Cowboys Rival Mark Bavaro, Giants Legend, Reveals Suicidal Thoughts in COVID Fight
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Legendary New York Giants star Mark Bavaro is, as the NFL opens up its 2023 season, opening up about how he wished for his own death.
“You think about it,” Bavaro said of committing suicide as a result of a lengthy battle with long-term COVID. “You’re like, ‘What the (expletive)?’ You’re on top of a burning building and how long can you stay there until you jump off? You come to understand a lot about other people and what they go through.”
Bavaro, a decorated All-Pro tight end and a centerpiece of some great NFC East duals with the rival Dallas Cowboys, detailed what has been going on in his life in a chapter of “Once A Giant” by Gary Myers, the long-time New York-based NFL writer, with the book set to be released on Tuesday.
Writes Myers: "Bavaro suffered from a debilitating case of long-term Covid, and until doctors finally found the right cocktail of pills to settle him down after a six-month struggle, his anxiety, paranoia, dizziness, fogginess, and headaches had him believing life was no longer worth living. It had him sitting up at night contemplating suicide.''
Bavaro, termed by Myers "seemingly indestructible'' as a player, helped the Giants win Super Bowl XXI. ... and does seem to be in a better place now.
And yet ... again from Myers: "In the summer of 2022, he finally started feeling more like himself. He was back to playing golf, one of his passions. But even that came with a price. He took a half swing to get out of the rough and a rock flew up so quickly it struck Bavaro in the eye before he could close it. He had lightning bolts interfering with his vision, sending him back to the emergency room. Diagnosis: Scratched retina. By then, it was just piling on. ...''
