By Dwight Hollier
NFL Player Engagement
While much of the country was rallying around the excitement of playoffs and the Super Bowl, most of the NFL is looking at a very different milestone: the start of the offseason. As my friend and colleague Donovin Darius, who played nine years in the league, described it, “It’s our time to take a step back from football, take a breath, start to heal our worn bodies, and give attention to all the other things we have going on in our lives.” I want to tell you a few ways the Total Wellness program can help.
During the season we operate in a high-pressure environment, but it’s one that gives players, coaches, staff, and our families a predictable routine. As players, we know when we’re lifting, in meetings, or on the field. We know the plays we’re supposed to learn each and every week, when we’re going to be on the road or at home, what we’re supposed to do to stay game fit, and the types of foods we need to eat—and stay away from. Despite the intense day-to-day, we know what to expect—and what’s expected of us.
Moving into the offseason is a transition for everybody and can mean different things to different people. For many, it’s marked by sheer mental and physical exhaustion after a demanding season. For some players and their families, it’s limbo—there’s anxiety about what next season will bring, and if there will even be a next season. For others who know they aren’t returning to the game, it’s the beginning of a new way of life after football, a “Life Reimagined.” For everyone, the offseason involves a shift from a routine centered on football to one that is driven by other factors like family—and that can be a challenge.
No matter your situation, the offseason is an important opportunity to get your body and mind back to where they need to be. And while sometimes that can be a challenge, the Total Wellness Program offers resources that can help you make your own playbook for the offseason. Here are a few.
NFL Transition Coaches—former players like Donovin, trained to help current and former players be at their best off the field—are especially valuable. They provide personal guidance based on firsthand experience, and can help players find support for whatever challenge they’re facing. Whether you’re returning next season or beginning your first season in retirement, transition coaches can assist with off-the-field life coaching and preparing for what’s next. To get connected to a Transition Coach, contact your team’s Director of Player Engagement, or contact me at (212) 450-2055 or Dwight.Hollier@NFL.com.
The NFL Player Assistance and Counseling Service and Work/Life Resources, operated independently through Cigna, also offers an array of services for NFL family members dealing with a variety of difficult situations. From childcare to elder care, financial coaching to expert legal advice, Cigna’s dedicated staff of personal advocates are available 24 hours a day to provide confidential guidance and referrals that can help with any concern. These services are available to anyone who lives in the household of eligible current and former players. To learn more, just call 866-421-8628.
The NFL Life Line provides immediate, free, confidential emotional support from trained professionals for anyone in the NFL family—24 hours a day, 7 days a week, throughout the year. The NFL Life Line is independently operated by leading crisis center experts, so no confidential information about individual calls or callers is shared with the NFL, its teams, or any other organization. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call the NFL Life Line at (800) 506-0078 or chat online at http://www.NFLLifeLine.org/Chat. You can also take a self-check quiz to see how you can benefit from resources at http://www.NFLLifeLine.org/Quiz.
This offseason, as you turn your attention to those things you don’t have time for during the rest of the year, keep your personal wellness in mind. Even when we’re not living football every day, we need to heed that voice that helps us take care of ourselves—and our families. After all, it’s how we live our lives when nobody’s calling the plays that really counts.