A favor to Joe Delamiellure

[Charm City Sports]

Ok, I am not known for blogging, but when something really gets under my skin, I feel that all the voices heard the better.

For all of you that have watched Outside the lines, or Sportcenter, you may have seen the fight that Mike Ditka and Joe Delamiellure. They are fighting for most benifets for veteran players.

Being in the sports memorabilia business, you meet alot of players over the years. And sometimes you become friends with a few of them.

I have been blessed with a friendship with Joe Delamiellure. I met him at a signing a few years ago, and I have been his supplier for custom jerseys since.

I just got off the phone with him. I wanted to know what I could do to help the cause.

"Spread the word Chris" "Just help spread the word"

And so it will be done.

I noticed that there are guys that should not still have to do autograph signings just to make ends meet. There are guys like Chuck Bednarik, one of the best linebackers in the history of the NFL, who is still doing autograph shows to pay his bills. Sure he still loves to interact with fans, but he should have the choice to not do every signing that he his offered.

John Henry Johnson, a member of the famous Million Dollar Backfield. He did a show in Chantilly last year. It took him 20-40 min. to sign one autograph. Most of the time it was spelled wrong. At one point, he was given a cut signiture of his to look at and copy. He had no business doing a signing, not in his condition.

There are many, many others.

Gene Upshaw does not care. He made a threat to break Joe's "godd**n neck." A threat that is as empty as his (Upshaw) heart. What a proffesional response from a guy who is president of the payers union huh?

These athletes are the men that gave everything of themselves for OUR entertainment. People still think that the older players made millions. Alot of these gridiron greats had jobs as bartenders, or car salesmen while playing in the NFL.

And now there is this guy, a former Bear that told Ditka that he does not care about his players? Funny how he failed to mention that he works for Gene Upshaw.

Gene Upshaw has also given himself a raise. He now makes around ten million a year. He can do this because he only pays the NFL vets 8.88 a day. And this was after he was "forced " to raise the benifits two years ago.

There is a former player living in a homless shelter in MD because he has not benifits, and can't affort to pay rent, medical , or groceries.

This is a guy who played 10 NFL seasons.

Something needs to be done. These guys were our heroes, our father's heroes, and our grandfather's heroes.

Do we want to see the same thing years down the road to guys like John Riggins, Art Monk, Charley Taylor and (insert your favorite player)?