A Football Life

No matter how prepared I think that I might be, NFL Films never fails to take my breath away. Everything that those Sabol-touched artists produce, somehow, makes football better. And, I think that football is pretty great. The bar is high. Each episode of their masterpiece series A Football Life is in a word, perfect. When I see that the series is starting again, I gasp. What's next? To kickoff this season, they present LaDainian Tomlinson.

In my time of loving football, I've fallen for three backs that didn't play for the Minnesota Vikings. I watched Walter Payton run for 275 yards against the Vikings and I was amazed. I watched Barry Sanders make Vikings defenders look like fools and I was amazed. I consider myself lucky that the San Diego Chargers drafted LaDainian Tomlinson. It was nice to finally have this singular running talent, that steals my football heart, playing for a team outside the Vikings division.

Like Sanders, Tomlinson's career felt way too short. 11 years is better than most but is less than you hope for a player like this. He rushed for over 1,200 yards in each of his first seven seasons. Incredible! For most of those years, I saw him as the best football player in all of the NFL. This episode of A Football Life brought a lot of that back. It was wonderful to see those jump cuts again. I've never seen a back move like that. People always try to force comparisons on players. Payton and Tomlinson had some similarities but it was more in the open field. Payton entered the line more aggressively. Tomlinson seemed to hop through the line. Showing more patience. More like Sanders. But, not like Sanders. Sanders broke the ankles of defenders and then truly embarrassed them. Tomlinson waited for the defenders and then hopped around them. He could sometimes even glide like Gale Sayers. We could see much of the best in LaDainlian Tomlinson. There are always comparisons. Backs that separate themselves from the rest. Mark them as a back to draw comparisons. LaDainian Tomlinson was one of those backs.

LaDainian Tomlinson's A Football Life included his slave name origins. Most would avoid that. NFL Films makes it all real. Generations passed, the salve owner meeting the slave.

If I were to change anything in this terrific episode, I'd add the Vikings-Chargers game of 2007. Rookie back Adrian Peterson went for an NFL record 296 yards. The Texan Tomlinson was a hero to the Texan Peterson. The embrace of Peterson and Tomlinson after that game was a moment to remember. A passing of the torch was an assumption as Tomlinson was far from done but it was a very cool moment among talented backs.

I look forward to all of the magic that comes out of Mt. Laurel, NJ. Tomlinson's didn't disappoint. It's great to see A Football Life back for another season. Next up is Don Shula. Come on!