Former All-American defensive tackle Quinn Pitcock was, in 2007, a high profile rookie on the Indianapolis Colts' roster. By 2008, he was out of the NFL, not because his body was damaged, but because he was addicted to playing Call of Duty.
No, seriously.
Pitcock's inability to stop playing his Xbox 360, in particular Activision's blockbuster shooter series, resulted in him being diagnosed with depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and video-game addiction.
"It's a huge set of challenges, born of, in my view, a brain that doesn't quite work the way everyone else's brain does," one of Pitcock's friends describes.
"I couldn't put it down," Pitcock says. "If I visited family or friends, I timed it down to the last second where I could still play another game."
If you're wondering how rough such an addiction can be, Pitcock says "I broke about four games in half, burned them, microwaved them, put a torch to them, letting my aggression out to get rid of them. But the next day, I was at Target buying another game."
While he still battles against his conditions, Pitcock has finally returned to playing pro football after two failed attempts with the Seahawks and Lions, albeit at a level a little under his former life in the NFL. He's signed with the Orlando Predators in the Arena Football League, and so far has 12 tackles and 3.5 sacks for the team.
His coach with the Predators, Bret Munsey, says that with Pitcock back playing and on the road to recovery, "It's a no-brainer for someone to give the kid another opportunity in the NFL. I think he could be better than half the guys on the roster."
Preds' Quinn Pitcock overcomes depression, video-game addiction in pro football journey [Orlando Sentinel]