As a professional football player, I never had to deal with the unimaginable pain and soreness of playing 60 or more snaps per game against the biggest, fastest and strongest men in the world. But with what little samplings I did have to experience, I can completely understand how masking the pain becomes a necessary routine for these guys.
Toward the end of my career, I can remember being hit on my shoulder area in a way that seemed no different than any other time before it—only this time it was accompanied by a sharp, excruciating pain in my collarbone.
I walked off to the sideline holding my shoulder in pain and went over to the team’s trainer for an exam. My collarbone seemed raised about half an inch higher on one side than the other, as if a ligament that holds it down had snapped off. The trainer suggested a cortisone shot, which I quickly agreed to. My thought was to get pain-free and back on the field as quickly as possible.