Praying For A Hail Mary - 6. Chapter 6

Patrick had no idea what was going on. First he saw Jason and Spencer walking out and then shortly after them he saw Coach Campbell. He didn’t know if he should keep sitting there and wait for his turn or go. There was no way that he would know what he was signing if he did decide to wait since Spencer left with Jason without telling him what to do.

Frozen in thought, Patrick just sat there staring out to nowhere in particular. Then he felt someone tapping his shoulder, bringing him back to the land of the living. It took a few seconds for his eyes to focus on the figure that was standing before him. Once he did, he was glad to see it was Coach Campbell standing there and not the owner or anyone from his office staff.

“Patrick I’m so sorry for walking right past you the way I did.” Campbell reached out his hand to help Patrick to his feet. “Just a lot of crap happened in there that got me so mad I wasn’t seeing straight when I walked out of there. Why don’t we go back to my office so we can reschedule your appointment when Spencer can be there with you?”

Still having no idea what was going on, Patrick didn’t object. He brushed off his clothes as he walked alongside Campbell. They didn’t really speak as they walked to Campbell’s office. Whenever one of them did say something, it was nothing about what had happened just moments ago in the owner’s office. It was more general like ‘how’s the weather?’ type of conversation.

When they finally reach Coach Campbell’s office it didn’t take long to reschedule the appointment that he was supposed to have that afternoon. Once that was done, they talked a little bit about what was expected of him before they parted ways. Campbell felt bad that Patrick got the short end of the stick, but was put at ease when Patrick didn’t take offense on being left behind.

Meanwhile down the street at one of the local restaurants, Jason and Spencer were stepping inside to devise a plan on how they were going to proceed. They talked a little on the drive to the restaurant, but not in detail. It was general. It was Spencer feeling out his new client to see how far he can go to get his client what he deserved at the level he has already shown he could play at.

“I know what just happened has you wondering what in the world is going on.” Spencer opened up the conversation after they gave their drink order to the waitress. “I would never walk out of a contract negotiation if I knew what was on the table was the best that my client would get anywhere else. What they tried to do to you was highway robbery and there was no way I was going to let that happen. Those guys thought they could get away with it, and Campbell saw it coming.”

Jason took a drink of his Pepsi as he gathered his thoughts. “I won’t sit here and tell you I know what happened just moments ago.” Jason looked up to make eye contact with Spencer. “I’m a football player. That is all I want to be. Contracts and how they are done I rather leave that stuff up to agents like you because you guys know best. With that said, where do you think we should go next? I really want to play for the Cowboys.”

“There is no doubt in my mind when everything is said and done you will be playing for the Cowboys. You just need to trust me on getting you the best deal possible.” Spencer was interrupted by the waitress for his order. Once he and Jason gave her their orders, she left, letting Spencer continue. “This sixty five thousand a year is a joke. More so now that they want you to play in two different positions. None of those playing at the first string level are getting paid that low.”

“I won’t disagree with you, but none of those on the team have the kind of past I have going into contract negotiations.” Spencer had a confused look on his face when he looked up at Jason. “I mean, um, look at everyone playing for the cowboys right now. None of them got their positions the way I am about to get mine. They earned it over years of being on the team. Here I am walking off the street and in my first week I get the start and get the backup quarterback position, that’s a slap in their faces if you ask me. So let’s be fair and maybe we should take what they are willing to give.”

Spencer looked around the restaurant as he leaned over on the table. “Look you need to tell me what Jerry Jones’s lawyers have on you. They have something big or they wouldn’t have tried the bullshit they just tried. So here and now you have to spill the beans so I don’t get blindsided again when we get called back in for another round.”

Jason wasn’t one hundred percent certain that he could trust Spencer just yet. The guy has shown that he is on his side so far, but that could change once he knows what Jason thinks the lawyers know. To his knowledge there hasn’t ever been a gay football player in the NFL or even at the college level, open or closeted. Being that he might be the first, he knew he was in uncharted territory. Territory that Spencer might not want to venture into.

“I really don’t know what they think they know about me that they felt they had the right to offer me that shitty contract.” Jason whispered. “The only thing I do know for sure is that they have heard rumors about me from one of the other guys that went out for the quarterback positions. Orton was in college at the same time I was and he started spreading rumors about me that might have gotten up to the owner and his lawyers. Those rumors hurt me in college so much that I lost out to him when we were both up for the Heisman Trophy.”

Spencer hasn’t been an agent that long yet, but he knows when he is getting lied to or half-truths from his clients. Even those that he has barely met. “There is a lot you’re not telling me. If you want me to be able to get you the best deal possible you going to have to trust me. That is the only way our relationship is going to work. So you either tell all or we go our separate directions.”

By the tone of Spencer’s voice, Jason knew he wasn’t going to be able to get out of there without telling him what he does actually need to know. Not if he wants to keep him as his agent. However, there is part of him that is still afraid that once he actually tells someone the truth, his career is over before it begins. A career he has worked so hard for since he could remember.

“I know there’s no way I’m going to be able to keep what I’m hiding a secret much longer. It’s going to get out. And yes you’re right you need to know everything about me if you are going to help me.” Jason looked down at the table as he twisted the napkin in his hand under it. “It’s just once I put it out there, you might get up and walk away. You might even go out there and tell the world why you are no longer representing me, which will destroy me.”

“Look there’s nothing you can say to me that will make me walk out the door and not be your agent. You keeping secrets from me will, but not the truth. On top of that if I would do anything you fear, I might as well kiss my career goodbye too. One of the reasons my clients like me so much and stay with me is because they can trust me with their worst secrets. You’ve got to be able to trust me and that trust needs to start here and now.”

Jason knew he had no other choice but to trust him “Orton found out something about me when we played against each other our first time. He tried to blackmail me, and when I refused to go along with his blackmail, he outed me to my team. After he did that, it was a living hell I don’t want to go through again. I want playing in the NFL to be a clean slate.”

“Come on Jason you are beating around the bush here. You need…” Jason interrupted him by blurting out that he was gay. It did throw Spencer for a loop by the way Jason blurted it out, but he quickly recovered. “Okay, okay. This is indeed something I have never had to deal with. I have to deal with DWI’s, clients being arrested for stupid things and even getting them out of a jam when they got caught with another woman, but this is new for me.”

Just then the waitress arrived with the food, just as Thelma walked through the doors. She quickly spotted Jason and walked over to him and Spencer. Before sitting down next to Jason, he introduced her to Spencer as his girlfriend, confusing him even more. When Thelma saw the confused look on her face, she was confused as well. At that moment she had no idea that Jason had just finished telling Spencer the truth about himself.

She leaned over and handed Jason a disc and her laptop before telling the waitress what she wanted to eat. Jason pulled out the laptop from the carrying bag and put it on the table. As he turned it on, Spencer sat there wondering what was going on. He was perplexed about Thelma and at the same time wondered what was on the disc that she handed Jason.

“You want the complete truth so you don’t get blindsided, well I hope you are prepared to get it.” Jason pushed the button to eject the disc that was in the laptop before inserting the one Thelma handed him. “Before I let you see this DVD, I need to give you some background first. You need to know what I went through once Orton did what he did. That is the only way you can understand why I was so reluctant on telling you what I just told you.”

