Former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green was one of the best players of his era, but he's still contributing to football post-retirement. The 37-year-old published an essay named "Rondale" on Wednesday (via The Players' Tribune), which mourned the death of his friend and former NFL wideout Rondale Moore, whom he played with on the Arizona Cardinals from 2021 to 2022.

Moore was found dead at just 25 years old on Feb. 21, and the cause of death is suspected to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound, per AP. Green discussed Moore's depression while rehabbing multiple injuries and explained that if the NFL had more mental health resources for injured players, he might still be alive today.

"To me there’s a lot that could still be improved in the NFL, as far as how the league is helping its players with their mental health," he wrote. "And one way I would start is by making it mandatory, if you have a major injury, that you see an independent mental health counselor as part of your rehab. And by also making it mandatory, if you have a second major injury, that you see an independent mental health counselor for an extended period of time, even after your rehab."

"In my opinion, if Rondale’d had those tools, he might still be alive today," he continued. "And I want to make sure we’re never saying that again about a young NFL player. Because I keep coming back to this one part about it — and it may be the part that’s most heartbreaking to me: Rondale was 25, man. He was so damn young. He really was just a kid."

On paper, it looked like Moore had it all. The Louisville native earned Big Ten Receiver of the Year, Big Ten Freshman of the Year, first-team All-Big Ten, and consensus All-American honors at Purdue in 2018 before getting picked No. 49 overall by Arizona in the 2021 NFL Draft. The 5-foot-7, 181-pounder's rookie contract was worth $6.9 million over four years.

Moore made it as a professional athlete and earned enough money to last a lifetime by his early 20s, accomplishments that only a fraction of people throughout history have achieved. But things took a turn when he got hurt.

Moore played 14 games as a rookie before playing just eight due to injury in 2022 and 17 in 2023. The Cardinals then traded him to the Atlanta Falcons in 2024, and he missed the entire season due to a knee injury in training camp.

Moore signed with the Minnesota Vikings in 2025, but suffered another season-ending knee injury during a preseason game in August. In total, he spent most of two consecutive years rehabbing.

Rehabbing is a lonely process, as players are often away from their teams. Even though professional athletes are often wealthy and have dream jobs, that doesn't guarantee peace of mind. If the NFL takes Green's advice, it will show initiative and concern for its players' well-being. 

The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline can be found here.