Jamie Samuelsen To Calvin Johnson: 'Don't Do Something You'll Regret'
By: Jamie Samuelsen
@jamiesamuelsen
Dear Calvin,
I'm not sure whether to call you Megatron, CJ or Mr. Johnson. So we'll go with Calvin.
It sure seems like you're retiring and if that's the case, more power to you. Football is a violent game. You have your whole life ahead of you. More concussions were recorded this year than in previous years. So if you're done. You're done. It was a pleasure to cover you as a member of the media. It was more of a pleasure to watch you play as a football fan.
But I get this nagging feeling that you're not done. I read all the reports. I saw that Adam Schefter said that you told Jim Caldwell that 2015 was your last season. I know that you shared this news with teammates Matthew Stafford and Stephen Tulloch. And you told your inner circle BEFORE the season started that it was going to be your final season in football. But you didn't make it public. You didn't tell the Ford family. And here it is, February. The 2015 season is now a month in the rearview mirror. And you still haven't retired yet. At least not officially.
Only you and your family know what you're thinking, so this is nothing more than a guess. But as your body heals and your mind gets re-energized - think about a few things.
The Lions finished the season 6-2 and for the first time in a long time, the offense flowed. Ameer Abdullah and Theo Riddick proved to be a capable and at times explosive duo in the backfield. The offensive line, which had struggled so mightily in the early going, started to do it's job. It's an offensive line that's young and healthy and might just improve as the years move along. Then there are the receivers. Golden Tate is by far the best complementary receiver that you've ever played with. Eric Ebron looks like he might not be worth a #10 overall pick but still might be a nice weapon at tight end.
And there's Matthew Stafford. I'm not sure if this quarterback-receiver hook-up has gone exactly how you thought it would. There have been some ups and some downs - most all of them his. But again, as the season wound down, he discovered something in this Jim Bob Cooter offense that made him look like the quarterback most Lions fans have been hoping to see for years. Maybe it's a mirage. Maybe it was all compiled against bad teams. You'd know better than anybody. But the fact is that the whole band looks like it's coming back for 2016 - and it would be much stronger with you in the lineup than it would be without you.
The Lions are making a bold step forward with new management, new scouts, new trainers and a new approach to analytics. It's impossible to say if this will work. But we all know that the old way wasn't working. You've seen Matt Millen, Rod Marinelli, Mike Martz and Jim Schwartz. It's understandable if you're skeptical. We're all skeptical when it comes to the Lions.
You're 30 years old. You stand to make a lot of money this year, whether you renegotiate your contract or not. And you also have the chance to play at least one more year and receive the accolades and adulation you deserve as you visit various NFL stadiums for the final time. Plus, there's the chance that the Bob Quinn era is the start of something in Detroit. And even if you're not here to see the fulfillment of his plans and goals - you can say you were a huge piece in getting the process going. (Oops - sorry to mention process).
I'll never tell someone when they should retire and when they shouldn't. It's completely up to them. But I also hate regret. And if you walk away from football at a point where you're still a superstar and one of the most respected players in the league, I just think you'll regret it.
Maybe you won't. Maybe you're done. Maybe this is all a waste of time. But until it's official, I guess I'm just holding out hope that you're still open to coming back. And I know I'm not the only one in Detroit with that hope.
Thanks Calvin.
