CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Carolina Panthers defensive end Mario Addison will celebrate the biggest contract of his NFL career (a reported three-year, $22.5 million deal that was announced on Sunday) with a week-long trip to Germany.
There will be no jet skis.
There will be no water.
Why is this significant? Because the last time the 29-year-old from Birmingham, Alabama got a new deal, he almost drowned during the celebratory vacation.
Yes, Addison’s rise to NFL significance almost ended before it began.
Perhaps that’s an exaggeration. But to hear Addison share what happened when he fell off a jet ski far out in the ocean during a 2014 trip to Puerto Rico makes you better appreciate all he’s overcome during a journeyman career.