Darryl Stingley Passes Away

Sad news was spread over the sports world today as former New England Patriots receiver Darryl Stingley passed away after being paralyed for the last 30 years. Stingley, a former standout at Purdue, and exceptional NFL player, was on his way to a very productive NFL career before he was injured on a very violent hit by Oakland Raiders safety Jack Tatum in a preseason game in 1978. Stingley was paralyzed from the neck down and spent the rest of his life in a wheelchair.

This story is particularly sad because Jack Tatum never apologized to Stingley and never visited Stingley in the hospital. Many of his teammates also never visited. Stingley basically rotted away the rest of his sad life feeling not only left out, but forgotten by the team that used to depend on him so much.

The only person who regularly visited Stingley was Raiders coach John Madden. Madden was even in the hospital room when Stingley's venilator malfunctioned and almost died.

Stingley's injury, life afterwards, and death shows the all too real realism of professional sports in which teams and fans only want players while they can "get something from them."

My heart goes out to the Stingley family, for I can only imagine the loneliness and sadness Stingley faced the rest of his life.