The Dangling Thread of Hope?

Let me start off by declaring my allegiance to Jon Gruden. I love Jon Gruden. I love him as the Buccs coach, and can only think of two other coaches I'd like to have if Jon wasn't steering the pirate ship. Those two gentlemen would be Bill Cowher and Charlie Weis. With that being said, I have to admit I'm embarrassed sometimes reading recent articles since the acquisition of Jake Plummer. Many times, too often actually, I'll read the words "who has yet to file his retirement papers with the league office," when referring to Jake's current playing status which is unofficially retired. I can't help but get the feeling, I'm witnessing the the cliche' obsessed ex-boyfriend who clings to that ever dangling thread of hope. I mean Jake has stated countless times he's "retired," that he has "no desire to play anymore," or "he's satisfied with life after football so far." But wait, he hasn't filed those papers yet, there is still hope. To me it mirrors the ex-boyfriend who just spent fifteen minutes on the phone with his ex-girlfriend being told every possible way, maybe even in more than one language that their relationship is over. But when he hangs up, he looks up at the ceiling and says to himself, "there's still hope, she didn't hang up on me, or threaten me with a restraining order. She must still love me."

Can you move past this? Can you admit you made a mistake? Can you move on? So you traded for a player who was already retired, it's no big deal. Everyone stopped laughing weeks ago. Personally I don't see how the fact that Jake hasn't filed his paperwork is indicative of anything. Does Jake actually need to file those papers anytime soon? I could be wrong, and I probably am but I would think that he only needs to officially retire when he wants to collect his pension. It's not like the average blue collar worker who needs his money right away when he retires. Jake is rumored to have over $20,000,000 in the bank. Jake was smart with his money. He didn't waste it on senseless material things, evidence by his driving of a Honda Element. He wasn't a rain cloud who frequently hovered over strip club stages. Jake is a smart guy. So if Jake is too busy fishing in the mountains of Montana, or skiing in the mountains of Colorado, or even doing the backstroke in the Pacific ocean and is too busy to put pen to paper and file those papers, exactly how does that equate to Jake still wanting to play football? Personally, I hope he comes back. But I'm not holding my breath.
...JJC/ABuccsFan