The day John Ross retired in the summer of 2023, he knew instantly that he had made a mistake.
Ross never wanted to leave football.
“Literally the day I retired,” Ross said, “I knew it was a mistake.”
But the speedy receiver found himself in a bad place mentally after years of injuries and failing to live up to extremely high expectations for a No. 9 overall Draft pick. His career hadn’t gone as planned and he was on the end, so he walked away from him.
That’s when his son Kyrie saved him.
“When you get to a point where you feel like you’re at your lowest point, you can see everything for what it is,” Ross said after the Eagles’ OTA practice on Thursday. “And then you can look around and see your surroundings. I can tell you that my environment was not very good. So you have to hone in and pay attention to what matters to you and what is real.
“I was able to see my son every day and I think that changed my life. He just lets me know that I have nothing to worry about. I am blessed and have everything in front of me. I’m young, I feel young, I haven’t played much football. I got to a point where I was sitting there thinking, every day, ‘How can I change my mindset? How do I change my way of thinking?’ I have this little boy who inspires me every day through him playing football, him learning and me teaching him. I used to feel bad because I got so upset with him and I thought, ‘I should do it with myself’ because I can see myself in him. I can honestly say he got me out of a bad place. Again, I am very grateful.”
Ross, 28, arrived in Philadelphia for a tryout last month at rookie camp and must have impressed the Eagles because he was signed to the 90-man roster last week after DeVante Parker retired.
If we’re being realistic, there’s not much chance that Ross will be a significant contributor for the Eagles in 2024. Heck, he probably still has little chance of making the initial 53-man roster coming out of training camp.
But after an 8-minute press conference in May, Ross gained many new fans. It’s almost impossible not to root for him as he begins his new chapter with the Eagles.
Because on Thursday afternoon, Ross spoke so openly and seriously about his struggles, his love of football and, most touching to us, his relationship with his son Kyrie.
Kyrie, by the way, turned 7 last week. And although Ross finds it difficult to be away from him, he feels like he is in the right place. In fact, Ross said that before boarding a flight to Philadelphia for his tryout last month, he asked his son which teams he should try out for. The Eagles were the second team Kyrie mentioned and Ross said his face lit up when he heard that.
(If you’re wondering, Kyrie’s first answer was the Ravens. He’s a big Lamar Jackson fan. But he’s 7, so you’ll forgive him.)
After hearing Kyrie talk about the Eagles, Ross boarded his flight to Philadelphia for that tryout on a mission. He motivated him.
Some former top 10 picks would find the tryout process humiliating or even embarrassing. After all, Ross was sharing the field in rookie camp with a bunch of draft picks and undrafted players, many of whom will never have real NFL careers. But Ross didn’t see it that way. He couldn’t afford it.
“If you look at it like that,” Ross said. “In my situation, I was a top 10 draft pick and we all talk about it all the time. “If we ever get to the point where we have to try, then we’re done.” But then you get to that point and you have no choice.
“When I took the opportunity, I was probably the happiest person on Earth. My son and I, sitting there, were grateful and thankful. When I got here, I was happy to be here. It wasn’t a rookie minicamp, I was looking at it that way. It was an opportunity for me to play football again. It could have been an Eagles Canadian tryout, I would have been there happy, willing and able.”
The reason the Eagles signed Ross is the same reason the Bengals selected him with the ninth overall pick out of Washington in the 2017 draft. He’s fast. Really fast.
Ross held the Combine’s 40-yard dash record, a dazzling 4.22, until last February, when Texas receiver Xavier Worthy ran a 4.21.
Years after Ross’ Combine record, does he still have his wheels?
“I think I’m faster,” Ross said. “And I know it’s going to be crazy to say that. I don’t feel the same as before physically. That’s why I say I think I’m faster. And when I say that, don’t get me wrong. I ran a 4.22. I’m not saying it’s a 4.15 or anything like that.
“But what I’m saying is that I feel better, so I think I can be faster consistently and I think that was the most important thing. Can this guy go every day and look the same every day? And I feel like I’m getting to the point where I can be consistent with my speed. And for me that is the most important thing.”
Ross on Thursday congratulated Worthy on his record-breaking performance. Records are made to be broken and Ross feels lucky to have held the record for so long.
Besides, Ross can’t worry about one of his old records. He is working too hard to make the Eagles roster and rejuvenate a career he never took off. Ross’ best season in the NFL came in 2019 when he had just 28 receptions for 506 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Sure, maybe Ross is a long shot, but he’s a good story and an easy guy to root for over the next few months.
Although Ross misses his son Kyrie, he is able to talk to him quite a bit on the phone. Ross spoke with his son before Thursday’s meetings and already knows what he will tell her about Thursday’s practice.
“Oh, Dad was running today,” he said. “I feel like today was a good day.”
Yes, it was a good day. Ross has been having many more recently.
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