Don Majkowski has experienced a lifetime of punishment and pain. His body's patched together with plates and screws and fusions. He knows the script could've been so different, too.
The Wolf/Holmgren/Favre/White group gets credit for returning the Pack to glory, but there were guys like Majkowski and Sharpe that took a mediocre team and instilled enough swagger and confidence for the next step.
I was only 13, but remember watching the Instant Replay game on a TV in a Walmart in Viroqua. I thought Majkowski had caught lighting in a bottle. I did not realize until reading the article how talented he was and how good he could have been (especially in today's game that protects the quarterback). Great article
It’s a grim reminder how brutal and unfair this game can be sometimes. Majik Man’s timing was off in so many ways. He just missed the riches of free agency that young ascending QB’s now enjoy, the almost absurd quarterback-friendly rules changes-and having his prime condensed under pass-happy Infante with his trademark empty sets which exposed him to even more abuse. Hopefully these types of articles will help him-and others like him-to finally receive the financial assistance to which he should be entitled from all the injuries, pain and suffering directly caused by playing for the NFL.
I graduated from Depew High School before Don. All of us were so proud that this kid from little suburbia made it big. So sad to read what actually happened.
For my third grade “letter to a famous person” at IJN Elementary in the Olean, NY … my classmates were utterly confused when I shared my love for the Majik Man and hoped for the most supreme of autographed care packages. Maybe my classmates would have been more impressed if they knew he was one of Buffalo’s own …
The Wolf/Holmgren/Favre/White group gets credit for returning the Pack to glory, but there were guys like Majkowski and Sharpe that took a mediocre team and instilled enough swagger and confidence for the next step.
I was only 13, but remember watching the Instant Replay game on a TV in a Walmart in Viroqua. I thought Majkowski had caught lighting in a bottle. I did not realize until reading the article how talented he was and how good he could have been (especially in today's game that protects the quarterback). Great article
Thanks Tyler, for this heartfelt story.
It’s a grim reminder how brutal and unfair this game can be sometimes. Majik Man’s timing was off in so many ways. He just missed the riches of free agency that young ascending QB’s now enjoy, the almost absurd quarterback-friendly rules changes-and having his prime condensed under pass-happy Infante with his trademark empty sets which exposed him to even more abuse. Hopefully these types of articles will help him-and others like him-to finally receive the financial assistance to which he should be entitled from all the injuries, pain and suffering directly caused by playing for the NFL.
I graduated from Depew High School before Don. All of us were so proud that this kid from little suburbia made it big. So sad to read what actually happened.
For my third grade “letter to a famous person” at IJN Elementary in the Olean, NY … my classmates were utterly confused when I shared my love for the Majik Man and hoped for the most supreme of autographed care packages. Maybe my classmates would have been more impressed if they knew he was one of Buffalo’s own …
I well remember the excitement of finally having a QB after the long post-Lombardi drought.
Of course, we can't complain about Favre, but the Majik Man was the Great Reawakening of the franchise.