Dabo Swinney sounds off on why ex-Clemson WR Justyn Ross slid as undrafted free agent
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney has high hopes for wide receiver Justyn Ross after the former Tiger was signed to the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent.
“I mean, he might be the greatest free agent ever if he stays healthy,” Swinney said Wednesday of Ross.
The caveat of health is what caused Ross to go from a potential first- or second-round pick to not hearing his name called at all during the 2022 NFL Draft.
Swinney said only four teams medically cleared Ross, one of which was the Chiefs. That created an even smaller pool from which to get drafted but provided the Alabama native a better understanding of how his path to the NFL would have to be carved. In addition to the congenital fusion in his spine, the wideout missed the last three games of his final season at Clemson with a foot injury.
Ross reportedly chose the Chiefs because of coach Andy Reid and getting to play with a quarterback like Patrick Mahomes. It also doesn’t hurt that a former Tiger in Sammy Watkins played in Reid’s system in 2018-20. During that time, he totaled 1,613 yards and eight touchdowns on 129 receptions.
“I’ve communicated with Coach Reid a couple of times. They’re excited to have him,” Swinney said. “And I mean, he’s Justyn Ross. I mean, there’s no questions about Justyn Ross when it comes to playing football.”
Despite having missed one season of football following surgery related to the congenital fusion in his spine, Ross ended his playing career at Clemson tied for fifth in career receiving touchdowns (20), 10th in receiving yards (2,379) and 11th in receptions (158).
“Big kid that’s smooth and runs well enough,” Reid said of Ross. “He was kind of feeling himself out here just a little bit having been hurt before, the last couple of years. Sure has a lot of talent there. Smart kid. Smart enough to pick everything up.”
Swinney stays in touch with his former player and reminds him that the opportunity to play is a blessing. It’s something Ross knows all too well after his football career was put in jeopardy following spinal surgery in 2020. Now that he’s healthy and medically cleared to play, there’s no doubt about what he feels he can do.
“He’s super excited about the opportunity that he has,” Swinney said, “and like I said, if he stays healthy, then he belongs, and the rest will take care of itself.”
This story was originally published May 11, 2022 at 7:17 PM.
