So No, We Shouldn't Be Mad At Andrews

From Eagletarian:

Shawn Andrews says not to believe any of the salacious rumors about his absence from the Eagles. Don't even believe the more mundane "speculation that I just don't want to go to camp," Andrews said in a phone conversation with the Daily News from his home in Arkansas Monday afternoon.

"I'm willing to admit that I've been going through a very bad time with depression," the Eagles' two-time Pro Bowl right guard said. "I've finally decided to get professional help. It's not something that blossomed up overnight. I'm on medication, trying to get better."

Andrews didn't want to go into the origins of his depression, which he said began a little more than a year ago and steadily worsened. "I really was kind of at my end," he said. "I've really had a lot on my mind, really (been) contemplating a lot of things."

Fine.  Glad things seem to be working out now, for him.  There isn't a single Eagles fan out there who's going to hold any ill will toward Andrews now that the situation is out.

Which is why I'm calling BS on this part:

Andrews has been reading some of the comments fans have made online about his situation.

"I don't expect sympathy," he said. "I know there are harsh people in this world, but dang, that made me feel low. I do care what people think about me, to an extent."

Shawn, if you'd told us what the problem was you would have had everyone's sympathy right off the bat.

And sure, you can say it's nobody's business but his own, but:

1. That's not the way professional athletics works.  It's not like Andrews could have just shown up next week, declined to talk about what the problem was, and assumed everyone would just drop it.  Not gonna happen.
2. For every guy who has a serious challenge like this and just needs some time to get things together, there are 25 who are pissed about their contracts, don't want to work out in the heat, or accidentally slipped on a McDonald's wrapper and lacerated their arms. 

We were just playing the odds, dude.

Comments

[BrianS]

Yeah, I wish he had (or given the Eagles permission to) share this sooner. I think people would have felt bad for him, but that probably would have been preferable to him over most of us just assuming it was contract issues.

I hope the big guy gets the help he needs. He's very much needed by his teammates, and well-liked by fans and teammates alike, it seems.

[Tracer Bullet]

I'm petty enough to still be mad. Now he needs professional help for a problem that's at least a year old? It's not like he was doing shit between January and the end of July. His doctor was busy all through winter and spring? Who's his psychiatrist? Kevin Garnett?

[Coray Seifert]

From what I've read, depression is a pretty rough condition to deal with. Lots of time it can manifest itself in weird ways that you would think is a cold, the flu, nervous-system problems, allergies, etc etc. It's not like the guy is crazy or anything either, it's a biological condition that causes chemical reactions in your brain to get messed up.

Check out the symptoms. You think you'd be able to figure out that the physical symptoms were depression and not all the professional football you've been playing?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depression_symptoms#Signs_and_symptoms

If Sean Andrews were reading this, I would just say that he should take as much time as he needs, and know that whenever he comes back and dominates the cowgirls, Eagles fans will be here for him.

Bullocks to all the haters!!

[MSE69]

And the winner for incredibly ignorant comment goes to.....Tracer Bullet. Take a bow sir, you earned it.

[Coatesvillain]

Now I can completely understand why Shawn was being so vague. There's a stigma about depression that filters not only through football but life as well so I can see why he was hiding it. Must've taken a lot to finally come out and admit what it was.

Hope he gets better for his own sake. Going at depression by yourself and not receiving help is a tough situation to deal with.

[JO JO BOY]

I would be depressed too if I had to play DaBoys twice a year..... How will he cope when he comes bak and gets manhandled by DaBoys steller D-fense i wouldnt want to deal w/ that either.... Take all the time you need and take all the Depicote you can get your hands on and get ready because not only is your fans gonna turn on you eventually but your gonna be really depressed at the end of the season when your fighting for .500 win prcentage...
GO BOYS!!!!!!!!

[jhavrk8]

If something's going to cheer him up it'll be whomping on the cowgirls.

[JO JO BOY]

jhavrk8 how original but i think your buddy already said that one..... And im shore it would give him great joy to beat the div champs and isnt that how the Beagles orginization works anyway, it dont matter what happens in the season as long as you guys beat the cowboys right.... You could go 2-14 as long as you beat DaBoys... I dont get that way of thinking but maybe thats why in the last 40+ years you havent done anything but beat DaBoys, a couple years you even swept them, great job guys way to get your goals now maybe you will get real goals like winning a championship or something
GO BOYS!!!!!!!!!!