“Wait a minute Jason!” Thelma jumped in. “You didn’t tell him what I think you told him.” Jason looked at her with sadness in his eyes as he nodded his head. “How do you know you can trust him with that information? You just met him today and what you have told me he made you walk out of your contract negotiations because he didn’t like what they were offering to pay you. Anything is better than having to go home defeated.”

Jason was about to respond when Spencer beat him to the punch. “Ma’am with all due respect you have me all wrong. Yes Jason just met me today and there is nothing signed between us just yet that will put your mind at rest that I won’t go out and blab what he told me. Nothing I can say will make you feel better on me knowing what I know, but also nothing I get in writing and I sign will make you feel any better than you do right now. You just need to trust me! My career can be destroyed if I go out and blab what I know about Jason.”

Thelma didn’t like it, but she knew there was nothing she could do about it now. Her dear friend told a person the one thing that can destroy his career without discussing it with her first. Now all she can do is sit there at Jason’s side and take whatever might be coming their way.

“What we are facing right now is something no one that wants to be in the NFL has had to face before.” Jason looked back and forth between Spencer and Thelma. “No one knows for sure if there has been other players before me that were gay. Many believe there had to be gay players in the past, but they could never come out and live their lives in the open.”

Jason saw the waitress heading in their direction through the corner of his eye. He stopped talking and didn’t start until she left. “With that said, Spencer you need to know everything so you can see why I have been so hesitant on telling you the truth. As I was saying when Orton outed me my life changed. Those I thought were my friends ended up being my worst enemies. They are the ones that demanded new rules to be made to deal with who I am.”

“Hold on Jason. What new rules?” Spencer held up his hand to stop Jason from going further. “I have been doing what I have been doing for close to a decade and I not once heard about a college making up special rules and putting them in effect for just one player. If that had happened, surely it would have hit national news because it just isn’t right.”

“You’re right. You would have heard about it if it happened at a known university like Notre Dame, but it didn’t. It happened at a college that wasn’t on the map until I started playing in the quarterback position. And the only reason for that is because for the three years that I was starting, we went to the Rose Bowl and won. If we hadn’t accomplished that, we would have never gotten on the map.”

“I understand all that Jason, but you are sitting here telling me….” Jason interrupted. “You need to let me finish or we are not going to ever get out of here.” Spencer nodded his head as he leaned back in his seat. “My so called friends got the rest of the team riled up to the point they all walked into the coach’s office and demanded certain steps be taken.

First I was not allowed to shower when they showered because they feared that all I would be doing in the shower with them is checking them out. Second I was not allowed to change when they changed before a game, after a game, and whenever we practiced. It was for the same reason. Third whenever we were on a road trip I had to be in a room by myself. Because the program didn’t do that for any other player, I had to pay for my own room. Fourth, whenever we traveled I had to sit alone up front, nowhere near any other player. And the list goes on.”

Spencer couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He thought Jason was making it all up, but the look on the young man’s face told him otherwise. It looks like it still bothers him today as much as it did when it went through it all, if not more. The more Jason went into detail about how things went for him in college, the more Spencer understood not only why Jason wasn’t willing to open that can of worms again, but why he feared what might happen if he does.

“That leads me to what I’m about to show you.” Jason looked down at the laptop, hit a couple of keys before turning the laptop so only Spencer could see. “What you are about to watch might turn your stomach. It might even make what you just ate come right back up. So if you do have a weak stomach you might want to ask to see this video later.” Spencer shook his head. “Okay a couple more things you need to know. I won’t ever make copies of this DVD or let anyone take it.

Let me tell you where this video was taken.” Spencer could see Jason wasn’t comfortable at all talking about anything has talked about, but more this. “This happened my sophomore year in college after our second appearance at the Rose Bowl. We had just won for the second straight time and everyone was celebrating that win after the game in the locker room before heading out.

They had forgotten about me, which I didn’t care because it wasn’t anything new. Even though we had won, I still had to follow the rules that were put in place if I wanted to stay on the team. So I had to sit outside the locker room as the team I was on and helped win their second Rose Bowl celebrate that win in the locker room. It took them longer to get showered and dressed than it normally did, but eventually I did get my turn.

When I walked into the empty locker room, something didn’t sit right with me. I had this feeling; you know the feeling you get that something bad is about to happen but you have no idea what it is.” Spencer nodded his head. “Anyway I had that feeling and I should have listened to it. I should have just grabbed my clothes and got the hell out of there, but I didn’t. I didn’t want to walk around in my uniform all sweaty.

Pushing the feeling deep down into my stomach, I walked over to my locker and grabbed what I needed to take a quick shower. After getting out of my uniform, I walked over to the showers very slowly, looking around every corner. No matter how hard I tried to ignore that feeling, it kept coming back and when it did, it came back even stronger.

When I did finally make it to the shower and nothing happened, I settled down a little, but that didn’t last long at all.” Jason had a hard time swallowing. He was sweating like an open faucet and started shaking as he got more into recounting that day’s events. Thelma not only could see Jason shaking, but she could feel him. Not wanting to make him jump, she slowly reached over and wrapped her hands around his to try and console him as he went on.

“I heard the door open to the locker room, but no voices. Which I thought was weird since this was the locker room of the winning team. Then things got even weirder. I called out to let who ever walked into the locker room know that there was someone still there, but I didn’t get an answer. I yelled out a couple more times, and got nothing. At that point that bad feeling I had come back even worse than before. I knew at that point I was in trouble.

Quickly I rinsed off the soap from my body and ducked my head under the water to rinse out my hair before turning off the water. I grabbed my towel and dried off my body before I wrapped it around me and grabbed my shower stuff. Once I had everything I slowly stepped out of the showers and started my way to my locker to get dressed and the hell out of there. Just like I did when I walked to the showers, I walked slowly back, looking around every corner.

Finally when I got to my locker and nothing happened, I started to laugh to myself. I stood there like an idiot kicking myself in my ass for letting my imagination get away from me. It was the worst mistake I have ever made because I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings. I didn’t notice five guys walking up behind me until it was too late.”

Jason couldn’t go on. His voice was shaky, barely understandable. He was trembling so bad that he was shaking the table. Spencer didn’t push Jason to continue. He sat there and waited for him to get control and decide when he was ready to go on with what he was saying. It took a while, but Jason did finally settled down enough that he was able to go on.

“Here why don’t you push play and see for yourself what happened from that point on.” Jason pointed to the video player on the screens play button. Spencer hesitated at first because he feared what he was about to see. After going back and forth whether he should or shouldn’t play the video, his want to know what happened won over and he pressed play.

The first couple of minutes of the video wasn’t that bad. It confirmed what Jason was thinking that someone had walked into the locker room when he was in the shower. In reality five guys had walked into the shower room. They snuck in and walked around the locker room like thieves in the night would if they had broken into your home. Every few feet they would stop, gather in a cluster, laugh, and point to the showers where Jason was at.

None of them talked at all at first. Not until they got to Jason’s locker. The one holding the camera was the first to speak. He was wondering what their plans were, which none of the other guys answered. By the looks on their faces they hadn’t really planned it all out yet. The only thing that they were certain of and voiced was that they wanted to put Jason in his place by hurting him.

