LeBron James says the possibility of signing for an NFL team excited him during the 2011 NBA players’ lockout.
The NBA star says he was approached by two teams – the Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys – during the lockout, which stopped activity in the league between July and December of 2011.
"I still got the jersey too, that Jerry [Jones] and Pete Carroll sent me from 2011."
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 28, 2021
Imagine LeBron on the Cowboys or Seahawks 😳 @KingJames pic.twitter.com/boMLsl4Jes
“[Cowboys owner] Jerry Jones offered me a contract, [Seahawks head coach] Pete Carroll did as well in Seattle during our lockout time,” James said during an appearance on ESPN’s Monday Night Football. “It definitely got my blood flowing again, my mind racing again about the game of football, being out there on Sundays. We were able to get a deal done in the NBA and I was back on the court in no time, but I definitely thought about it. I still got the jersey too, that Jerry and Pete Carroll sent me from 2011.”
James, who was 26 at the time of the lockout, has previously told The Athletic he is confident he would have succeeded if he had taken up an offer to play in the NFL in 2011. “I’d have tried, but I would have made the team,” he said. “I just know what I’m capable of doing on the football field. Especially at that age.”
James was an all-state wide receiver in high school and was on the radar of several top college football programs. However he missed his senior year of football with a broken wrist and, given his stratospheric basketball skills, decided to concentrate on his career in the NBA.
