Jovan BelcherThough both men played linebacker in the National Football League, Eddie Moore never knew the Kansas City Chiefs’ Jovan Belcher.
So the former University of Tennessee star and three-year veteran of the Miami Dolphins was understandably reluctant to speculate about what made Belcher murder his girlfriend before taking his own life Saturday morning.
But that doesn’t mean Moore — now a bank executive in his hometown of South Pittsburg, Tenn. — hasn’t seen the dark side of professional football more times than he would like.
“You saw it a lot,” he said of the pressures that can overwhelm young multimillionaires who know their next paycheck may be their last.
“Most people think playing pro football isn’t a real job. It’s a game. We’re just entertainers. And that’s not so. The pressure to do a good job, to provide for your family, sometimes your friends, is tremendous. It wears on you.”