Two of the guys opened Jason’s locker and started to go through it, but stopped when another told them that they couldn’t hear the water anymore. All five of them turned towards the shower and stood there trying to listen for the water. When they couldn’t hear it, they put Jason’s things back the way they thought they were before closing the locker and running to the other side and lying in wait for the person they went in there for to come to them.

For several minutes there was nothing on the screen since the guy that had the camera was huddled in with the others and camera was pressed against his chest. All you could see is a black screen, but you could hear all five of them breathing and at times snicker. Finally when they started to move, the guy that had the camera pulled it away from his body and faced it to the other guys.

By the view from the camera the four guys were tiptoeing towards Jason, trying to be as quiet as they could. By Jason’s own admission they succeeded because he said he didn’t hear anything and the camera it backed that up. He had no idea there was anyone behind him until one of the guys reached out and pulled at Jason’s towel, trying to get it off.

At first Spencer couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He had to rewind the video to the point when they reached Jason to be able to digest what was going on. As the first guy was pulling at the towel, two of the others started yelling hateful slurs as the fourth looked like the cheer leader of the group. The one holding the camera didn’t say a word or do a thing, not at first.

Jason tried to fight them off and at the same time hold onto to his towel, which eventually failed. He had to decide what was more important, holding onto the towel or defending himself. He decided the latter and immediately his towel was torn off and the guy that was tugging at it started to twirl it in the air, taunting Jason with it as the other two started poking at Jason’s mid-section.

Within minutes, the guy twirling the towel had tossed it to one side and joined his two buddies on jabbing Jason in the gut. Jason was doing a fair job defending most of the jabs, but when the fourth one, the cheerleader joined in. It was too much for Jason. He tried to stay standing, but he was fighting a losing battle, five against one.

Having no other choice Jason went into a protective crouch using the lockers for support, but that didn’t stop the four guys. They started a barrage of hits on him. One after another hit Jason with all their force. Each hit harder than the one before. And they got faster. Spencer couldn’t believe that Jason was still standing after a minute of this, more so almost five, but finally his body did give in and he slid down the lockers and hit the floor hard.

That didn’t stop the guys from punching him. To Spencer it looked like they took Jason falling to the floor as the green light to hit him even harder. As they pounded on him, they shouted more and more hateful slogans at him. ‘Fags must all die! You don’t deserve to live! All fags go to hell and that’s where we’re going to send you!’ And on and on, but the one that got Spencer’s attention, which was a hard choice between all the ones they have thrown out so far took this assault on Jason to the next level. ‘You liked to be fucked in the ass, let’s see how you handle this!’

Two of the guys grabbed a hold of Jason’s hair and dragged him to an open area of the locker room while the other two wandered off. When the two that was dragging Jason by his hair got him where they wanted him, the other two returned with a broom. They didn’t waste any time on breaking the broom part off, leaving just the stick.

In plain view of the camera you could see Jason fighting to get free, but he was being held down. When he somehow got one of his arms and legs free, he started punching and kicking, connecting several times, knocking those that were holding him off their feet. Once he was free, he jumped to his feet and started running, but just as he got to the door, the two that were getting the broom stick ready caught up to him and slammed him to the ground.

Right there inches away from getting free from his living hell, Jason was thrown right back into it with another barrage of punches to the midsection that was already hurting. He fell to the floor due to three broken ribs that Jason didn’t know he had. Not wanting to be dragged off to what he knew as going to happen, he quickly went into the fetal position, which didn’t stop the two guys from striking him.

Due to the constant barrage of hits, Jason started to go in and out of consciousness giving the two guys an open opportunity to do what they wanted, drag him back to where they had him. When they started, Jason came through and tried to stop them, but there was no use. They had a good hold on him and there was no kicking free this time.

When they got him back where they left the broom stick, all five of them started to kick him over and over again. Since this was the first time the guy holding the camera joined in, the video was all over the place. That went on for over five minutes. When the guy with the camera stopped, stepped back and focused the camera on Jason all you could make out was a body in a pool of blood.

No one was doing anything or moving. It was so quiet in that locker room you could hear the water running in the showers. Then the one that looked like the leader broke the silence. ‘Now we’re going to do what we were trying for before you tried to run like the little sissy that you are.’

The guy picked up the broom stick and started to hit Jason over and over again on his back, side, legs and anywhere else he could land a hit. ‘You like big huge sticks don’t you?’ The guy taunted Jason as he handed the stick off to the next guy. He took over and didn’t stop for almost two minutes. When he did, it was to just hand it over to the next guy. This went on until every one of them had their turn hitting Jason with the stick.

Once it went around and got back to the leader of the group, Spencer thought it was all over, but boy was he wrong. The guy ordered two of the other guys to help him spread Jason’s cheeks apart. Jason somehow was still conscious and tried to break free, but he couldn’t. They were able to spread his cheeks and the leader walked up and shoved the stick into Jason’s butt, causing him to scream so loud that even though Spencer was wearing headphones, those sitting in the tables next to theirs was able to hear Jason’s screams.

Spencer had enough, he couldn’t watch anymore. As he pulled the headphones from his ears, he slammed the laptop shut. Jason lived through what Spencer just finished seeing, and Thelma has already saw, so they knew exactly where Spencer was at by the screams they heard. And by the look on Spencer’s face they knew he couldn’t believe what he had just finished seeing.

It took almost tem minutes for Spencer to find his words, but once he did, there was no stopping his questions. “How in the world did these guys get away with this assault on you? Really, how in the world did they get away with this?” Spencer looked around as he leaned in. “Forget that for now. How are you sitting here today after what they did to you? By the looks of it they were out to kill you and they weren’t going to leave without getting that done.”

“When they wouldn’t stop kicking and punching me I thought the same thing. Then when they started hitting me over and over again with the broom handle I thought that was it, but somehow I weathered it. But then when they started to….” Jason voice trailed off. “Well you know, I thought for sure I was dead, but somehow I made it through all that.”

Taking a deep breath, Jason set out to answer all of Spencer’s questions. “Now as far as how they got away with it all, well that is a simple answer. They were my fellow teammates and the football program didn’t want what happened to get out. They swooped in and with their connections were able to keep what happened to me from getting to the press or the guys getting arrested. Those five guys simply got a slap on the hand and told next time to be smarter about it.

The only one that did get some kind of punishment was the coach. He was forced to retire. That was only done in case this ever did get out they could say they did take action. Other than that, no one else really got punished. I had to see those five guys every day for the remaining last two years of college. Each time I saw them, they looked at me with looks that could only mean one thing. They weren’t done with me just yet!”

Shaking his head back and forth, Spencer couldn’t believe it. “Not only didn’t these guys get arrested and charged with assault, they weren’t expelled from school. They were allowed to stay on the team next to the guy they almost killed.” Spencer started to roll up the wires of the headphones as he talked. “I’m pretty sure the tape shows it, but there is no way I’m going to finish watching it. So I’m just going to ask. How did you get out of there alive?”

Jason looked over at Thelma and then to the floor. This whole conversation is making him relive a part of his life that he wished never had happened. A part of his life he wished he could completely forget about and never be asked about again. But he knows that isn’t going to happen at that very moment. He had no other choice but to relive it.

“If you watched the rest of the video you would see in complete detail the assault on me went on for little over an hour. By the looks of it in the video I passed out somewhere in the middle, about thirty minutes into it. So when the guys stopped and looked down at me all they could see is a disfigured body that didn’t look like was breathing anymore. They couldn’t see through all the dry and wet blood the chest going up and down barely.

