Detroit Lions remembering WR Jeff Chadwick

Embed from Getty Images He stared at Grand Valley State University. A small school approximately 11-12 miles west of Grand Rapids Michigan. From 1979-1982 Jeff Chadwick a wide receiver caught 75 passes for 1,512 yards and 19 touchdowns. He was also a track star.

Then it happened. Never drafted by an NFL team Chadwick, played for 10 seasons and 126 games. The football gods must have been smiling as Jeff Chadwick would earn a roster spot for the in-state Detroit Lions in 1983.

He would play in Detroit from 1983-1992. Chadwick would also play for the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams. His career stats totaled 4,549 receiving yards and 27 touchdowns.

Was Jeff Chadwick a HUGE star? No. That does not matter. You see for a 13 year old Detroit Lions fan Jeff Chadwick represented us. The regular guy. Who got a break and ran with it.

To make it even better he was a guy from Michigan who went on to play for the Lions. Giving all young kids the feeling that anything is possible. You do not need to be Herman Moore or Calvin Johnson. Those are two great Detroit receivers no question.

But for me it was easy to identify with Jeff Chadwick. He was me running around on the Pontiac Silverdome astroturf. Coming up with a clutch catch to keep a drive alive or scoring a touchdown. At least in my mind. That is what Chadwick allowed me and others to dream.

We read and hear a lot about legacies. How we remember this person or that person. For me I remember #89 for what he allowed me to do. Dream. Dream of thinking why not me?

It did not happen for me. God had other plans. But, still somewhere I still hold on to that dream. The legacy that Jeff Chadwick had and has is he gave us all a local man to root for and dreams to reach for.