Ryan Leaf’s downfall started before taking a single snap in the NFL.
While guest hosting “The Rich Eisen Show,” the second overall pick in the 1998 draft revealed his career started falling apart before he was even drafted. (RELATED: David Hookstead Is The True King In The North When It Comes To College Football)
Leaf, who infamously flamed out of the NFL after being drafted by the Chargers, said things started going wrong when he showed up to the combine. What was wrong? He had spent months not preparing to go pro and was completely unprepared.
From there, it only got worse. You can watch him break it all down below.
When people talk about the biggest busts in NFL history, people mention JaMarcus Russell and Leaf, and there are plenty of debates about whose career went worse.
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It’s hard to say, but there’s no question Leaf flamed out in unreal fashion. People thought he was destined to be a superstar.
Instead, he was out of the NFL in a few years, got into loads of trouble off the field, struggled with substance abuse and landed himself behind bars. It was a fall from grace that not even Hollywood could have envisioned.
Fortunately for Leaf, he managed to turn his life around after struggling with substance abuse and having his NFL career end much quicker than anticipated.
He’s found a solid amount of success on TV and his comeback story now inspires others who might be struggling.
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While his NFL career didn’t pan out, it’s clear Leaf managed to get it all worked out as he went down the road. Props to him for not giving up.