Football gives us statistics. Games played. Tackles. Touchdowns. Championships. And years of service. But after spending many years talking with former players, I’ve learned that some of the most important parts of a player’s life will never show up on the back of a football card.
That realization is at the heart of my interview series, Collins Café.
I wanted Collins Café to be an opportunity to sit down with players and learn more about the person who wore the uniform, not the player on the field. I wanted to know where they grew up, what their families were like, what shaped them, what they cared about, and what they’ve had to overcome in life before and after the NFL.
The conversations often begin casually, with fun facts and a few jokes. Then something happens. As we create a safe space through sincere, caring interest, “Players” begin to talk.
Behind the shoulder pads are stories of sacrifice, family, poverty, opportunity, loss, perseverance, relationships, and sometimes pain that has been carried quietly for years. I have heard stories that made me laugh and others that stay with me long after the conversation has ended.
Every Collins Café conversation eventually arrives at the same final question:
What has your football journey meant to you? The answers are rarely just about football.
For some, football changed the trajectory of an entire family. For others, it provided an education, lifelong friendships, financial opportunity, or experiences they never imagined growing up. There is a special bond between players and a shared understanding, almost a special language only NFL players understand. But the journey can also include injuries, difficult transitions, loss of identity, strained relationships, financial challenges, or figuring out who you are when the cheering stops and life is made to continue.
Listening to these stories taught me something important: players want to share their stories, and sometimes they need to.
But just as importantly, former players can benefit from hearing one another.
That understanding helped lead the Professional Athletes Foundation to create PAUSE by PAF.
PAUSE is a confidential, virtual peer-support conversation created exclusively for NFLPA Former Players. It provides a place to step away from everything else for a moment, connect with other former players, share common experiences, encourage one another, and support ongoing mental well-being through honest conversation.
PAUSE is not about having all the answers. It is about creating space for the conversation.
There is something powerful about sitting across from someone, or seeing someone on a screen, who understands parts of your journey without requiring a lengthy explanation. The teams may have been different. The eras may have been different. The circumstances certainly may be different. But there is a shared experience in having played this game at its highest level and then navigating everything that comes afterward.
At the PAF, we have learned that supporting former players requires more than responding when there is a financial or physical need. Sometimes support begins by listening.
Collins Café helped me understand the richness and complexity of the stories behind the helmets. PAUSE takes the next step by giving former players a space to share those stories with one another.
Every player has a journey. Every journey has moments of triumph and moments of difficulty. And every story has value.
Let’s PAUSE long enough to hear it.
Andre Collins
Executive Director
Professional Athletes Foundation
NFL Player Association