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Under Pressure
Under Pressure

Under Pressure

How Playing Football Almost Cost Me Everything and Why I'd Do It All Again
By Ray Lucas, By David Seigerman, Foreword by Bill Parcells

BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY

304 Pages, 6 x 9

Formats: Cloth, Mobipocket, EPUB, PDF

Cloth, $25.95 (US $25.95) (CA $28.95)

ISBN 9781600789601

Rights: WOR

Triumph Books (Sep 2014)

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Overview

In Under Pressure, Ray Lucas provides fans with a timely, uncensored look at pro football's play-at-all-costs culture. Overcoming questions about his size and skills as a quarterback, Lucas persevered and went on to play seven seasons in the NFL. His professional football career, however, came to a sudden end at age 30, when a neck injury caused him to collapse on the sideline during training camp. Instructed by NFL doctors that surgery wasn't an option, Lucas turned to painkillers for relief, but as his tolerance for medication escalated and his NFL insurance coverage expired, he began to plan his suicide. Just days before he planned to take his life, Lucas was put in touch with a group of doctors who agreed to perform neck surgery free of charge. In this tell-all, Lucas shares how—in a league without guaranteed contracts and careers that average just a few seasons long—players in the training room are perceived to lack the toughness necessary to succeed on the field. He discusses how this prevailing attitude leads to widespread abuse of painkillers and leaves many former players unable to lead a normal life once their playing career ends while also sharing details on how he overcame his drug addiction and turned his own life around.

Author Biography

Ray Lucas
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Ray Lucas played seven seasons in the NFL as a quarterback and special teams player for the New England Patriots, New York Jets, Miami Dolphins, and Baltimore Ravens. He is an analyst covering the Jets for SNY New York and a color analyst for the Rutgers Football Network. He lives in Harrison, New Jersey. David Seigerman is a sports journalist and freelance writer and producer who wrote for College SportsMagazine, the Jackson Sun, and Newsday. He is the coauthor of Take Your Eye Off the Ball. He lives in New York City. Bill Parcells is a former NFL head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots, New York Giants, and New York Jets. He who two Super Bowls while coaching the New York Giants and is currently an NFL analyst for ESPN. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2013.

Media

December 5, 2014 | The Sporting Life on ESPN Radio
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October 22, 2014 | MoJo on CBS Sports Radio
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October 13, 2014 | ThePostGame
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September 2, 2014 | GEICO SportsNite
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June 23, 2014 | Publishers Weekly
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Book Signings

Past Events

Nov
19
Ray Lucas and David Seigerman - Under Pressure ›
New Brunswick, NJ
6:30pm
Sep
18
David Seigerman - Under Pressure ›
Larchmont, NY
6:00pm

Press Releases

Under Pressure:

How Playing Football Almost Cost Me

Everything and Why I’d Do It All Again

By Ray Lucas with David Seigerman

Foreword by Bill Parcells

 

A Harrowing Look Inside the Play-at-All Costs Culture of the NFL


 

Many know Ray Lucas for the seven seasons he played in the NFL, most notably for the New York Jets. But in his new book, Under Pressure: How Playing Football Almost Cost Me Everything and Why I’d Do It All Again (Triumph Books, September 2014), Lucas and David Seigerman provide fans with an uncensored look into the true culture of the NFL, and how the unending desire to stay on the field and in the league can lead to painkiller abuse, depression and end with fatal results.

 

Under Pressure explores how nothing is guaranteed for players in the NFL and how careers can end instantly with just one hit. In Lucas’ case one neck injury ended his career at only age 30. In a culture where concussions are called “burners” and “stingers” and written off with apathy, Lucas acknowledges the challenges he faced in overcoming questions of his size and skill, and the physical repercussions he paid in return. Lucas provides a rare view into a world where 20 concussions are normal, 14 lb ice bags are a necessity and painkillers have become a means to survival. Stories include:

 

  • How expiring NFL insurance and an addiction to pain killers led Lucas to plan his suicide
  • The stigma of weakness that has become directly correlated with players using the training room
  • How the NFL has begun to stand for “Not For Long” with the pressure of someone younger, faster, stronger or cheaper waiting to take your place

 

Never before has the price of playing in the NFL been made so clear.  A cautionary, enlightening, and often poignant memoir, Under Pressure is essential reading for any modern football fan.

 

About the Authors:

Ray Lucas played seven seasons in the NFL as a quarterback and special teams player for the New England Patriots, New York Jets, Miami Dolphins, and Baltimore Ravens. He is an analyst covering the Jets for SNY New York and a color analyst for the Rutgers Football Network. He lives in Harrison, New Jersey. David Seigerman is a sports journalist and freelance writer and producer who wrote for College SportsMagazine, the Jackson Sun, and Newsday. He is the coauthor of Take Your Eye Off the Ball. He lives in New York City.

 

Contact: Josh Williams - Triumph Books - 312.568.5404 - j.williams@triumphbooks.com

 

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