Former FIU running back Anthony Jones is reported to be set to sign a contract with the Seattle Seahawks after surviving a bullet to the face in a drive-by shooting in 2018. ESPN’s Adam Schefter delivered the news the Seahawks will be signing Jones as an undrafted free agent.
Jones was hospitalized and intubated following the incident. He told the Associated Press that he questioned why something so tragic could happen to him specifically.
“That first night, I asked God, ‘Why me?'” Jones said. “I did. You know I did. I just wished I could rewind time, man. Why me? I don’t ever do anything to anybody. I’m a good dude. I respect everybody. I’m a respectful man. My momma raised me right. I’ve never done anything to anybody. I just want to play football, graduate, get my degree and help my family.”
Doctors told FIU head coach Butch Davis that the bullet passed through Jones with no crucial structural damage inflicted.
“The doctor at the hospital when it happened told me, ‘Coach, I’ve been doing this for like 18 years and I’ve never seen anybody survive this,'” Davis told the Sun-Sentinel. “And then he described the bullet wounds, where they went, what they didn’t touch. For that shot to go through and not hit any organs, any bones, any nerve tissue, he said it’s a miracle. It honestly is a miracle.”
At the very least, Jones will get an opportunity to show what he can do at the professional level.
“I have that chance now,” Jones said. “A second chance.”
