Fansided

Fans Pledge Nearly $58K For Former Buffalo Bills LB Darryl Talley

By Phil Watson

Darryl Talley played 14 seasons in the NFL and was on all four of the Buffalo Bills' Super Bowl teams of the early 1990s. (Mitchell Layton, USA TODAY Sports)
Darryl Talley played 14 seasons in the NFL and was on all four of the Buffalo Bills' Super Bowl teams of the early 1990s. (Mitchell Layton, USA TODAY Sports) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Former Buffalo Bills linebacker Darryl Talley is having financial problems as well as physical and mental health issues. But fans are pouring out their support.

More from Buffalo Bills

Darryl Talley still has fans among the faithful of the Buffalo Bills.

One of the stalwarts of the Super Bowl-era Bills, Talley is now 54 years old, financially devastated, physically wrecked and mentally unstable.

But after hearing his story, a fan effort at gofundme.com was launched Wednesday and as of 3:30 p.m. Eastern Friday, nearly $58,000 has been pledged to help the Talleys.

Now living in Orlando, Fla., Talley admitted to The Buffalo News that he’s contemplated suicide.

"“I’ve thought about it,” Talley said. “When you go through the s**t that I’ve gone through, you start to wonder: Is this really worth it? Is it worth being here, worth being tortured anymore?“It would be just as easy to call it a day. But there are two reasons why I won’t. First of all, my parents didn’t raise a coward. The most important is I want to be around for my grandkids.”"

After 14 NFL seasons, Talley is bitter toward the NFL and the Bills. The NFL denies he’s too disabled to work anymore.

Since leaving the NFL in 1996, Talley learned he played with a broken neck. He had a heart attack in his 40s, lost his business, lost his home of 17 years when it was foreclosed upon.

He’s dealing with depression that has friends and former teammates terrified for him.

"“A moment of weakness, a moment of darkness, a moment of hopelessness,” former Bill Bruce Smith said. “Those are pretty powerful things that can come into play that makes one forget about how we were raised or what state we would leave the rest of the family and friends in.”"

His wife, Janine, has been with Talley for 34 years, since they met when Talley played at West Virginia.

"“I don’t see it getting any better,” she said. “This’ll kill him one way or the other.“His mental issues have accelerated a lot in the last year. I don’t know what the future holds for either one of us. I don’t know if in a few years dementia will set in. I don’t know if I’ll be able to care for him.”"

More from FanSided

Home/Buffalo Bills