The miserable life of an illiterate tackler

star defense washington redskins, Just his appearance is already daunting. Look at him coming with a height of 1.92 m. At 116kg, like a freight train with no brakes, he terrified opposing quarterbacks and established him as a tackler for more than a decade. His service sheet provides a very illuminating fact: He had 103.5 tackles (“sacks”) against quarterbacks throughout his career.

But a successful career as a football player Dexter Manley (Houston, Texas, February 2, 1959) Couldn’t hide the weakness his sporting environment had given him. Cocaine and alcohol addiction got him into serious trouble, and more importantly, at 26, he was literate at the level of a second grader.

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conflict after conflict

In primary school, his reading and writing difficulties resulted in 19 failing grades on his record and being labeled an “educable mentally handicapped”. His frustration led him to become a bully, physically slamming one of his second-grade teachers on the blackboard and getting into multiple altercations with classmates. During college, when he lied about his real age to get in, he continued to struggle with dyslexia with the help of friends and girlfriends. In terms of sports, the coaching staff did not give him much evaluation. Dexter He admitted that he was called and told: “You’ll just be a factory worker forever, digging ditches for the rest of your life.”

King of the “sack”

However, although he was not a great player on the field, NCAAHe was on the radar of scouts during the 1981 draft. washington redskins They selected him in the fifth round. He was great in his first year of “rockie” and in his second season, washington Get first place with the help of manly, who had 6.5 sacks and finished with a dominant 8-1 record.against in the semifinals dallas cowboys, Dexter he hit the quarterback hard Danny White, This caused him to suffer a concussion and miss the remainder of the game.they reached the end super bowl seventeen 1983 against miami dolphins They defeated their opponents 17 to 27 and won the first championship of the modern season. national football league. During the next three seasons, manly He had double-digit sacks, peaking at 18.5 in 1986.

inside Super Bowl XXII 1987-88 season, washington He narrowly escaped punishment.this denver broncos and John Elway As quarterback, he was corrected as he could only complete 14 of 38 possible passes.this Redskins They won 42-10 with 3 interceptions by our players. Has two world championship rings, manly He’s at the peak of his career right now, but personally, his life has taken a dangerous turn.

Dyslexia and Drugs

every season in washingtonskills manly As a defense, they improved. Meanwhile, their literacy rates have stagnated. During this time, he continued to find ways to hide his dyslexia, ordering the same dish on the menu with teammates at restaurants and “reading” different editions of books. wall street journal In the locker room.During his rookie season, one of his teammates said manly In the sordid world of cocaine use. He goes to his house and shows him his way of life: women, alcohol, parties and cars. He was very moved. There he also started drinking heavily.

In 1987, he had to check-in at a drug rehab clinic, but he got caught: In order to pass a drug test, he would take a few Sudafed (for the common cold) pills before the game, which made him even more high.Before Redskins to the stadium for the final Super Bowl XXII, manly He took a drug test but failed. However, the teams did not inform the league of the result until after the game in order to participate in the game. Later in 1988, he tested positive for cocaine again and was suspended for 30 days.Then, in his final season with the team RedskinsIn 1989, a third positive test resulted in a lifetime ban from the NFL.

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they made him sign cardinals of phoenix In 1990, he had four fights with him. But his career was over: In 1991, when he signed with the team, he tested positive for a fourth drug. Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In order to avoid facing another lifetime ban, he decided to retire. He was convicted of a drug problem, spent two years in prison, and finally learned to read.