The below men could stake their claims as some of best athletes of all time.
Before becoming a star player in the National Football League, Russell Wilson also dabbled in professional baseball. He was actually drafted by the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball directly out of high school.
Wilson is not the only NFL quarterback who has a soft spot for baseball. Tim Tebow attempted to parlay his love for America's pastime into a second professional sports career.
Bo Jackson's forays in professional baseball and football were more successful. He made his MLB debut for the Kansas City Royals in 1986, the same year he was drafted by the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Russell Wilson
Before becoming a star player in the National Football League, Russell Wilson also dabbled in professional baseball. He was actually drafted by the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball directly out of high school.
Wilson declined to sign with the club and instead attended North Carolina State, where he used both football cleats and baseball gloves.
Wilson was drafted into the MLB again in 2010, when the Colorado Rockies selected him in the fourth round. He played for several seasons in the minor leagues before informing the Rockies in 2012 that he was focusing on his professional football career.
A few months later, the Seattle Seahawks selected Wilson in the third round of the NFL Draft. He was originally expected to be a backup to recent free agent signee Matt Flynn.
Wilson instead won the starting quarterback job in the preseason and never looked back. He has made eight Pro Bowls and won a Super Bowl in 2014.
Still, his gridiron success has not stopped baseball teams from showing interest in him. The Texas Rangers invited him to spring training twice before trading him to the New York Yankees in 2018.
He even entered a spring training game that year, where he struck out swinging on five pitches.
Tim Tebow
Wilson is not the only NFL quarterback who has a soft spot for baseball. Tim Tebow attempted to parlay his love for America's pastime into a second professional sports career.
After starring for the University of Florida in college, Tebow was selected by the Denver Broncos in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft. He spent much of his rookie season as a backup and started his sophomore season on the bench, as well.
However, he was named the starter a quarter of the way through the 2011 season. He helped the Broncos win a division title and even threw a game-winning touchdown pass in overtime during the first round of the playoffs.
The Broncos signed future Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning in the 2012 offseason and subsequently traded Tebow to the New York Jets. Tebow's NFL career fizzled from there.
He was used sparingly on offense before being released by the Jets in 2013. Tebow spent subsequent offseasons with the New England Patriots, Philadelphia Eagles, and, most recently, the Jacksonville Jaguars, who unsuccessfully attempted to convert him to tight end.
Tebow first expressed his interest in baseball in 2016. While he had not played the sport full time since 2005, he still received offers from independent league teams.
He instead signed a minor-league deal with the New York Mets. He remained in the organization for several years but never made it above AAA. He announced his retirement from baseball in early 2021.
Bo Jackson
Bo Jackson's forays in professional baseball and football were more successful. He made his MLB debut for the Kansas City Royals in 1986, the same year he was drafted by the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
He declined to sign with Tampa and was then selected by the Los Angeles Raiders in the following year's NFL Draft. Jackson then agreed to a contract that let him play the entire MLB season before reporting to the Raiders.
The arrangement was successful for several years. Jackson even won Most Valuable Player honors in the 1989 MLB All-Star Game and then made the NFL Pro Bowl the following season.
Sadly, he injured his hip in the 1991 NFL playoffs, ending his football career. He managed to play a few more seasons in the MLB, but many still wonder what his career could have been if not for the injury.
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The above athletes defied the odds by becoming professionals in multiple sports. Even though not all of them were successful in both of their chosen sports, they should be celebrated for getting as far as they did.
