To make it as a Linebacker in professional football you need grit, determination, and a whole lot of stupidity. Now the first two characteristics I mentioned probabably make a lot of sense to everyone and there are very few people that would argue against wanting those traits in a Professional National Simulation Football League Linebacker. But, the final quality is very much up for debate. There are many out there that believe playing the Linebacker position requires a certain level of intelligence in order to be considered an effective Linebacker, and even more intelligence is required if you are to become a great Linebacker. Now, these people are not wrong. Yes, Linebackers have to be able to read an offense like the back of their hand. After spending countless hours watching film, they need to be able to recognize motions and use that recognition to blow up the play. They also have to be able to read a Quarterback's eyes and be able to drop back into coverage in order to break up a pass. So yes you can definitely argue that some level of intelligence is required for the Linebacker position. However, let us take a closer look at the term stupidity. The dictionary defines as "behavior that shows a lack of good sense or judgment." Notice how intelligence is not listed in this definition. To me that means a Linebacker is a rare creature because not only are they very intelligent but, they are also incredibly stupid. So what does it mean to have a lack of good sense or judgement? Well to this author it means that if you are willing to run headfirst into a 200 lb running back that is movng at a top speed of around 20 miles per hour then you probably lack any sort of sense or judgement. Now I know there are still a lot of you that are reading this article and you must think I am crazy. Well lets take a look at the rising rookie Linebacker from the Kansas City Coyotes, Brach Thomaslacher. Young Brach was selected with the 17th pick in the DSFL draft this past season. Since then the young man has really come into his own amassing 57 tackles, 3 sacks and a forced fumble through 7 games this season. We sat down with him and asked the young man if we could follow him around for a day in order to gather a little more information on what a typical day looks like for him and this is what we found out. In a typical day Brach wakes up at 4:00 in the morning to do his first workout of the day. This workout mainly consists of foot speed drills and some cardio. He then heads home around 5:30 or 6:00 AM and prepares what he referred to as a "Rocky Style Breakfast" which was just 6 raw egg yolks in a glass. That was strike one for us and many could say it was strike two considering he begins everyday at 4:00 AM. He then told us that he would spend his morning reviewing films and studying up on the defensive playbook before heading for his second workout of the day around noon. This was where Brach would do his muscle building exercises and at 6'5" and 255lbs it was a definite site to behold. The amount of punishment he would put his body through was incredible. No sensible person would put their body through that kind of torture, strike two. Brach definitely pays tribute to the old saying of "No pain, No gain". After his mid day workout Brach would have lunch and then prepare for an afternoon and evening of practice and team workouts with the Coyotes. We watched as Brach continually ran headfirst into players, making tackle, after bone-crunching tackle without taking a single break. Then something very interesting happend, it was about halfway into practice and Brach prepared was coming in for another tackle, except this time when he hit the player it was as if an earthquake had struck the practice field. Bits of his helmet flew off everywhere and the entire team stood in awe at the massive hit. However, that wasn't even the craziest part of moment. Once Brach got up he ran over to the equipment manager, grabbed a new helmet and was right back out there. "How did they have another helmet ready for him so quickly?" I thought to myself. I walked over and asked the young equipment manager and he told me that they always have back-up helmets and gear ready for Brach. He goes through at least 1 or 2 pieces of equipment every practice because of how hard he hits. That my friends was strike three. It was clear to us that Brach was a different breed. We met up with him again after practice to thank him for allowing us the extra access into his life. It was a day I will not be forgetting and it solidified my belief that I mentioned earlier. However, I will change it to this. To be a successful Linebacker in the National Simulation Football League you have to have grit, you have to have determination, you have to have a smidge of intelligence, but most of all you have to have a whole lot of stupidity.