So they dragged me across the locker room and threw me into the broom closet where they got the broom from. After shutting the door, they laughed and joked about what they had done to me as they walked out. I don’t know how long I was in that closet because the next thing I could remember was waking up in the ICU with my family and Thelma there at my side.”

For the first time in a while Spencer settled back in his seat. “I bet you that your father and brothers were mad as hell. They probably wanted revenge and not of the legal variety.” Jason slowly nodded his head. “I have another question for you. How did you get the video? I mean those guys were the ones recording it. There is no way they would let it get out there because they could still get into a lot of trouble with the law. So how did…” Jason politely interrupted.

“Believe it or not they are the ones that gave it to me. After recovering and returning back to school, they taunted me for a while. After they got tired of doing that, they stopped and I thought it was all over, but it wasn’t. One day after practice and after everyone had showered and left the locker room, I went to my locker and it fell out. Attached was a note typed out from one of them.”

Jason pulled out the note from the side pocket of the bag that Thelma carried the laptop in. ‘We all know you want a career in the NFL. So if you don’t want that dream smashed like we did to your face, better watch the DVD. Think about what will happen to your career if this ever gets out. If you know what’s good for you, you’d better keep your mouth shut!’

Thinking there was nothing else that could surprise him on this whole thing that happened to Jason, Spencer found out how wrong he was. He took the note and read it for himself several times before giving it back to Jason. As he digested everything he has been told and seen, he tried to come up with a plan on how to deal with everything, but nothing came to mind. He knew he couldn’t keep Jason and Thelma with him all night, so he had to say something.

“What I have seen and been told is a lot to think about.” Spencer talked low, almost in a whisper as he looked straight at Jason. “There is no doubt what you fear can happen if this video ever gets out, or you being gay is leaked. I know it’s unfair, but it’s the world we live in. People won’t accept one of their sports stars being gay because simply put they are their kids heroes. They fear if their kid’s hero is gay, their kids might turn gay or something like that.”

There was no disagreement from the other side of the table from Thelma or Jason. “However, I feel we need to be on the offense of this and not the defense. We need to find a way to educate the public that you are no different than anyone else that has worn a football uniform in the NFL. I’m not saying that’s going to easy or even where we can start. The only thing I know for certain through my past experience it’s best to be the ones letting the cat out of the bag.”

Spencer stopped talking for a few minutes. He was trying to come up with a plan how to get where he wants to go with Jason, but again nothing came to mind. “Right now I’m drawing blanks, but that doesn’t mean a thing. What we need to do first is get you the contract you deserve. Mr. Jones or his attorneys aren’t allowed to ask about your sexual preferences no matter how badly they want to or think they know and just want it confirmed one way another. Let’s get your contract first.

Once we get over that hump we will sit down and put together a detailed plan on how to get this secret out. While we are devising a plan I will be testing the waters by talking with Coach Campbell, some of his staff and some of your fellow players if you end up signing with the Cowboys. I need to know where they land up with this.” Jason tried to interrupt, but Spencer knew what his objection was. “And don’t worry I’m not going to let the cat out of the bag about you when I test the waters with those guys I stated before. I will throw out a hypothetical situation near what we are talking about to see where they land. It can’t be about a gay player because of what Orton has already done, but I will find something close to it and see where they stand.

For the meantime, as I said I will work on getting you a contract with the team you want to play on. I’m certain by midweek next week at the latest we will have a contract. Until then you need to go to practice and only practice on special teams since that is the one position that you are certain to have as a starter.” Spencer looked down at his watch.

“It’s getting late and you have had a long day already. So let’s wrap this up and pick it up again on Monday. Until then take it easy. You and this wonderful woman at your side rent a car and start learning how to get around this city that you are going to be living in for years to come. If anything pops up, I’ll call you. I promise a move won’t be made on your contract without you’re okay.”

All three got up from the table almost at the same time and reached for the check, but Spencer got to it first. Jason tried to give Spencer what he thought was his and Thelma’s part of the check, but he wouldn’t allow it. They went back and forth on it, but when they got to the register, Jason gave in and allowed his new agent to pay for the meal.

When they made out of the restaurant, Jason realized that he hadn’t called for a cab yet to pick him and Thelma up. Before Jason could get his phone out of his pocket, Spencer offered to give them a ride back to their hotel. At first, Jason was going to politely say no, but he knew it was going to be a while before a taxi got out there to pick him and Thelma up. Not wanting to be sitting outside the restaurant for hours, he accepted the ride.

The evening and the weekend went by fast. Every time Jason turned on the television to watch sports all they were talking about was him and the contract negotiation failure with the Cowboys. At first he thought he was going to be the one getting the bad press, but to his surprise every channel that was talking about it was ganging up on Jerry Jones and his organization.

Then when the details of Favre’s contract came out, they added Favre to what was wrong with the Cowboys. In one way or another each sports announcer said the same thing about what happened on Friday and the amount the Cowboys spent on Favre to get him to sign. None of the sports announcers thought Favre was worth the twenty-five million, two year contract he got.

By Sunday night Jason had enough hearing about him, Jerry Jones, the contract failure, and Favre. All he wanted to do is settle in for the night and take in the Sunday night game. During the preshow nothing was mentioned about the talk of the NFL of the last couple of days. Jason thought maybe they were all burnt out talking about it, but boy, he would find out how wrong he was.

When halftime rolled around, they went to the studio with Dan, Tony, Rodney and Hines for scores around the NFL. They went through the highlights a lot faster than they normally do, broke for a commercial and when they returned they went over to Bob Costas who had prepared remarks on what was going on with the Cowboys and their staff.

“As many of you know by now the Dallas Cowboys lost both of their quarterback’s one and two in their last game. When Coach Campbell had no one else left to play quarterback, he turned to a young man that they hadn’t even signed to a contract with the Cowboys. A young man they brought on board just days before the game to try out for the extra point and three point kicker. A position that they have been hurting in since last season and thought was fixed in the off season.

Jason Engelmann was thrown into a game with an offensive line that he has never played with before. He never took a snap in practice or even saw their play book. The team was twenty one points down when he walked on the field to take his very first NFL snap in front of one of the largest opening game turnouts since the Cowboys moved into their new stadium.

The reason I’m going over what many of you already know is to remind you of what type of caliber player this young man is. He walked out on that field and wasn’t affected by any of the things any other new player would have been. There was less than a couple of minutes left on the game clock, twenty one points down and the Cowboys side line would have been happy going into halftime with no more mistakes. Jason wasn’t thinking that way. Instead of going in with no more going wrong, he wanted to send a message to the fans and the Redskins they were not out. In one throw, he helped his team put seven points on the board, changing the momentum of the game that the Redskins couldn’t recover from. At the end, the Cowboys won their first game of the season.

Many of us thought after seeing that, Jerry Jones and the Cowboys organization would have signed this young man to a six year, multimillion dollar contract as their starting quarterback. Instead of doing that, they tossed the young man to the curb and signed a once great quarterback to that multimillion dollar contract. Who may or may not be able to take the Cowboys to the Super Bowl.

