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–— ðu]hqX 3˜øS(/Xth good news and bad. Because Rhein had gone to the World Bowl, Brooks had missed all the Falcon mini camps. Because he lacked experience with Reeves complex system and because the team desperately needed defensive linemen, Brooks was again moved back to defense. Once more Brooks made the final roster of 53, but after the first week of the season Brooks was released so Reeves could add an experienced defensive tackle in Shane Dronett. Fortunately, Brooks was soon picked up by the Rams to be groomed once again as an offensive tackle, and his career seemed to be back on track. He played swing tackle behind two first round picks in Orlando Pace and Wayne Gandy in 1998. With Gandy up for a new contract and the Rams not inclined to resign their starting right tackle, the 1999 right tackle job was to be Brooks . But in June of 1999, as Brooks was preparing for his third season with the Rams, tragedy struck. His wife, Jackie, was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. He decided to put his athletic career on hold for several months to help her through the trauma of chemotherapy. Brooks was subsequently released by the Rams, and he turned down offers from both the Saints, Cowboys and the Jaguars. As his wife s health began to improve, Brooks signed with the Cardinals (over the Jaguars and the Broncos) in the 2000 season and reunited with his offensive line coach from the Rams, George Warhop. Again Brooks made the final roster; and when the starter at left tackle L.J. Shelton became injured, Brooks saw more playing time. Shelton went down the first play of the first game, so I got to play that whole game, and then the following two games I started. However, at the end of the season the Cardinals decided not to extend players who had missed significant amounts of practice time, as Brooks had in caring for his wife. Brooks was immediately picked up by the Broncos. In February 2001 tragedy struck again, and this time Jackie lost her battle with cancer. There would be no football for Brooks this year. When Jackie passed away I just really wasn t 100 percent focused on football, says Brooks. When he was eventually able to handle his irreparable loss, Brooks knew he had a lot of work to do if he was to play again. He needed to get back in shape, and he needed to do it quickly. The Poliquin Factor Through his brother Fletcher, who is now a track and strength coach at Williams College, Brooks learned about Charles Poliquin, co-owner of the Poliquin Performance Center in Tempe, Arizona. Poliquin s pro clients include over 60 NHL and over a dozen NFL players. I wanted to work with Charles to get my strength levels up to a level where I could real