indignity of the week

By now we've all seen the Mark Sanchez booger video. Last night was probably the final game of Mark Brunell's NFL long and successful NFL career. He was drafted way back in 1993, a time when middle eastern wars were brief and cell phones were bigger than nate newton. Brunell went to the pro bowl 3 times, lead the Jaguars to 2 AFC title games and even won a Super Bowl ring as a Saint last year.




















Somewhere along the way, he must have made some horrific financial decisions because he filed for bankruptcy last summer, citing assets of $5.5 million and debts of over $25 million. Brunell has likely cashed his final NFL check and as he was on the way out the door to financial uncertainty, a 24 year old, rich quarterback wiped a booger on his and it became an internet sensation.















(the warning signs were there)









I hope that this sad but necessary video can promote awareness for Mark Brunell and other athletes dealing with "Eddy Curry Syndrome". Eddy Curry Syndrome is where a professional athlete who is still under contract and being paid (or in Eddy's case, overpaid) yet is flat broke and the remainder of their contract is already financially spoken for. It's similar to AIDS in the sense that the mainstream is slow to identify it as the threat that it is, possibly because of its association with minorities and and people from poor upbringings. I'm sure most people thought Brunell would probably retire, have a car dealership and run for political office as a republican or dixiecrat, not be comically broke like Antoine Walker or Allen Iverson.


(1 in 4 middle aged white guys is at risk for Eddy Curry Syndrome)










NFL players spent a month out of the season looking ridiculous wearing pink to raise breast cancer awareness, a disease that can only affect 1 of their own (Bengals lineman Andre Smith). Why not have the players wear green for a month, to remind them to save their money, so they don't have their replacement wipe a booger on them in front of millions as they walk the green mile towards financial apocalypse.






(Andre Smith, the lone NFL player at risk for breast cancer)