The only thing that is certain here is Jerry Jones got a once great quarterback at a hefty price and threw away what could have been years of great seasons by not signing the quarterback he should have.” Bob turned and looked into another camera. “I truly hope Jerry Jones thinks about what he has done and fixes it. The Cowboy’s fans deserve more than what he is giving them. They demand more than what he is giving them, a winning season.

They are tired of waiting for that winning season. The last time they won a Super Bowl was in 1995, well over a decade ago. Mr. Jones the Cowboy’s fans want their Super Bowl and they, as well as me and many analysts of this game don’t believe Brett Favre is the man that can get it done. They want youth in that position that can bring the Cowboys out of the wilderness.

You have a week, Mr. Jones, to sit down and do what is right for your fans. Sign Jason Engelmann to a contract, don’t let him slip through your fingers. If you don’t sign him, there are plenty of other teams out there that will and put him in the starting position immediately. Don’t rob the fans of the Cowboys of what could be a dynasty with this young man at the helm.”

As soon as Bob Costas finished his last sentence the cameras returned back to the studios where the four commentaries went over Costas speech before throwing it back out to the field for the beginning of the second half. The whole time Costas spoke, Jason and Thelma were glued to the television, as well as Jason’s family and friends were back home.

Even though Jason was tired of hearing about what had happened, he was stunned that Bob Costas picked up the torch and went running in his defense. This guy is one of the most respected analyst’s in the game today. Whenever he speaks out on something, people listen. He threw his opinion into the ring on what was going on with him and his future with the Cowboys, which he knows will go a very long way to help him get the contract Spencer is trying to get for him.

The rest of the game not much more was said about what is happening in the Cowboys organization. When the game ended, Jason turned in for the night. He was not only physically worn out from doing a couple of hours at the gym, but mentally as well. Since Friday, Jason couldn’t think about anything else except what happened. From the contract negotiations falling apart to what he told Spencer, his mind has been spinning.

Monday morning no one was surprised when Jerry walked into the office that he was in an angry mood after all the bad press he was getting. The very first thing he did was demand a meeting with his attorney’s and head coach, which started almost immediately. Whenever Jerry calls you to his office to meet with him, you drop whatever you are doing and go if you want to keep your job.

“Damn it!” Jerry yelled as he slammed down the newspapers on the conference table. “I’m tired of all this bad press. From the moment Jason was walked out of this office by his agent, all anyone was hearing was how I was trying to cheat him. I WASN”T TRYING TO CHEAT HIM OUT OF ANYTHING!” Jerry looked at his attorneys. “You guys assured me that we would have gotten him signed with what we were offering. I believed you because you normally do your homework.”

“Sir with all due respect we would have had him signed if he didn’t get an agent!” The head attorney quickly jumped in. “Jason has no idea how contracts worked or what he was worth until Mr. Alan got to him. Plus we have the statement Mr. Orton gave us about Jason. That alone should have got Jason to sign on the dotted line. Rumors of his sexuality getting out would kill any chance of him ever playing in the NFL. We thought he would see that and sign.”

“What statement are you talking about?” Coach Campbell jumped in. The head attorney ruffled through his file on Jason, pulled out a sheet and slid it across the table. Campbell picked it up and read it a couple of times before putting it back down. “I don’t even know where to begin on this, I really don’t.” Campbell turned his attention to his boss Jerry.

“By you having this statement on file opens you and this team up for lawsuits. I thought you were a lot smarter than this.” Jerry tried to speak, but Campbell wouldn’t let him. “And you guys are supposed to be his attorneys. You of all people in this organization know the law. You know this is against the law. We’re not even allowed to ask any questions about a person’s sexuality when they are interviewing for a job, more so go around getting statements that might not even be true about a person’s sexuality. Even if it’s true we can’t collect these statements.”

Everyone was loss for words, except Campbell. “Mr. Orton has an axe to grind concerning Jason. I don’t know what started it and I don’t care. The little that I do know is petty and it’s on Mr. Orton’s side. He hates the fact that Jason is a better player than he will ever be. Proof of that is every time they met on the field Jason wiped the floor with him and his team. Over the years, his hatred grew to the point, by the looks of it, he will take Jason down by any means necessary.”

“Okay let’s forget about Mr. Orton for now. Answer me these questions if you can Ross.” The head attorney remembered how to speak. “Why did the head coach of the football program Jason was on get fired after getting the school’s first unbeaten season and its first Rose Bowl? Why won’t anyone talk about what happened leading up to his termination? Something happened at the Rose Bowl that year and either no one wants to talk about it or they can’t.” The attorney looked down at his notes. “Also what is these rules I have been hearing about that only applied to Jason? What is all that about? I can go on and on, but I won’t. I just want the truth.”

“You don’t have the right to the truth. Neither do I or Jerry here?” Campbell quickly responded, almost yelling. “Not in the matter of a person’s private life. We have no right to his or her sexual life. If you keep going down that road digging for information, you are going to ruin this football team.” Campbell looked over to Jerry with a serious look on his face. “You need to shut this down and I mean now. Call Jason and his agent back in here today and give them a multimillion dollar contract and hope they never find out what was going on in here.”

Jerry didn’t even make eye contact with his attorneys. No matter if he liked it or not, he knew his head coach was right on everything he said so far. If they don’t stop investigating Jason’s private life they are going to be sued. Not only by Jason, but by a lot of other groups out there that were offended by the conduct of his organization. In the end, he would lose his team as well as tens of millions in lawsuits settled out of court or by verdict.

“Okay we need to get a handle on all this. As I stated at the beginning of this meeting I’m tired of all the bad press we are getting here on this matter.” Jerry looked over at his attorneys. “You guys need to stop investigating Jason’s private life.” His head attorney quickly objected. He would refuse to admit that he and his staff was wrong, which wasn’t sitting well with Jerry. “Fine if you don’t want to drop this matter, you guys are fired.”

The attorneys at the conference table couldn’t believe what just happened. In a matter of seconds, they turned on each other. Pointing the finger at each other that it was the other that came up with the idea on investigating Jason’s private life. It didn’t take long after that they all turned against the head attorney and ganged up on him, which was right. It was his decision to make and have it carried out. So it should be the one that gets his walking papers.

“Enough!” Jerry yelled as he stood up. “All of you are right it’s the head of the departments fault whenever things go wrong, but haven’t you heard of the old saying shit runs downhill. Your boss in the end will be held accountable for every decision made in his department, but you guys sat here agreeing with him every inch of the way until I fired you all. As Ross said I depend on you guys to tell me when we’re breaking the law. Even though it didn’t feel right at all on what we were doing, I thought we were within the law since it was you guys saying we should do it.”

Jerry stopped yelling as he sat back down in his seat. “I can’t have attorneys that have no problem breaking the law and telling me we aren’t. I should have went with my gut on this and got another opinion, and that I promise will never happen again. For now though I have to fix the problem at hand, you guys. Please return to your offices and wait there until security arrives. They will help you collect your personal stuff and escort you out of the building.”

Jerry didn’t say another word or allow his former attorneys to try and talk him out of the decision he just made. He got up, walked over to his desk and placed the call to the head of his security. As he was telling them what he needed them to do, the attorneys got up and walked out of the office, giving Campbell dirty looks the whole way out. Once he was done with the phone call, he returned to the conference table to find a way out of the mess he got himself into.

