As noted earlier this month, lineman-turned-aspiring-podcaster John Moffitt announced his retirement from football. In Monday’s NY Times, Moffitt tells Ken Belson he’s got bigger and better things to worry about than protecting Peyton Manning :
“They are merchandising human beings, let’s be honest,” said Moffitt, who at a cafe in Pike Place Market in Seattle reveled in his freedom much like the Tim Robbins character in “The Shawshank Redemption,” who, after breaking out of jail, rips off his shirt in the rain and laughs at the sky.
In the off-season, after battling for playing time and trying to stay fit, Moffitt, a free spirit who idolizes Jim Morrison, started reading the writings of the Dalai Lama and Noam Chomsky, among others. They helped him conclude that he was a pawn in a machine that controlled his life and that he no longer wanted to meet the expectations attached to that life.
“You kind of let go of that dream that you kill yourself for, to be a millionaire, and you see through it and see that it’s just a facade,” said Moffitt, who was dressed in baggy jeans, T-shirt, work boots and black pea coat. “I let go of all that stuff.”
Moffitt insisted that he did not care about the lost income, and he was shocked that people thought he was nuts for walking away from what they think is a glamorous lifestyle.
“I’m the one being called crazy, but I think everyone else is crazy,” Moffitt said. “It’s disturbing that people are questioning my sanity for giving up the money. What does that say about our world?”