If National Football League executives thought Gay Culverhouse's crusade on behalf of former players was a passing fad, they might have to think again.
The former president of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers led another meeting of former NFL players in need Monday night, designed to help them through the process of accessing benefits from the league. The two-hour session at a Tampa hotel came three weeks after an initial meeting between ex-players and Culverhouse, who has established the Players' Outreach Program as a tool in obtaining disability and health-care benefits.
"The NFL has these pots of money and we're going to take that money from them,'' said Culverhouse, speaking to a group that included former Buccaneers Lee Roy Selmon, Jimmie Giles, David Lewis, Mark Cotney, Scot Brantley, Ricky Reynolds, Kevin Murphy and Greg Roberts.
"That is our goal. Because you need the money and I want you to have the money and you paid in that money. So it's just a matter of us releasing the money from their grimy little grip. That's what we're going to do.''
Selmon, who retired after the 1984 season and is the only Buccaneer in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, talked about some health issues that led him to seek information from the renowned Cleveland Clinic. Monday's meeting was followed by a breakout session to help former players fill out paperwork to access benefits.
Culverhouse said Tampa would likely be the "epicenter'' in her quest to help players receive financial and medical support. She has met with officials from the University of South Florida in an effort to establish a research facility that could diagnose and treat health issues plaguing former NFL players.
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