Brandon Marshall has become one of the NFL’s pioneers as it relates to shattering the stigma regarding mental health. The next step for him will include hosting a new show that addresses the issue of mental health in sports.
Jada Pinkett Smith’s Red Table Talk Productions is developing The Toughest Opponent, a talk show that will be hosted by Marshall.
“A decade ago, I spoke publicly for the first time about my borderline personality disorder diagnosis,” Marshall said earlier this month, via Deadline.com. “Now, I am sharing the mic. I have vowed to make it my life’s purpose to remove the stigma of mental health in sports. I cannot be more excited to partner with Red Table Talk Productions to amplify the powerful truths of my fellow athletes. Mental health is part of the human condition, and athletes shouldn’t be expected to check their humanity at the door. The Toughest Opponent is a place where they will never have to.”
More and more athletes have embraced the issue of mental health. Most understand that the people who play the games we watch are human beings, who deal with the same problems that the rest of us encounter. The higher profile and the pressure and the scrutiny and the warped reality of social media only makes it harder. Marshall is at the forefront of those trying to make it a little easier.