Ryan Leaf Is Maturing and Proud of What He Did, Admits Money Changed Him

Ryan Leaf’s name will almost assuredly be forever associated with some of the biggest draft busts in NFL history. Luckily for him JaMarcus Russell is working hard to supplant him for the top honor, but even some of Leaf’s off-field issues post-football haven’t helped his reputation. Leaf is now 34, working on writing three autobiographies, and after hearing him speak during a recent interview, I’m convinced he’s starting to really “get it.”

Leaf joined Darren Smith’s show on Double X 1090 in San Diego Thursday to talk recruiting, quarterbacks, and the draft. He really showed a sense of maturity given the way he talked about things and answered some of the questions. Amongst the highlights from the interview, Leaf talked about what it’s like being labeled a bust, how money changed him as a player, and how he feels about his playing career. Here are some of his answers to great questions asked by Smith (you can listen to the interview here).

When asked what it was like hearing analysts like Jon Gruden use his name as a cautionary tale to young quarterbacks, Leaf admitted it hurts. “He throws me under the bus, definitely. He’s paid to do a job, and I can’t say it’s not tough to hear because of course it is,” Leaf said. “I’m the staple for that, and he brings it up, and I think I heard Coach Billick bring it up a few times too. It is what it is — draft time teams don’t want to make a mistake with all the money. I can understand that. I think it’s amazing that they do that stuff. I would have loved to sit with a Super Bowl-winning coach before I got drafted.”

Asked if he thought he’d ever get replaced by JaMarcus Russell, Leaf seemed to understand the circumstances of his position. “I don’t know,” he answered. “With the hype of the individual I came out with, the expectations I had on me, who knows, it may never happen. For a long time I let it bother me but I’m very comfortable in my own skin now. I’ve left that stuff go. If I didn’t, I’d continue to be depressed forever. I think you get caught up about being a failure for so long you start to believe it, and then you forget the fact that you were the second pick in the NFL draft and played in the NFL. And as a kid that was my dream and you forget about that … you just hear all the negative stuff. I’m proud of what I did, I’m upset that I didn’t accomplish more because I wanted to, but it is what it is.”

Leaf also thinks the rookie wage scale is a good idea because it will help create incentive for young players to work towards getting a good second contract rather than settling on a rich rookie deal. In fact, he admitted the money changed him.

“I wasn’t ready for [the money],” Leaf said. “I remember telling people ‘oh, the money won’t change me’ it changes people. I can admit it now, it does. You play your whole life and don’t really take into account that it’s kind of a job and it’s always been fun. You didn’t get paid for anything in college but you just loved, loved it, and loved it. You just wanted to play professional football. I would have loved to play professional football and not had all the other stuff that went with it, but because of all the money, you have to deal with all the stuff that goes with it.”

“The big thing for me was entitlement. One of the biggest things was I had always been financially reliant on my parents. Even though I wanted to be defensive and stubborn, I would always have to take into account some of the things they wanted to tell me and teach me because I was financially reliant on them. When you’re at that level and you don’t need anything from anybody anymore, that kind of overtakes you and consumes you in a way where you deal with everything on your own, and those people that don’t agree with you, you push them away. Those people that really want to help you but you don’t see it that way, you push them away and surround yourself with yes men rather than the people that unconditionally love you and that was a big mistake on my part.”

Answering a follow-up question, Leaf says he believes if he had the maturity then that he has now, he would have been successful in the NFL.

It’s really a shame he didn’t have the knowledge and maturity back then, because he had some excellent physical gifts and it’s much more rewarding and enjoyable for all of us to see a player reach his potential than fail. Many people may have cemented Leaf’s legacy as a player and person, but I haven’t. With an honest and open interview like this, seeing him mature and hearing him admit his mistakes makes him a heck of a lot more likable to the point where you really don’t want to trash him anymore. These are really good steps for Leaf to take in his life and I wish him well.