Howie Long
I'm a Catholic.
I was a street kid, but that meant hopping a ride on the back of the MTA down to Revere Beach - that's the beach that's made out of concrete - or sneaking into the Boston Garden to watch the Celtics or the Bruins.
I was sick a lot, and doctors told my grandmother I'd never grow up to be big and strong. Isn't that ironic?
I think people have a different perception of me than what I am. I think they get me confused with Lyle Alzado.
I've always been a nice guy, but let's face it football's a mean game.
I really enjoy my time in Montana.
God gave me good people around me, and He gave me size. It's kind of a miracle, really.
I won't have the sacks of a Mark Gastineau and I won't get all those pursuit tackles. Our responsibilities are different. He's allowed to freelance all over the field. I have back-side responsibility. I have to play the reverses and cutbacks. Let me know when Gastineau decides to play the run.
I think people who had made the transition from sports into film, the mistake that they made in the past, they tried to be too much. They tried be the guy in the film.
I've been operated on a whole bunch. I've broken everything there is to break.
I have all the socks and underwear I need.
Marshawn Lynch is an angry, violent runner.
Interestingly enough, on every team there's usually a minimum of two and a maximum of seven knuckleheads on a roster.
You have to lead by example - my 80th play has to look the same as my first play.
I don't think I had one personal foul in my career. Now, that being said, no one can ever say I never brought it.
There are always guys that give you a glimpse of the future. Maybe Gene Upshaw. Ted Hendricks. Lawrence Taylor was a glimpse of the future. Kellen Winslow was a glimpse of the future. Mike Haynes.
You play to have an opportunity to win.
I'm a hungry individual, but I'm not mean.
Listen, if Bill Belichick were coaching in Poland, I think you'd be excited about playing for him.
Having grown up in that area, and being like every other kid that grows up in that area, it's John Havlicek, it's Bobby Orr, it's Sam Bam Cunningham, it's names and players like that who you kind of live your dreams through. Having come from there, I'm very proud of the fact I'm from Boston and continue to be proud of that.
Professional athletes, like it or not, have a responsibility to the kids of America.
The head coach is the director, the quarterback is the lead actor and the offensive linemen are the grips.
You don't have to sell the fact that a football player has toughness.
The beauty of having played pro football for so long is that people haven't seen me angry, overly happy or despondent - the range of emotions a human being shows.
What it comes down to is, people either want to watch what you're doing or they don't.
I really don't know what would have happened if my uncle hadn't taken me in. He took a hoodlum and turned him into a student-athlete from Milford.
When I left for Milford I was in the 10th grade and had never read a book from cover to cover. From the fifth grade on I felt if you studied intently something was wrong. The coolest kid in class was regarded as the leader and you fell in behind him or you were frowned upon... and whatever else that entailed.
I know I'm lucky to be where I am.
I enjoy what I do on the field. In fact, I need it. But I don't have a problem separating my on-field life from my off-field life.
Growing up in Charlestown, we didn't have money, but we weren't poor either.
My family members were always there and I was very fortunate for that I mean, I played hockey growing up. That was the sport everyone in Charlestown played back then, and I had skates and the equipment, but I was growing so fast, it became hard to afford new stuff every year. But hockey was it for me.
If wives or girlfriends are knowledgeable about sports, it only benefits their relationships. It's all about give-and-take negotiations, like saying, 'I'll see 'Unforgiven' if you'll see 'The Bridges of Madison County.'
Run into other people for 20 years, you're gonna have pain. But I'd do it all again... It's like I say to my kids: 'Good things that happen are often a byproduct of a sacrifice you've made.'
My philosophy with Hollywood is the same as when I played ball. I try to bring everything I know to whatever I do. If I fail, then it's not for lack of trying.
When I was playing football, I was offered little parts in movies, but I always said 'No, thanks.' It didn't seem to be the right time.
I don't really miss football anymore. I played for a long time, and played it well.
I almost said no to 'Broken Arrow.' I ended up doing it on a lark.
Everything I've done after football requires so much less focus, less work, less stress, it's kind of like a weight has been lifted off your shoulders. You no longer have to be the toughest guy in the world.
I think you get used to being looked at. It used to bother me when I was young. But you get more secure with yourself at least as a man the older you get.
I grew up in the streets in Boston in a row-home neighborhood playing hockey.
I was an average football player in college.
Some teams hold a little more than others. It's an art, but it's not an art I appreciate.
As a kid, my goal was survival.
I used to live at Jack-in-the-Box.
I was lucky to make a lot of money in football, and broadcasting is succeeding beyond my wildest dreams, so I'm in the position to say no to a lot of things.
I just want to make a few action movies.
I just play hard-hitting football, but at least I look the opponent in the face before I hit him.
The Raiders hit straight up. And thats the way we expect to get hit.
Punters are players, too. They got to learn to take the hits. If they dont want to get hit, they shouldnt be out there.