The Packers drafted Washington State guard Cole Madison in the fifth-round of the 2018 draft, but he stayed away from the team after mandatory minicamp in mid-June and was placed on the reserve/did not report list at the start of training camp. The last report we heard on the matter came in August, when GM Brian Gutekunst indicated that Madison was dealing with a personal issue but that he was expected to eventually contribute to the team.
Michael Cohen of The Athletic has now provided some answers, but they are not pleasant. Cohen reports that Madison has been deeply affected by the death of former Washington State quarterback Tyler Hilinski, who committed suicide two weeks after playing in the 2018 Holiday Bowl. Madison and Hilinski were close friends, and a source close to Madison said, “[t]he death of Tyler is in his head. I don’t think he’s coming back. At least he’s not showing signs of it right now.”
At the 2019 Senior Bowl last month, Gutekunst neither confirmed nor denied that Hilinski’s death was the source of Madison’s decision to step away from football. Like all other members of Green Bay brass that have been contacted about the matter, he simply said that Madison is dealing with a personal issue and that the team supports him.
Madison was reportedly in good spirits during the draft and all the way through minicamp, but something changed during the interlude between minicamp and training camp. Cohen suggests that Madison’s mindset may have changed when he learned that Hilinski had been suffering from CTE, which was reported in late June.
Green Bay had hoped that Madison could contribute right away and believe he has the potential to be a starting guard. The Packers will not receive a compensatory draft pick if Madison retires or never plays for them. They have paid out a $324K signing bonus — the only guaranteed money in Madison’s standard four-year, $2.78MM rookie contract — and they have made no effort to recoup that bonus at this point.
The Packers could use some help on their O-line, but they will not press the issue. Gutekunst said of Madison’s potential return, “If that happens, it’s great. And if it doesn’t, it doesn’t.”
That’s some crazy sad stuff. Hope Madison gets some help and has support.
Cole’s never coming to GB, sad situation. Whether the other rumors are true or not, who cares? Let the man live his life.
Kudos to GB for not going after the cash.
They should let him keep the whole contract. Especially because Green Bay is a publically owned team and I think most of the public would want him to keep all of his contract money or donate it to a charity dealing with suicide
No
They aren’t really publicly owned, you know that right?
Have to agree with afsooner, sorry Alex.
Not giving Cole any grief over the signing bonus is generous enough, no need for anything further financially. I’m sure GB have offered their ongoing support…
Sucks as a fan though, the Pack could use him.
Ditto!
Figured a potential NFL player was tougher than that.
Just because he’s a football player doesn’t mean he can’t be effected by a traumatic incident. That’s a very narrow minded statement. We don’t know how close he was to him, and the last thing you should be doing is judging him.
Bad stuff happens to everyone, gotta strap up your boot straps and keep on moving
With all due respect, you and Mack83 are idiots.
They are, and there is no respect due
Statements like this only go to show that you have zero grasp of mental health issues. Don’t measure others by your own limitations.
I believe the publication of the following SI article on June 26, 2018 had a significant effect on Mr. Madison.
link to si.com
There is much more to this story. According to an article in SI and other publications.
“On the afternoon before he killed himself, Tyler Hilinski learned how to use a gun. His roommates say they had never even seen him hold a water pistol, and yet he took advantage of a rare sunny winter afternoon in Pullman to shoot at clay pigeons with several teammates.
In the same article:
“How Tyler had searched with teammates for the rifle that he had already stolen.”
link to si.com
Cole Madison and his love for hunting and guns.
link to seattletimes.com
You have to wonder why it is necessary to keep the CTE condition hidden in the dark and spoken of only in secret hushed tones. If the Madison’s out there knew their close friends were dealing with this they could have provided some support. This is not to say the tragedies could be averted but at least it would help ease the guilt one inevitably feels when unable to do anything to help.