Dean Pees was in retirement -- his second retirement -- and it gnawed at him. The routine was similar, watching film every week and looking for nuances he could exploit. The reason was vastly different.
Instead of game-planning to face quarterbacks Peyton Manning, Tom Brady or Lamar Jackson, Pees watched opponents for a radio show on Fridays in Nashville, Tennessee. He liked it. But football, coaching football, has always been his love. The half-in, half-out approach -- studying minus the rush of Sundays -- wasn't quite what he wanted. At age 71, Pees needed more.