Chris Mortensen, the quintessential NFL insider, died earlier this year. In an excellent article from Zak Keefer of TheAthletic.com regarding Mort’s career and life, there was one specific “wow” nugget.
In 1994, the Jaguars hired Mortensen away from ESPN to serve as a V.P. on the personnel side. He would have helped the Jaguars build their expansion team.
Per the story, Mort took the job. A few days later, he backed out primarily because his wife, Micki, didn’t want to move to Jacksonville.
While it would be easy to question the hire based on the fact that Mort was trafficking only in information, that attitude grossly underestimates the knowledge of the game that someone like Mort possessed.
Mort could have done it, and he would have done it well. He decided not to do it. He would have put in the work to augment his knowledge and skills to thrive in the job. And he would have done it in an honorable and professional way, the same way he did everything.