt sparked such a roar from the crowd that it is still remembered as one of the greatest events in recent sport history. Such opportunities for achievement are rare for a player who rarely gets on the field, and the glory was shared by his unit. There is no Pro Bowl nomination for these kind of plays, and it is rare that a player like Gleason is openly credited for them, however the moment shared by all those who watched this play is a memory that will not easily be forgotten. 

Gleason was football, at the least the best of it. Players like Steve Gleason are what makes Sunday games worth watching, even if you don't notice them. His departure is noted, but probably not missed, and there will be few clamors for his return. He got what he wanted from the game, and enjoyed a fuller career than most players consigned to his role. Nonetheless, next Sunday afternoon you spend watching a game, make sure to try to pay attention to the little guy. He might just do something amazing.