num_pages: 243
description: An unvarnished and uncensored account of quotidian life in the NFL from one of the best writers to ever play in its ranksThe NFL is the most popular sports league in America-and the most damaging to its players. Degenerative brain conditions early onset arthritis bad knees hips shoulders: such is the glory that awaits the retired veteran of the NFL-as well as the terrible pensions and imminent financial ruin for the majority that lack college degrees. But for the millions of NFL fans the average NFL player is faceless; his pain and suffering virtually invisible.Nate Jackson was a receiver at tiny Division III Menlo College on the coast of California. Talented enough to sign as a free agent with the 49ers he then played for six seasons with the Denver Broncos bouncing from the practice squad to the active roster and eventually a starting spot-a player barely holding on to a career in the pros like the majority of his fellow players.As he traces the arc of his career Jackson brings to light the story of hundreds of everyday expendable players whose lives-unlike those of their superstar colleagues-aren't captured in high-definition. From scouting combines to training camps off-season parties to game-day routines this remarkably written memoir-funny candid controversial and artful-is an unforgettable look at life in the NFL and the real lives of young men risking their bodies and ultimately their lives to play pro football.
language: English
title: Slow Getting Up: A Story of NFL Survival from the Bottom of the Pile
publisher: Harper