When offseason workouts are underway across the NFL this summer, a number of players will be absent for various reasons. Some will be nursing injuries while others will be tied up in contract disputes. Aaron Ross, however, may have the most unique excuse in the league.
According to the NY Daily News, the Jaguars have given their newly-signed cornerback permission to miss some of the team’s offseason training program so he can watch his wife compete in the Summer Olympics. Ross’s better half, Sanya Richards-Ross, is a track and field star and the reining world indoor champion in the 400-meter race. She won a gold medal in the 1,600-meter team relay in Athens and a bronze in the 400-meter in Beijing.
Ross reportedly asked Jacksonville GM Gene Smith and head coach Mike Mularkey if he would be able to attend the London Olympics before he signed his three-year, $15.3 million deal last month. He said the fact that he is able to leave training camp to cheer his wife on “speaks volumes about what they’re trying to preach (in Jacksonville).”
That makes at least two Jaguars who will miss some time this summer. The difference is Ross has a family commitment, whereas a certain defensive lineman will be recovering from an eye injury he suffered when he was hit in the head with a vodka bottle. One seems a bit easier to justify than the other.
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