NFL: Father Tedy Bruschi

On Monday #54 Tedy Bruschi retired from football.

In Feb, 2005 Super Ted step out of the Massachusetts General Hospital with his wife. Tedy had been diagnosis as having a mild stroke.

Super Ted had felt numbness in his left arm, left leg and blurry vision only a few days before. Bruschi had surgery to repair a hole in his heart, he still however made it back for the seventh game of the following season.

In every sport managers have to balance how much talent and how much heart his or her team has. In Bruschi, Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick found what he called "a perfect player".

What would happen if a player like Micheal Vick had Super Ted's leadership, heart, determination, inspiration and work ethic?

Back to the man in question. Bruschi was the Patriots third round draft choice in the 1996 draft (pick: 86) from the University of Arizona. In college he was a defensive end, where he tied the NCAA Division 1-A sack record with 52. Bruschi had a very successful time in college but after he was drafted by (then) Head Coach Bill Parcells, he was moved to play at linebacker.

Belichick (who was assistant head coach at the time) remembers that Bruschi was told "he was 'too small', 'too slow', 'too this' and 'too that' but he just kept getting better and better, working harder, outworking and out competing pretty much everybody that he faced."

Tedy has missed most of training camp and one preseason game through injury this season. He says that he is simply too old and found his "body doesn't heal as quickly".

Bring the curtain down on his 13 year playing career which saw him win 3 NFL championships. Bruschi noted that he had accomplished all his goals except "winning a fourth championship". He added that "knowing I have three previous ones, I think I'll let that one go".

Bruschi leaves the Patriots in a healthy position. Team leader Tom Brady has returned from his knee injury and at linebacker Jerod Mayo (the defensive rookie of the year) has emerged as his successor as the leader in the middle of the defence.

The Patriots will still miss Super Ted after he had 1,134 tackles, 30.5 sacks and 12 interceptions, 4 of them touchdowns.

Patriot's owner Robert Kraft said that "Tedy embodies everything we want the Patriot brand to stand for".

I hope Tedy will move to a career in television because he always has something interesting to say and he knows the game in side and out.

Check out Tedy's interview on NFL.com.

Or you can learn more about Mr Bruschi here.

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