Meanwhile down at Spencer Alan’s office, Patrick walked in. He, just like Jason, hasn’t seen any movement on his contract, which is confusing him. In his mind there shouldn’t have been a problem with his contract unless Jerry Jones was trying to pull the same stunt on him like he was trying to pull on his Jason. If that is the case, Patrick had no problem on the delay. He wants to be paid what he deserves; nothing more, nothing less.

Since he didn’t have an appointment he had to wait, which wasn’t short. Just as he was about to give up and set an appointment, Spencer walked out with another agent. “Mr. Joyner sorry for the long wait. I understand you have been here for over an hour.” Spencer smiled as he held out his hand. “I would like you to meet Ronnie Behr, another agent that works here with me.” Ronnie held out his hand for Patrick to shake. “He is a real good friend and a damn good sports agent.”

“Good to meet you Mr. Behr.” Patrick said as he shook his hand before turning his attention to Spencer. “I hope I didn’t pull you guys out of any meeting or something else important. It’s just I was wondering what’s going on with my contract. You left last Friday with Jason without even giving me the time of day, which I felt was wrong. I’m a client of yours as well.”

“For my actions on Friday I’m sorry. I never meant for things to go the way they did and leave you out there not knowing anything. It’s just whenever any of us meet with Jerry Jones on contract negotiations, we know we have a fight on our hands. I just didn’t think he would have gone as far as he did with Jason’s contract.” Spencer looked over at Ronnie. “I know you didn’t come here to hear excuses from me, so let me stop giving them. I’m sorry and it will never happen again.”

“Not a problem! I don’t know where my head would have been after the meeting you and Jason had with Mr. Jones. The only thing I know for certain is I probably would have done the same thing you did.” Patrick laughed. “Jason deserves a lot better than what he was about to get from the football team we both want to play for. With that said what is going on with my chances of that happening. Because of what happened with Jason, is my contract gone?”

“No not at all. Your contract and Jason’s contract is there, we are just trying to get you guys better ones. Why don’t we go to my office so we can discuss this in private.” Spencer stepped to his side and held out his arm to direct Patrick in the right direction to his office. “I promise you by the time you leave my office that all your questions will be answered to your satisfaction.”

Patrick didn’t object on going to Spencer’s office. Like Spencer he didn’t want everyone in the waiting area to know his private business. As they made their way they made small talk, nothing about his future with the Cowboys. However, when they walked into Spencer’s office, the conversation quickly moved back to where the contract stands.

“Okay I want to first explain why Ronnie is here.” Spencer spoke as he sat behind his desk. “So there isn’t a repeat of what happened last Friday I’ve brought my second best man on board to represent you in these contract negotiations. This is not saying I’m not going to be involved in the negotiations every step of the way, because I am. I’m just bringing him on board so you are not left out in the cold like you were last Friday.”

Patrick didn’t object to having Ronnie being involved. “Good. I’m glad we are all okay with this change. With that out of the way let me tell you where we are on your contract.” Spencer pulled out a file from his top left hand corner draw. “The contract they were going to present for you to sign on Friday was even worse than the one they wanted Jason to sign. They were offering you a six year contract that paid you sixty thousand a year, without a signing bonus. Immediately I rejected the contract and several others after that one.

Now we are on the fourth contract which I feel good on presenting to you.” He pulled out a sheet of paper that broke down the contract in bullet points and handed it to Patrick. “We got Mr. Jones to move from sixty thousand a year to one point two million a year on a four year contract. The reason I wanted a four year contract is because you can show Mr. Jones you are worth a lot more than one point two, and we will get it.” Patrick nodded his head. “Also as you can see we got you a one hundred thousand dollar signing bonus. That is low compared to others out there, but it’s better than not getting a signing bonus at all. Getting that was like pulling teeth.”

Spencer was able to get a laugh out Patrick. From there he went down the list explaining to Patrick what he would get if he accepted this contract. Everything that was being explained to him he could live with. In fact, he loved. There was not one thing Spencer was able to get that Patrick had a problem with, including the moving allowance he was able to pry out of Mr. Jones.

“If you are fine with everything I’d like to make the call!” Patrick looked up at Spencer with a smile on his face as he nodded. Once Spencer saw the nod, he picked up the phone and dialed Jerry Jones. A few minutes later he got through the secretary and was surprised that he got Jerry himself on the line, not the attorney he was asking for.

“Hello Mr. Jones, how are you doing this morning?” Spencer asked and got back from Jones that he was doing well. “Good to hear that. I have you on speaker with Patrick and another one of my agents Ronnie Bahr.” Both of the guys traded pleasantries with Jerry. “I’ve just finished going over the last contract concerning Patrick that your attorneys sent over with him. After some back and forth, Patrick has agreed with it and is ready to sign. I’m now calling to see….”

“I’m sorry to interrupt you Mr. Alan, but you have to give me a moment to locate the contract you are talking about since I dismissed the attorneys that were doing the contract negotiations.” Spencer looked up at Ronnie and then over to Patrick with a surprised look on his face. “Okay I have it here and I don’t see anything wrong with it since I okayed it all, but…” Jones paused for a few seconds. “Since we don’t have a signed contract with Jason, I would need to change one part of this contract that states third string quarterback to second string.”

“Wait a minute Mr. Jones that isn’t right.” Spencer objected. “You or your attorney’s haven’t even sent us any new proposals concerning Jason’s contract negotiations. This change you want to make is coming at me from left field. I say before we go and change that part of the contract we try and come to agreement concerning Jason’s contract. If we don’t, we amend Patrick’s contract.”

“Sorry Mr. Alan I have no plans to negotiate any more concerning Jason’s contract. I’m pulling the offer on making him a quarterback on this team and going back to the original offer of him just being a kicker.” Spencer tried to get a word in edge wise, but couldn’t. “Since I’ve been getting this bad press already, the damage has been done. I will live with the damage and move on from it. So if you client wants to play on my team he will have to play as a kicker only and if your other client objects to this, he can go and play elsewhere.”

“Since you are just now throwing this out at us, you need to give me a few minutes to talk it over with my clients. I will call you back.” Before Jerry could said another word, Spencer hung up the phone. The three of them knew that Jerry was trying to get it in the last word, but were glad that he didn’t because they knew exactly what he would have said.

“I don’t want the contract if it means Jason doesn’t get what he deserves. I….” Spencer raised his hand. “Don’t destroy your career for principal. That’s my job. Your job it to go out there and play football.” Spencer looked over at Ronnie. “Both you and Jason are my clients and I have to fight for both of you. I recommend that you take this contract or you will lose it.”

Patrick stood his ground and refused, but after fifteen minutes back and forth between him and his two agents, he agreed on taking it. Once Spencer heard the magic words he needed to hear, he called back Jerry and told him to make the change and send the contract over, knocking him off his feet. He thought for sure he would have gotten a fight and come out ahead on it.

Before hanging up with Mr. Jones, Spencer got in the last word. “Oh one more thing Mr. Jones you think the bad press you have gotten over the weekend was bad, you haven’t seen nothing yet. I didn’t start the PR war against you or wanted any part of it, but you have forced my hands. When I’m done, you will be lucky to give away seats for your home games. Have a good day!”

With that, Spencer hung up the phone and finished up with Patrick. When Patrick walked out of Spencer’s office he had his contract. It made him happy, but at the same time it made him feel like crap. At the end he knew his good friend got screwed. Something he didn’t want to happen to him and will do everything he can to help his friend get what he had earned.

