It’s April 1, 2026, and that means we are just 23 days away from the NFL draft. It is a time when some young men’s lifelong dreams are realized, and their hard work rewarded. But it is also a time when the dreams of others are dashed or detoured. I remember in 1982 waiting 12 painful rounds for my name to be called. It never was.
We see on TV the exhilaration of those players whose expectations are realized or exceeded, but also the disappointment of those who fell down the draft boards or failed to be drafted at all. The latter players, to me, often provide the most compelling stories. They are often the ones who develop the chips on their shoulders. They show incredible resilience and dedicate themselves to proving the draft experts wrong. They don’t let one day or other people’s opinions of them define them. They fight on.
They are the individuals I relate to. I wasn’t drafted. No one seemed to believe in me. But I didn’t give up. And my perseverance paid off. The Cowboys called the next day and took a chance on me. It worked out and I had a great ride.
After 14 great years in the NFL with the ‘Boys, I hung up my cleats. It was 1995. I vividly remember Jerry Jones telling me during the locker room celebration of our 3rd Super Bowl win in four years, “Glenn, you can’t retire now – if you do, we may not win another Super Bowl for 30 years. Heck, we may not even get to another NFC Championship Game.” We laughed. That was crazy talk.
But it was time to move on. I had other plans.
Pro football and Super Bowls were fine but, like most young men, my real dreams were to become a big firm corporate attorney in Philadelphia, then a commercial real estate broker, and then maybe the lead singer in a famous rock band when I hit mid-60s and hopefully still had some hair.
But I digress.
Yes, I’ll be watching the NFL draft this year with great interest, but I’ll be focusing more on the young men who aren’t smiling and celebrating with their friends and families. Their stories often turn out to be the most compelling and inspirational ones.
Footnote: I may have embellished my football credentials just a bit here. It’s the 1st of April after all. Ok, I admit it, I was never 5’10”.