[Tracer Bullet]

Oh please, MSE69, spare me your self-righteousness. Without question, Andrews needs help and I'm glad he's getting it. That said, he could have gotten help at any point in the past six months when it wouldn't have interfered with his multi-million dollar per year job. He had a recommendation for a doctor in Philadelphia and never made the appointment. HE knew there was a problem and HE didn't get help. I'm willing to forgive 95% of that -- as if my forgiveness matters to anyone at all -- but I'm still not willing to completely absolve him.

[Daniel]

He said he's on medication, so I have to assume he's already seen a
doctor. Anyway, I see what you're saying about not telling everyone
why he's missing camp, but let's play Devil's advocate for a minute.

Depression is something that's hard to deal with; it might be even
harder to deal with when you're an athlete who has felt like a tough
guy -- and told to be a tough guy -- his whole life. Much like other
mental illness, one of the major hurdles of dealing with depression is
admitting you're depressed. Coatesvillain (great name, BTW) is right:
A guy like Andrews might feel weak by admitting he's depressed and he
might not want to do it. Everything he's been told by coaches and
teammates and whoever his entire life is about not showing weakness. I
can understand why he would be reluctant to admit he had a problem.
This is all just a guess, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's
something he's dealt with.

And now, the best kind of evidence: Anecdotal evidence! I've dealt
with major depressive disorder (and other various ailments listed in
the DSM-IV) since college, and I've never felt bothered by any stigma
around it. Some people just are more likely to have chemical
imbalances in the brain, be less likely to deal with problems in life,
etc. Eh. It happens. However: I am saddened to hear that Shawn Andrews
is having problems, but I am thrilled has has been able to admit it.
Sometimes that is the hardest hump to get over when dealing with it.

But, please, let's hope he stops taking people on the Internet
seriously. C'mon, Shawn! You should know that it's just the Internet.
(And if it's Philly.com, it's even worse than usual.)

[Eric]

Depression is complicated, as others have mentioned. A lot of people don't even realize they are depressed until someone else identifies it. He could have been on some form of medication which caused depression as a side effect and now he's off it and taking other meds to fix the problem.

I'm kind of confused by his excuse, however. If it was something like depression, and he told Andy about this from the beginning, I would assume Andy would excuse him. For Andy not to excuse something has problematic as depression makes me think there is more to this.

Does anyone know if the PuP can be broadly translated to be utilized for cases of depression? Perhaps it will be in the future.

[Derek]

Brian Dawkins was depressed?!?!

http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/20080805_Eagles_-_Eagles__Andrews_reveals_his_struggle_with_depression.html

"As a guy who went through that early in my career, taking the medication, I certainly understand," said Dawkins, who said he was treated for depression as an Eagles rookie in 1996. Dawkins said he eventually eased off the medication and thinks he resolved his problem through "prayer and having people around me that I knew cared about me."

"It's definitely not a cakewalk," Dawkins said.

Dawkins said people who might think Andrews still should have been functional and shown up for work, even if he is depressed, need to bear in mind that there are varying degrees of depression, and that they aren't qualified to say what Andrews should be able to do.

"I think guys will welcome him back in," Dawkins said.

[shlynch]

A cynic might note that it is awfully coincidental that Andrews will be able to report on Friday, which would be after the last day of full contact at Lehigh -- and really after the end of proper TC -- but just in time to have "willfully been available" for the first preseason game. I put that in quotes because the criteria for losing part of one's signing bonus from a hold out can be "willfully withholding his services in either preseason training camp or during the regular season or willfully missing one or more games". Depending on how the language was put into Andrews' contract, missing the first preseason game might have resulted in the loss of 25% of his prorated signing bonus.

There are obviously two ways to interpret that: either Andrews took a vacation to miss the tough part of camp, or Andrews treatment had an artificial end date, and one that is perhaps counterproductive to his long term health. But regardless of the interpretation, the significance of the return date should not be dismissed as lightly as Les Bowen has done.

[bsencore]

I agree with the above comments by shlynch. This seems to be way too coincidental timing to be coming back from a vague illness like depression. And it's getting no coverage by the cheerleader media. Obviously, I wish Andrews the best in his recovery, but if all this was just more drama-queen crap to avoid hitting people in the heat at Lehigh, he should take his act somewhere else.

Tracer, I wasnt being self-righteous, I was highlighting your ignorance in diagnosing someone you've never met.

Shlynch, you have a future working for the Eagles. That could have come straight from the Banner-Eskin axis of spin.

[EH]

Oh, well, at least we know he's alive:
http://sportscucumber.com/2008/08/04/shawn-andrews-missing-and-depressed/

[benZ]

Hey, I just discovered a cure for depression! Leave Arkansas.

(Too soon?)