Comment on Former NFL player Ryan Leaf speaks at Crystal Lake YMCA about overcoming obstacles

The first time former NFL player Ryan Leaf ever felt like he was of service to another being, he was in prison. Leaf began his career with the San Diego Chargers before going on to play for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Dallas Cowboys and the Seattle Seahawks. But, as Leaf told an audience at the Sage YMCA in Crystal Lake on Friday, he started becoming depressed and unable to get out of bed – a problem that eventually ended his NFL career. After Leaf's retirement, he began to abuse prescription opiates, and eventually had a 32-month stint in prison after breaking into a home to steal drugs. It was while he was in prison that a roommate took him down to the library to help teach prisoners who didn't know how to read. "I walked into this room where there were these men, in a place where you're supposed to show no vulnerability ever...