Right after Patrick left. Spencer informed Jason on what happened. It knocked the air out of Jason when he got the news, but he quickly rebounded. Ever since what had happened to him in college his sophomore year, he never again let anyone see him hurting. He felt it was a show of weakness that he will never again give another person the privilege to see.

After Spencer finished informing Jason, he got him down to his office to sign the contract that he was offered the Friday before, minus the quarterback position and it was taken down to one year from six years, which didn’t make Jerry happy at all. Jason again refused to let anyone see him hurting, but when he got back to his hotel room, he locked himself up in the bathroom and fell apart. The only one that heard Jason crying was Thelma, who herself broke down in tears, but put herself together for him and never brought up what she heard.

The rest of the week, Jerry Jones and the Cowboys were bombarded with bad press from in and out of the sports studios. By the time Friday rolled around, Spencer’s threat was becoming a reality. Ticket sales were at an all-time low and those that either bought season tickets or tickets for the next game ahead of time demanded to get their money back.

Being that Coach Campbell was the face of the Cowboys, he was hit the worse. Even though he fought tooth and nail to keep Jerry Jones from doing what he did, he had to back the decision in public, which made him sick to his stomach. In private though he kept fighting Jerry Jones every chance he got, but the owner was set on his decision and there was no changing his mind.

By the time Sunday rolled around, the Cowboys were spent. Not physically, but mentally over what was going on in the press. When they walked in to suit up and go out and play their first game since their bye week, at home and on Sunday Night Football, they were a shell of the team they were two weeks ago. Campbell tried to rile them up, but his words were falling on deaf ears.

They were hosting the Detroit Lions, which made it a little easier. At least Campbell thought it was. When they ran out of the tunnel, they were greeted by boos from their own home audience. To make things even worse, the majority of the fans in the stadium weren’t Cowboy fans. They were wearing Detroit jersey and rooting for the visiting team.

What should have been one of the biggest days in Favre’s career, landed up being one of the lowest. When he took the field for the first time he was met with boos and things being thrown at him and the offensive line. It got so bad that the referees had to pull both teams from the field in order to give the spectators time to settle down and the ground keeper’s time to clean up.

It was fifteen minutes before the referees finally decided it was safe enough for the teams to make their way back onto the field. Even though there wasn’t anything being thrown at them this time, they were met with boos that echoed through the entire stadium. None of the players liked what was happening, but Campbell hated it most of all.

He knew he had to do something quick to get the crowd behind his team and to get his team to play well. The defense didn’t do much to stop the Lions from marching down the field on their first position and scoring off them. Now the offense is performing as bad as the defense did. They were not playing like a team. There was no chemistry out there and Favre was refusing to run the plays that he and his offensive coordinator were calling in.

Due to those problems, the offensive line only got two first down, forcing the Cowboys to punt on their first possesion. As Campbell ordered his special teams coach to send out the kicking team, he got a glimpse of Jason for the first time since the game started. He looked back and forth from Jason to the field a couple of times before calling over Coach Jackson.

“What is the distance on where the ball is at, to the posts?” Jackson looked down at his clipboard and gave the number. “Okay so it would be a seventy yard field goal try if we try?” Jackson shook his head. As Campbell looked out to the field. “Pull back the punt team and send out the field goal line.” Jackson objected, but Campbell wasn’t hearing it. “We need to get our fans back on our side and the only way I can see that happening is by them seeing the guy they want to see. Stop questioning me and do what I’m asking you to do.”

Jackson didn’t like it, but did as he was told. He pulled the kicking team off the field and sent the field goal team out. Because it was taking a lot of time to change the lines, it forced the Cowboys to spend their first timeout, but Campbell felt it was worth it. As the field goal team was setting up, he stopped Jason from running onto the field to talk with him.

“Listen I know you longest field goal in college was seventy two yards and that was only in practice. In a game your longest was fifty two, eighteen shy of what is before you right now. I don’t care if you make it or not. Don’t get me wrong, I want you to make it, but I am not just sending you out there to get us three points. I’m sending you out there to put this team back together. The fans are here for you and will support your team the minute they see you out on the field. Do your best and whatever happens keep in mind I will always be in your debt.”

Jason smiled as he nodded before turning to run out onto the field. The minute he stepped foot on the green field, the fans went wild. They were on their feet rooting for Jason. The first time all game the Cowboys were not getting booed. It not only surprised the Cowboys and the Lion’s line, but the owner and his guest’s in the owner’s box as well. They were on their feet astonished at what was unfolding before their very eyes.

Both teams took their positions. Jason looked down the field and then up to the sky to judge the strength of the wind that was blowing in the stadium. Before turning his attention back to the field, he looked around the stadium at the fans that were on their feet cheering and chanting his name. He couldn’t believe the way the fans were receiving him.

Knowing the game clock was counting down, Jason turned his attention back to the field. Blocking out the chants, the cheers, and the fans on their feet, Jason only saw the goal posts before him. He even was able to put out of his mind both teams. All he saw before him was the field and the goal post when he had the ball hiked. When he came through, the fans were even louder than they were when he fazed them out. He looked down the field and saw the two referees walking out to the end zone with their arms up, indicating the kick was good.

Not only did the fans go wild, the Cowboys sidelines did as well. Before Jason knew it, the entire sideline of the Cowboys made their way out to the field to congratulate him. It took close to five minutes before the referees were able to get control of the game, but once they did, fans were no longer booing their own team. Campbell’s bet paid off in every way possible.

The fans were back in the game supporting their home team and the defense were playing the game at the level everyone knew they could play. The Lion’s offense couldn’t move the ball past their own thirty five yard line, giving the Cowboys offense good field advantage when they got the ball back. However, they couldn’t do a thing with the good field position.

They were playing like a team that had never played a minute together. The plays were all wrong and the players had no idea where they should be on the field. Because of all the confusion, there were a lot of dropped balls and then the worst happened. A fumble by Favre to the Lions defense, who ran it in for a touchdown. That wasn’t the last time that happened, it happened again the next possession the Cowboy’s offense had the ball and the time after that. The Lion’s didn’t need to worry about their offense figuring out a way to get through the Dallas defense the way their defense is ripping through the Cowboy’s offense. They were okay scoring all day long that way.

However, Campbell didn’t like it at all. Each time they turned over the ball, he pulled the offense to the side and tried to get to the bottom of what was going on. All he was getting was finger pointing, most of which was at Favre. Favre wasn’t taking the finger pointing laying down. He fought back, but Campbell knew the problem was communication and that was with Favre.

The only scoring the Cowboys were doing was field goals. When the offense didn’t fumble the ball and they were able to get the field goal team out on the field, they put up another three points. The only problem with that was they weren’t matching the Lion’s point to point. By the time the final seconds of the first half was clicking away, the Cowboys were at twenty six points. The Lions’ score was thirty five for a lead of nine. The Cowboys were getting slaughtered on their own field.

Campbell wasn’t happy at all and Jerry could see it in his face whenever the cameras got a shot of him as he walked off the field. Jerry knew he had to get down to the Cowboys locker room to try to stop what he knew was going to happen. His head coach wasn’t happy with his quarterback and by the looks of it he was about to take him out for the rest of the game.

