Jump to content

Jim Kelly article


Recommended Posts

great article, no one could blame him if he was bitter but to his credit he is not...Im bitter and havent been through half as much as he has

 

I somehow never knew about the plane crash or his back problems

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"There was the 2000 bear hunting trip in Alaska, when the single-prop plane he was flying in went down in the Bering Sea. Kelly, upside down, kicked the window out and swam for shore in 39-degree water, then thawed himself with a Bunsen burner. "I thought I was a goner," he says. He came back 23 pounds lighter."

 

Jim Kelly is tough as nails.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nice article, though I hesitated when I saw it was Rick Reilly...not my favorite sports writer. Funny, Reilly mentions that the Bills super bowl teams never got the respect they deserved while trying to evoke sympathy for Kelly, but Reilly himself was one of their more vocal critics...."overrated" he called the Bills teams of the early 90's.

 

That said, don't like to hear that Jim is going through so many tough things. I realize he has his critics, but from where I stand, he has transformed from a brash young guy with lots of talent and a big ego, to just a good, decent guy. Not everyone makes that transition.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jim himself manned up and admitted his stupid mistakes (affairs on Jill) and they are discussed in Jill's book 'Without a word' (a MUST read btw) He is Human and has made mistakes and busts his ass to make up for them. I became a Bills fan because of Jim Kelly, Love the guy and no matter what he was THE biggest reason we made 4 straight superbowls. There won't be another one like him and that is too bad, Buffalo really needs another like him

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"There was the 2000 bear hunting trip in Alaska, when the single-prop plane he was flying in went down in the Bering Sea. Kelly, upside down, kicked the window out and swam for shore in 39-degree water, then thawed himself with a Bunsen burner. "I thought I was a goner," he says. He came back 23 pounds lighter."

 

Jim Kelly is tough as nails.

 

Im officially a kitty!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll never forget a game in 1986, at KC where the Chiefs defenders had engulfed him, an arm arose out of the pile and threw a completion for a first down.

 

The guy used to butt heads without a helmet at parties...Joe Peterno wanted him to play Lber for Penn St.

 

Also, not mentioned is that he had a severe separated shoulder his senior year in college that was so bad he needed pins inserted to hold it in place while he recovered. Doctors had told him he might never regain his full range of motion.

 

Nobody is tougher, and he makes the best of every situation he is faced with. Someone that Bills fans can truly admire, and that he stayed a Buffalo Bill for life.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm not sure how much of this comes from Jill. I know her family pretty well, dated her aunt for a short time. They are all great optomistic and very religous people. I can't imagine going through the pain he does on a daily basis.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was blessed 2 years ago to go to the Bills game against the Pats . The Bills were leading at the half by 28 & the Pats came back to clean the Bills clocks .

 

I will always remember that day because it was a day that Jim Kelly took the time to spend a few minutes with this fan . The guy that was one of the biggest & best Bills to ever be & he was & is just a seemingly normal person .

 

Yet his super human drive to help & please others while putting his own personal pain & loss makes him a real life super hero !

 

Superman & Batman have nothing on Jim Kelly he is the true Captain America

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jim himself manned up and admitted his stupid mistakes (affairs on Jill) and they are discussed in Jill's book 'Without a word' (a MUST read btw) He is Human and has made mistakes and busts his ass to make up for them. I became a Bills fan because of Jim Kelly, Love the guy and no matter what he was THE biggest reason we made 4 straight superbowls. There won't be another one like him and that is too bad, Buffalo really needs another like him

 

+100

 

Well said. Those were great years to be a Bills fan. His situation also shows the pounding that a NFL player takes. I realize not all of his issues are football related but man he is messed up physically.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jimbo is the epitome of Buffalo, WNY, and the Buffalo Bills. You keep getting kicked in the face, and you keep going. People mock you, and you keep trying. You have seemingly insurmountable failure, and you keep going. That's what it is all about, folks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This probably explains why JK never got into coaching at the pro level. He's battling Crabbe's for the unborn, fighting cancer and dealing with pain from serious NFL injuries plus insomnia on a daily basis.

 

Just goes to show what a good family and a positive attitude can get you through.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm not sure how much of this comes from Jill. I know her family pretty well, dated her aunt for a short time. They are all great optomistic and very religous people. I can't imagine going through the pain he does on a daily basis.

 

A very good friend of mine from back home knows Jill and her family. They sound like a great family. No doubt Jim has gained a lot of his strength through her. She has always struck me as a pretty remarkable woman. The pain from the punishment that Kelly took on the field is likely miniscule compared to the adversity that family has faced. Behind many great men are even better women.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...