John Ross, a former ninth-overall draft pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2017, announced his retirement from the NFL just seven years later in July of 2023.
Ross' career never took off like man expected due to one injury after another.
But fastward to May 2024, Ross decided to give the whole football thing another shot, signing a one-year deal with the Philadelphia Eagles last week.
During the Eagles' second OTA session, Ross spoke to the media for the first time since officially signing his contract and what he had to say was powerful.
Ross Admits He Made a Mistake
Ross knew the day he threw in the towel that he had made a mistake.
“Literally the day I retired,” Ross told reporters on Thursday, “I knew it was a mistake. But when I think when you go through so much in life and you can only control so much. You get to a place and physically from what I dealt with. It was tough."
Following an injury-plagued career, the Bengals declined to pick up Ross' fifth-year option. He became a free agent in 2021 and signed a one-year deal with the New York Giants.
Ross did not find another NFL home in 2022 but was picked up by the Kansas City Chiefs in January of 2023. He never made it to the regular season before announcing his retirement.
"When you get to a point where you feel like you’re at your lowest, you get to see everything for what it is,” Ross said. “And then you get to kind of look around and see your surroundings. I can tell you that my environment wasn’t great. So you gotta kind of hone [in] and pay attention to what matters to you and what’s real."
Ross revealed that his now 7-year-old son, Kyrie, changed his mindset.
“I got to see my son every single day and I think that changed my life. It just let me know that I don’t have anything to worry about," Ross said. "I’m blessed and I have everything in front of me. I’m young, I feel young, I haven’t played that much football. I just got to a point where I was sitting there thinking, every single day, ‘How do I change my mentality? How do I change my mindset?’ I got this little boy inspiring me every day through him playing football, him learning, me teaching him. I used to feel bad because I would get on him so much and I would be like, ‘I should be getting on myself’ because I can see me in him.
"I can honestly say he pulled me out of a bad place. Again, I’m very thankful."
Ross Kept the Same Mindset at Eagles' Rookie Minicamp
Ross, 28, had to tryout at the Eagles' Rookie Minicamp before he was offered a contract.
It was a humbling experience working out with recently drafted players as a former seven-year NFL veteran, though he kept the same positive mentality that pulled himself out of the dark place.
After all, he didn't have a choice.
"You look at it like this,” 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 out, then we’ll be done.’ But then you get to that point and you don’t have no other choice. When I go the opportunity, I was probably the happiest person on Earth. Me and my son, just sitting there, I was just thankful and grateful.
"When I got here, I was happy to be here. It wasn’t a rookie minicamp, I was looking at it this 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.
Ross' chances of making it through final roster cuts might be slim, but it helps that the Eagles are in search of a slot receiver.
It also helps that Ross has been having solid OTA workouts and that many fans are rooting for him.
