Rashard Mendenhall is a player who retired early (26) mainly because of his interests outside of football. He likes to read, and especially likes to write considering he contributes to the HBO show "Ballers."
Coming out of college, teams were concerned about his off-field interests. Speaking to MEL Radio, Mendenhall said teams were worried about him having thoughts that didn't always pertain to football.
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"When I was going through the NFL Combine there was a team that asked me, 'If you have all these other interests — like reading, dancing or art — what makes you a football player?