DAVIE, Fla. _ Miami Dolphins wide receiver Danny Amendola, undrafted in 2008 out of Texas Tech, penned a letter to undrafted rookie free agents in The Players' Tribune reflecting on his experiences and offering advice for making an NFL team.
Amendola, who became known as "Playoff Danny" to New England fans because of his postseason prowess, signed with Dallas and spent the 2008 season on the Cowboys' practice squad.
He pointed out in The Players' Tribune article that he's still in the NFL 11 years later.
"And on that note," he wrote, "I'll start with the good news for most of you: This definitely doesn't mean football is over for you. You still have a shot.
"But here's the bad news: That's all you have now. One shot. Moving forward, you don't need to be perfect but you no longer have the benefit of making the same mistake twice.
"I'm sure you realize that and it's probably weighing on you right now, so I guess the first piece of advice I can give you is to take a deep breath.
"I'm guessing you haven't gotten a lot of sleep the past couple of days, so just take a moment to collect yourself and clear your mind a bit."
Amendola, who spent the 2009-12 seasons with the St. Louis Rams and then five seasons with New England (2013-17), signed with the Dolphins in March.
He recalled his first few days with Dallas in 2008 as an undrafted rookie.
"What I caught onto pretty quickly was that when you're an undrafted free agent, every day is cut day. The only way to stand out is to do something spectacular every day. And I don't just mean on the practice field. You need to leave an impression in the weight room, during film study, really every moment you're around that team facility, you need to be on point."
Amendola offered this advice to the undrafted rookies: "Now that I've been around long enough, I can usually tell within a couple of days whether a young player has a future in the league or not. The first thing is ability, of course. It's fine to be an amazing athlete, but to stick you have to be an amazing football player. That means truly knowing the game inside out. You have to approach football almost like an academic discipline. But that's only part of it. It's not enough.
"It's also about your approach. When you walk into that facility, do you act like you're at work? Are you on time or are you early? Not most days, but every single day.
"Finally, can you listen? Truly listen. If a coach yells at you, are you paying attention to why he's yelling or do you just shut down because he's yelling? If your position coach tells the head coach or GM that you aren't a player who listens or that you keep making the same mistake, you're done. You are done. And your odds of getting a second chance won't be great, because word spreads fast in this league."