When he reached the locker room, he found Campbell in one of the offices with Favre. It didn’t look like a very nice conversation going on, and it was confirmed when he walked in. “Damn it, you are my quarterback, not the damn coach of this team. You will run the plays I tell you to run or I’m going to pull your ass out of this game faster than you can say my name.”

Favre laughed as he looked at Jerry. “I would like to see you try. There is no way Mr. Jones is going to allow you to bench his multimillion investment. That is money that is thrown away plus there is no one to replace me. My back up is Patrick who can’t hold my jockstraps. So you might want to bench me, but we both know you can’t.”

At that point Campbell was furious and Jerry could see it. “You want to see if I have that power you little fucking prick. I will play the fucking janitor as my quarterback before I ever let you back on that field. Consider your ass benched.”

Jerry stepped between the two guys that looked like they were getting ready to come to blows right there in the office. “Hold on for just one minute. Let’s all calm down and find a way that we can come out of this without ripping the team apart.” Jerry looked at Favre. “You don’t have the right to ignore Coach Campbell. He is this team’s head coach and he calls the plays that you will run. So just stop this crap and run the plays he wants you to run. And Russ you aren’t going to bench him.”

“The fuck I’m not. I had enough of his attitude of being better than anyone on the team and refusal to listen to me or anyone on my staff. His ass is benched or you find yourself looking for a new head coach to finish this game and the rest of the season. The decision is yours. Either let me run my team or I will walk, leaving you with another PR nightmare to fix. I don’t think he’s worth it.”

Jerry looked at Favre. “Can you please leave me and Campbell alone? When we need you again we’ll call you back in.” Favre reluctantly stepped out of the office. “Now come on, Russ. Let’s settle down here before we do something that can’t be undone.” Jerry spoke in a low voice to try and calm his head coach down. “From the get go you haven’t agreed with me putting Favre as our starter. Because of that I don’t think you gave him a chance to shine.”

“With all due respect sir, fuck that.” Campbell yelled. “You’re right. I haven’t agreed with you from the get go on Favre, but you are my boss and I did as you asked knowing this was going to happen. All week I tried to get this to work, but Favre refused to listen to a word I had to say. I went to you about this, but each time that I did you told me to take care of it. No sir, I tried everything to get him to work, but it’s his attitude that is stopping that from happening. He is either benched or as I said I walk and you are left with another PR nightmare.”

Campbell couldn’t believe his eyes. His boss was actually weighing it out to see which would be worse for him. It should have been a no brainer. Favre benched and letting him bring up whoever he wanted to play in his spot in this game and the rest of the games for the rest of the season. As head coach that is his role and should never be questioned or taken away.

TO BE CONTINUED……………………..

WRITER’S CORNER:

{Welcome one and all to a new chapter in the sage of ‘Praying for a Hail Mary’. Before I go into the summation of this chapter, let me get rid of all the legal mumble jumble I have to do by using real names of people in my story. This story is purely fictional and does not imply anything about the sexuality of the featured people. I also like to note that The Dallas Cowboys and any other team I write about in this story is a copyright and trademark of NFL and its affiliates.

What a chapter is all I can say here at the get go. There was a lot of excitement and this chapter not only moved in the time line, but some plots we all were wondering were finally unveiled. I hope you guys enjoyed the roller coaster ride as much as I did writing it out. This saga, as the rest of mine, is getting really good.

Poor Patrick he was left behind, but at the end he got a very good contract. He felt bad about what happened to Jason, but he trusted in his agents. He now can move his kids to Dallas after getting a house or an apartment that he has a four year contract with the Cowboys. I really hope Patrick will be around in the years to come because he is going to be a big asset to the team.

Spencer was put in a bad place with the contract negotiations. However I have to believe he knows what he is doing. He got Patrick a contract he wanted, but not Jason. There isn’t a doubt in my mind that Spencer wheels were turning on how he was going to get everything Jason wanted when it is all said and done. I think by the looks of the ending of this chapter that might happen.

Man or man what can I say about the plot dealing with Jason and what happened to him his sophomore year in college. In the last couple of chapters we have been hearing a lot about this things that happened to him, but we never got any details of it until now. What do you guys think about it all? Do you think something like what happened to Jason really does occur in the world of sports? My opinion, I believe it does. Maybe not to the extent to what I wrote, but it happens.

Do you guys think it will ever get out? If it does how are the fans going to react? Or do you think Jason should come clean instead of taking his chances that it will never come out? We can’t forget about Orton who is out there having no problem spreading the rumors about Jason. Plus now Spencer knows about Jason and his darkest secrets. There is this old saying the only way to keep a secret is that everyone is dead except the one who knows the secret.

I talked already about Jason not getting his contract. It sucks, but I don’t think it is the end for him to play quarterback. If Jerry Jones doesn’t give him a shot, after this season Jason will be a free agent. Trust me every team out there will be after him that doesn’t have a good quarterback. I hope Jerry figures that out if he hasn’t yet and signs Jason to the right contract he deserves.

Finally the ending. I know I know this cliffhanger is one of my worst. Is Campbell going to get what he wants or is Jerry going to call his bluff? If Jerry calls his bluff, what will the blowback be? I mean no player, more so Favre, is worth all the blowback Jerry is already getting from his own fans and the press. I truly hope Jerry makes the right decision for the first time.

Well this summation wasn’t as short and sweet as my last ones, but a lot happened in this chapter and I just couldn’t stop talking about it. I have big plans for this story, so come on back and keep reading this saga. You will not regret it, I promise. And if I forgot anything in my summation that needed to be mentioned I know my Editor Trevor will pick up on it and write it out in his editor’s corner below. Thanks again for giving this new story a chance.

There is going to be a lot developing in the chapters to come. Stick around and keep reading the future chapters, and enjoy! Please email me and let me know how I am doing at jacobmillertex@aol.com, Thanks!}

EDITOR’S CORNER:

As Jacob said right at the beginning this was a hell of a chapter. Firstly what happened to Jason in his sophomore year was terrible and should never have been covered up and as my illustrious writer pointed out, does this sort of thing go on in sport?

I like Spencer Alan and believe he will do the right thing by Jason and will never spill the beans regarding the DVD he watched without Jason’s say so. He appears to be a straight up kinda guy who will do his best for those he represents.

Coach Campbell too is proving to be a useful ally who is in Jason’s corner. Mind you he realizes that if Jason performs on the field like he is that makes him look good also.

I don’t for one minute believe there are no gay football players out there or haven’t been in the past not only in football but baseball as well along with other sports. Jacob poses the question should Jason come out of the closet?

If the rumors continue and get worse that might be the way to go. I don’t believe the majority of fans will care as long as their team is putting points on the board. I have my own ideas on what Coach Campbell and Jerry Jones will do in the second half of the game which will happen in the next chapter, but I don’t intend to say anything here because Jacob is just as likely to go in the opposite direction just to prove me wrong.

Eventually Jason will finish up making a big name for himself with the Cowboys and become something of a legend, also I believe he will find himself a lover and when that happens, Wow I shudder to think……

Every chapter I get to like this story more and more. Like a lot of you I wasn’t too sure when the story first started but now I can’t wait to read the next chapter and I believe a few of you out there agree with me on that.

Don’t forget if you have time to let the man know what you think of this and all his stories.

Hugs Trevor