We just grew it."Ī member of Florida's 2006 national championship team, Siler was born in Daytona Beach and now makes his home in Orlando. We started getting more and more efficient. "I saw that five percent of all eligible NFL players were receiving any kind of disability. "I started researching and researching,'' Siler said of the path that led him to his post-playing career. Siler said players visit the residential rehab facility located on the Pacific Ocean for anxiety, depression, substance abuse, and recovery from traumatic brain injuries, among other ailments. Legacy Pro Sports, coupled with Pure Recovery California, a rehab center headquartered in Oxnard, Calif., form the operation Siler and Sherry use to help those players who need mental health assistance. Soon after, he found himself battling his own mental health issues, enduring two years of anxiety and depression, during which he attempted suicide twice." Siler mentions his struggles with mental health in the two years following Belcher's death on his company's website: "This devastating event left Brandon disillusioned with the game, leading him to retire from football. They started the company in 2017 and, according to Siler, now represent more than 5,000 former players, many seeking post-playing disability benefits from the NFL for neurocognitive, orthopedic and total-permanent disability related to mental health issues. Siler earned an MBA following his playing career and is president of Legacy Pro Sports, with Sherry listed as vice president. Our ultimate purpose is to focus on the individual needs of each athlete, helping them maintain an outstanding quality of life after the game." Our team recognizes the challenges that former players face as they transition out of professional sports. Siler and former UF tennis player Ryan Sherry - the two spent time as roommates at UF - are founders of Legacy Pro Sports, which states on its website that it's "a firm that offers assistance to retired NFL and MLB players, ensuring that their personal, financial and medical affairs are in order. I've transitioned into business but still help athletes with their mental health and getting them well." "After that, I fell into my own mental-health funk. "When I first got done, I went back to Florida and finished my degree,'' Siler said. The events of that Saturday morning shaped what Siler is doing today. Siler started in place of Belcher the rest of the season, the final month of his NFL career. In their most inspired performance of the season, the Chiefs defeated Cam Newton and the Panthers on a somber day at Arrowhead Stadium. "Everywhere his name was, they scratched out his name and put my name," Siler said. Meanwhile, Siler had to replace Belcher on the field. "Probably as close as anybody on the team." "Really close with him,'' Siler said recently. When the Chiefs elected to play Sunday's game, Siler turned down offers to visit with grief counselors and spent Saturday night processing the events alone. Siler had become close with Belcher, a four-year veteran and the team's starting middle linebacker, and had seen Kasandra at a Trey Songz concert the previous night. He had shot and killed his girlfriend Kasandra Perkins earlier in the morning, leaving their infant daughter Zoey without either of her biological parents. Belcher's murder-suicide stunned the NFL and generated headlines around the globe. Siler's teammate and fellow linebacker Jovan Belcher fired a bullet into his right temple as then-head coach Romeo Crennel tried to convince the 25-year-old Belcher to put down the gun. "I was pulling in when he did it,'' Siler said recently.īrandon Siler during the Kansas City-Carolina NFL game on Dec. When he arrived, Siler encountered a chaotic scene. It was a Saturday, and Siler headed to Kansas City's team facility to prepare for Sunday's home game against the Carolina Panthers. Siler had to confront his future in a way he never imagined when he woke up on Dec. His aching stretched beyond the typical physical ailments associated with the demanding sport - Siler missed the 2011 season due to an Achilles' injury - or the team's 2-14 record the following season. The Kansas City Chiefs, in a decade under head coach Andy Reid, have become a model franchise others seek to emulate.įormer Gators All-American linebacker Brandon Siler spent two seasons with the Chiefs, the final one in 2012, the year before Reid took over and rejuvenated a franchise in pain. They are the defending Super Bowl champions and feature Patrick Mahomes, one of the NFL's marquee players, as their quarterback.
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