Pick a Bottom, Ryan*Updated x 2

I've been waiting for you Ryan Leaf.

Ryan Leaf was one of the greatest NFL "busts" of all time. He was a great quarterback for Washington State in the late 90's and took them to a rare Rose Bowl appearance. He was drafted second behind Peyton Manning and all I really remember was that NFL teams that looked at Ryan said he had a shitty attitude. I always suspected otherwise. 

Ryan faded away. He popped up a decade later after he was busted for burglary and drug charges in Texas. That's when I knew for sure. http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/ryan-leaf-ex-nfl-draft-bust-arrested-in-montana-burglary-and-drug-possession-charges-033012

I have always taken an interest in Leaf for a couple of reasons. He is a Montana boy like myself. There are so few of us that I hated to see all of that talent go to waste. But mostly I think, Ryan reminded me of me- sans any marketable talent. Reminding me of me can only mean one thing.

You got a bad attitude kid. Ok, so how do I fix that? No one ever handed me the instructions.

Welcome to the "I just don't feel comfortable in my own skin club" Ryan. That's the club where the members try to change how they feel. The club where we lose touch with any spirituality we may have had- and where sometimes our emotions go bad shit crazy. Where sometimes and always later on, we scratch our heads and ask, "What were we thinking?"

I think there's a decent chance you fit in here with us.

We don't talk about the club much, Ryan. It's like fight club and it's first rule. There is no fight club. We don't feel like exposing ourselves for another attack or some more emotional abuse. We've had enough when we get here. So we pick a bottom and mostly we shut up and get well.

You are not required to punish yourself any further Ryan. No need to completely self destruct.

It's bad enough to see all that talent go to waste but it is an unmitigated disaster to throw your life away too, Ryan. It's time to pick a bottom and find your solution.

*I snipped this on 4/1.

The council has provided professional and personal support to Leaf as he battled a prescription painkiller habit, Witter said. Leaf's struggles with addiction came to public light three years ago when he faced drug charges in Texas.

He was still on probation for those violations when he was arrested in Montana. He was released from the Cascade County Detention Center in Montana on Friday after posting a $76,000 bond, authorities said.

Witter said the advisors had dinner with Leaf in Seattle less than a month ago. Leaf had lost a significant amount of weight and showed other signs of his battle with the brain tumor and nearly two months of daily radiation treatments. That therapy ended in December.

"Addiction is a lifelong affliction and you can never let your guard down," he said. "The bottom line is we want Ryan to get all the help he needs."

The hits just keep coming. http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/ryan-leaf-arrested-again-no-not-repeat-saturday-181316796.html