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Cornerback Jamel Dean's new four-year, $52 million contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers might've been hard to envision when he started his college football career. Dean's time as an Ohio State football player ended before it began when the school ruled him medically ineligible because of multiple knee injuries that he suffered in high school. Nearly a decade later, the Buccaneers' star hasn't forgotten what he was told during his brief time in Columbus.
“I’m glad I didn’t quit because everything paid off,” Jamel Dean said at a press conference for his new contract with the Buccaneers. “I proved Ohio State wrong when they told me I had a 3 percent chance of being successful in football. So I took the gamble, and it paid off.”
Dean suffered a torn ACL in his right knee in high school. When the cornerback came back from the injury for his senior season and later tore the meniscus in his right knee, the Ohio State football program wouldn't medically clear him. Dean transferred to Auburn and became a third-round pick by the Buccaneers in the 2019 NFL Draft.
“I feel like I beat the odds,” Dean said. “Honestly, I don’t know why my knees was an issue. I went two seasons in college without my knees being a problem, and then when I ran the 4.30 at the combine, I was like, ‘That should eliminate the knee situation.’ But just being able to overcome all the adversity, it’s a great feeling to get a second contract because there was a little bit of doubt about how long my knees were going hold up, but they did. They’ve still got a couple more years in them.”
