For many athletes who grow up playing football, making it to the NFL is the ultimate goal.
The NFL is the top football league in the world, the pinnacle of athleticism for the sport.
Becoming a professional athlete is challenging enough, but considering the limited number of jobs available in this highly competitive league, it’s nearly impossible to succeed.
Even if players make their way onto an NFL roster, their shelf life is typically small, as there are always new, younger players who are trying to come in and take their jobs away.
This constant competition can be a driver for success, but it can also drive some players away.
Keyshawn Johnson talked about this in a recent segment of “Speak” on FS1, noting that the NFL isn’t only fun and games, and that external factors can be a determining factor for how long players stick around.
“It stopped being fun after winning the Super Bowl, cuz I had to deal with Gruden,” Johnson said.
.@Keyshawn says football stopped being fun for him after winning the Super Bowl because he had to deal with Coach Gruden. 😮
… Watch until the end 😂 pic.twitter.com/rRO2iPk3Fj
— Speak (@SpeakOnFS1) June 26, 2025
To Johnson, dealing with his head coach, Jon Gruden, was enough of a barrier for him to eventually pursue a different career.
He is now a successful member of sports media, but the former No. 1 overall draft pick had to make some tough choices down the road.
Every player needs to decide to retire at some point, and for Johnson, that happened after the 2006 season.
He finished that year with 70 catches for 815 yards and four touchdowns, so he still had plenty of gas left in the tank, physically.
It seemed like the mental game wasn’t worth it to him, and Gruden might have been a big part of that.
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