Paperback : £13.41
His style was iconic, and vintage ‘80s: aviator goggles, Jheri curls, neck roll, boxy pads.
Eric Dickerson is the greatest player in Los Angeles Rams history and the NFL’s single season record holder for most rushing yards. In 2019, Dickerson was named to the National Football League’s 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. With an elegant upright running style that produced some of football’s most-watched highlights, it was said he was so smooth you couldn’t hear his pads clack as he glided past you.
Can’t he just shut up and run?
It’s time to reexamine how Eric Dickerson was portrayed. For the first time, he’s telling his story. And he’s not holding anything back.
Watch My Smoke includes sixteen photographs
Show moreHis style was iconic, and vintage ‘80s: aviator goggles, Jheri curls, neck roll, boxy pads.
Eric Dickerson is the greatest player in Los Angeles Rams history and the NFL’s single season record holder for most rushing yards. In 2019, Dickerson was named to the National Football League’s 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. With an elegant upright running style that produced some of football’s most-watched highlights, it was said he was so smooth you couldn’t hear his pads clack as he glided past you.
Can’t he just shut up and run?
It’s time to reexamine how Eric Dickerson was portrayed. For the first time, he’s telling his story. And he’s not holding anything back.
Watch My Smoke includes sixteen photographs
Show moreThe Los Angeles Rams are open to helping promote the book, both
over social media channels (987k Instagram, 861k Facebook, 907k
Twitter), digital content, and possibly through events at their
brand new SoFi Stadium, the state-of-the-art facility that is
opening this summer.
Fox Sports will also help promote the book, through interviews and
on-air content. They can push out messaging and content surrounding
his appearances on their social media channels (1.1m Instagram,
9.6m Facebook, 2m Twitter) to drive pre-orders and book
sales.
Additionally, the NFL is committed to promoting the book. We have gotten a commitment from the NFL Throwback social media team (840k followers on Instagram, 337k followers on YouTube, and 178k on Twitter) to feature the book on their feeds leading into and during publication.
Eric Dickerson is a Hall of Fame NFL running back and the
greatest player in Los Angeles Rams history. He owns the single
season rushing yards record, football's most hallowed mark, with
2,105 in 1984, and he accumulated 10,000 career rushing yards
faster than any runner in league history. Born and raised in Sealy,
Texas, Eric became the country's top recruit as a high school
senior and committed to Southern Methodist University, where he
anchored the famous "Pony Express" backfield. He is currently an
analyst for FS1 and joined the Rams front office as Vice President
of Business Development. He lives in Los Angeles.
. He was a 2015 finalist in national reporting for The Livingston
Awards for Young Journalists. He lives in New Jersey.
"There was no runner quite like Eric, and, it turns out, there's no
author like him either. His life story has page after page of
'wow!' moments — and he's one of the best storytellers I've ever
been around. Eric looked effortless as a runner, gliding through
the defense. When I read his book I got the same feeling: The pages
seemed to turn themselves. His story, from his account, reflects
where we are today as a society: Divided, uncomfortable. People
have to do a self-awareness check to determine who they are and
where they stand on fundamental principles. Eric's story is his
experience — people have to reckon with it, and nobody can deny it
until they walk or run a mile in his shoes." — Emmitt
Smith
"Dickerson scores points in his takedown of a system, then and now,
that chews players up and spits them out.” —Kirkus
"Watch My Smoke is the story of a great athlete who deals with
the problematic parts of sports and celebrity, and who does so in
an open, memorable way." —Foreword Reviews
"Eric Dickerson has never shied away from telling the truth: About
life in the NFL, about being a Black celebrity, about racism. You
might not like what he's saying, but you know it’s true. Straight
drink, no chaser." —Lawrence Taylor
"A strong sports memoir, Watch My Smoke balances biography and
perspective with on-the-field action, making you feel what it’s
like to compete at the highest level of sports. I’ve never felt
closer to the field—and happier to be just a spectator—than through
Dickerson’s in-game encounter with legendary New York Giants
linebacker Lawrence Taylor. There’s self-aware humor (“the first
Eric Dickerson recruiting war”) and Dickerson’s appreciation of the
look of sports, which includes a terrific chapter about his
singular sense of style when it comes to uniforms." —New City
Lit
"Eric was one of the most graceful running backs ever to play in
the NFL. It’s refreshing to know that as a writer and a friend, his
integrity and sense of humor equals or surpasses that grace!"
—Clyde Drexler
"Honestly, I hated watching Eric run — maybe that’s because he was
a Ram and I was a 49er. But seriously, his style and grace were
unique, and his upright running style, while criticized by many was
damn fun to watch. Now that we’re friends, I can finally stomach
watching old footage of him tearing us apart. Watch My
Smoke is a great read. It’s the book football fans deserve
about one of history’s greatest runners, and more importantly, my
friend." —Joe Montana
"Eric is a lot like me: He's straight to the point and he tells you
what he thinks, even if it's something you don't want to hear. We
played in different eras but after meeting Eric I realized the
similarities in our upbringings. I appreciate his friendship along
with his straightforward and downhill approach with this book —
which was the same approach as when he had the ball in his hands.
Want to know the real Eric Dickerson? Read Watch My
Smoke." —Terrell Owens
"In all the years I have known Eric Dickerson as a friend, and as
an incredible Hall of Fame Football Player. I was stunned as he was
revealing the level of racism that he encountered early in his life
and how he rose above those circumstances. Eric sharing is the
strength we need so our world can be changed going forward. Think
about it, Eric's overcome every obstacle and still our country is
affected by racism. My friend, I love you and I think you for
sharing your innermost thoughts, Watch My Smoke is
courageous." —Nancy Lieberman
“As a newspaper columnist in Dallas, I spent a lot of time around
Eric Dickerson’s SMU teams and always considered him a mysterious
figure. Now, reading Watch My Smoke, I realize he was a shy
kid from small-town Sealy, Texas wary of the mostly white media and
haunted by the racism he experienced throughout his career. Now he
spills it all in a book that reads nearly as fast as he was.
Prepare for a jaw-dropper every other page.” —Skip Bayless
"As a running back, Eric Dickerson never tiptoed or showed any
fear. As an author, he’s the exact same way: Fearless, and tough
enough to take on any issue. He’s been one of my best friends since
1983, so I know that Eric will always tell you the
truth." —Rickey Jackson
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