LOS ANGELES -- Isaac Bruce still dreams about playing football. Sometimes he's on a charter flight to a road game, or on the bus to the stadium. He dreams about being in the locker room, about putting on equipment, about conversing with teammates. Once, he was in the huddle. But that's as close as it got.
In his dreams, Bruce is never running a route, making a block or catching a pass. He sees that as validation for how at peace he has become with retirement. At 44, more than seven years removed from his last NFL game, Bruce doesn't harness regret and doesn't long for the past.