<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - Shane Olivea's NFL career was almost over a lot sooner than many believed it would be. Last year, he lost his starting spot as the Chargers' right tackle and then, in February, he lost his job completely when San Diego cut him. Finally, news broke that Olivea had been suspended four games for failed a drug test - a ruling that was later overturned when it was determined he didn't receive notification of his failed test because he had checked himself into the Betty Ford Clinic. Olivea, who signed with the Giants earlier this month, spoke with reporters today and informed them it was painkillers that resulted in his addiction. But apparently, he doesn't regret the experience. "It was the best thing that's ever happened to me," Olivea said. "I have a new outlook on life, a new appreciation on life and every day is a present and a blessing." Olivea said he thought he was hiding his addiction better than he actually was. He didn't realize how obvious it was until his friends and family held an intervention in April. "Just like you see on A&E," he said, referring to the network's popular show, "Intervention." "I mean, the people close around me knew. I mean, I wasn't the same person," he said. "You can hide a lot of things, but your real friends and real family, they know the real you. They saw a major change and thank God they did, and by the grace of God I was able to get my life turned around." Olivea said the intervention was the turning point for him. "Seeing my family in my living room ... seeing how hurt they were and the pain I had caused them was pretty humbling and gut wrenching," he said. "The last thing I want to do is hurt the people around me." Olivea said he doesn't drink anymore and actually never had a big problem with alcohol. But he's trying to keep his system clean of anything that might lead to an addiction. When he goes out now, he's the designated driver. As for the football field, Olivea's being on the third-team offense would seem like a humbling experience for a player once considered one of the most consistent tackles in the league. "The fourth unit, first unit, sixth unit, to me, all that stuff will take care of itself," he said. "I mean, I've proven what I can do in this league and like I said, I'm just happy to put on a unifom. I know I'm starting from scratch and ground zero and I'm not going to be handed anything by any means and like I said, I'm just grateful and thankful to put on a uniform again."</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ.com</div>
You can't have enough offensive linemen, and to get a guy this good this cheap is a tremendous move by Reese. I think painkiller addiction is rampant around the league, and it's good that he cared enough about himself and those around him to address it.
