Tuesday, May 28, 1996

Some refuse to listen to Henderson's voice of experience

DALLAS - He says he has a T-shirt imprinted with these words: "I've been there, done that, and now I'm in recovery. I've had the NFL experience."

His NFL experience, a grim tale of addiction to drugs and alcohol, almost killed Thomas Henderson. What he sees today as a survivor now clean and sober for more than 13 years are mini-versions of a self-destructive Cowboys linebacker from the '70s. He sees himself in others.

Recent and repetitive behavior of players on his former team troubles Henderson. Six known incidents of drug and alcohol abuse, and revelation of a Valley Ranch house used for dubious forms of entertainment, have occurred within the past 29 months. In football terms, it's called momentum.

Henderson has been troubled about the Cowboys since the summer of '95 when he first lobbied owner Jerry Jones to address players about substance abuse. He offered again this year but again received no reply. Some who recall Henderson as a discredited athlete assume he was hustling a paid-appearance fee. Others like myself assemble clues forming a conclusion that he foresaw these problems.

Henderson lives in Austin, where the Cowboys train during pre-season by day and disappear at night. He hears where they go and what they do. He has contacts among the Dallas drug culture.
He's clued in to users and abusers since addiction in a preventive sense is his business.

"I'm an author, lecturer and film maker," Henderson says by way of self-description. "I also describe myself as an NFL casualty."

In his role as anti-drug apostle, Henderson has been hired to make a one-hour presentation to the Pittsburgh Steelers in August. He's faintly amused by who'll listen to him and who won't.

"Amazing the Steelers will have me," he says. "I'm going to do this in Pittsburgh, and I live in Austin."

Why listen to Henderson go on about drugs?

"I can tell you what it is, what it isn't and where it's going to lead you. The reason I make sense is because I talk their language and experience," he says.

Henderson suspects drug use in the NFL may be more prevalent than when he played: "The most recent evidence is the White House (the Valley Ranch house), Michael Irvin and other Cowboys who've had trouble. What we have to put into the equation is the reason there's more use and abuse."
And that is?

"It's sex. You expect to have sex with lots of women," he says. "It's one of those sick expectations that comes with being an NFL player. So you see players at bars and strip clubs. The problem is the fantasy and expectation of kids coming out of college.

"There are many guys who conduct themselves properly. But a high percentage have a 'Let's get it on' attitude. I think the NFL inherits problems instead of creating them. It starts with the country, in the family and high school."

Henderson was asked his opinion of the NFL drug policy as a deterrent. The answer arrived as a mirthless chuckle:

"Doing a lot of good, isn't it?"

His response to a drug-related incident would be swift. A urine and blood sample from the suspect within 48 hours. If either tested positive, immediate intervention in the form of expert counseling. To him, the NFL and Cowboys are joined in a state of denial.

"What seems to be happening is that they've circled the wagons in what I'd describe as damage control," he says. "The issue is the image of the league and the Cowboys. It's not about the problem. It's protecting the merchandise. Shut it down. No leaks. Nobody talks.

"Some people believe time will take care of this. Time won't. What we learned from the O.J. Simpson case is that the court of public opinion is all powerful."

Cowboys' owner Jones, in Henderson's view, endorses an ultimate protect-the-merchandise drug program. Jones proposes individual teams take charge of detection and discipline.

"I'd vote 'no' based on the actions and decisions I've seen lately," Henderson said. He added a plea for prompt help to the afflicted.

"The reason the Cowboys and all NFL teams need alcohol and drug prevention education is that I have ex-teammates who are still doing cocaine and drinking. Their lives are in ruin, and if they're not bankrupt, they soon will be."

So said a disturbing voice of the NFL experience.

(Frank Luksa is a sports columnist for the Dallas Morning News. Write to him at: Dallas Morning News, Communications Center, Dallas, Texas 75265.)
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(c) 1996, Dallas Morning News. Distributed by Knight-Ridder/Tribune Information Services.

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