1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,400 Speaker 1: Then my grandmother sent me to Savannah State for two reasons. 2 00:00:02,600 --> 00:00:04,080 Speaker 1: She sent me to get a degree and to go 3 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:06,680 Speaker 1: play in the NFL. And those were gonna happen. I 4 00:00:06,720 --> 00:00:08,480 Speaker 1: didn't know which order they were going to happen, but 5 00:00:08,480 --> 00:00:10,880 Speaker 1: they were gonna happen. And from the time I was 6 00:00:10,920 --> 00:00:12,680 Speaker 1: twelve years old and I told her I was gonna 7 00:00:13,160 --> 00:00:16,840 Speaker 1: move her out of that house that leaked and didn't 8 00:00:16,880 --> 00:00:19,360 Speaker 1: have any sincorre heating and cooling, didn't had a very condition, 9 00:00:19,400 --> 00:00:21,439 Speaker 1: didn't have the paneling, We had cement floors, and sending 10 00:00:21,440 --> 00:00:23,799 Speaker 1: the block walls. The time I told my mom I 11 00:00:23,800 --> 00:00:26,600 Speaker 1: was gonna buy Mercedes. Those were the things that drove me. 12 00:00:30,880 --> 00:00:32,880 Speaker 1: The draft was twelve rounds when I came out in 13 00:00:32,960 --> 00:00:36,159 Speaker 1: nineteen ninety, and I remember thinking, you know, I had 14 00:00:36,240 --> 00:00:38,919 Speaker 1: projections that's I was gonna go somewhere between round one 15 00:00:38,960 --> 00:00:41,160 Speaker 1: and three, and considering I hadn't talked to a whole 16 00:00:41,159 --> 00:00:43,720 Speaker 1: lot of people, I really thought that round one was 17 00:00:43,760 --> 00:00:45,959 Speaker 1: off the table. But I I thought I was good 18 00:00:46,080 --> 00:00:48,040 Speaker 1: enough to be a second or a third round draft pick. 19 00:00:48,840 --> 00:00:52,000 Speaker 1: And when that didn't happen, I just remember going to 20 00:00:52,040 --> 00:00:53,720 Speaker 1: bed that night that Sunday night, I was up in 21 00:00:53,800 --> 00:00:57,319 Speaker 1: South Carolina with my brother and Uh. I remember him 22 00:00:57,320 --> 00:00:59,120 Speaker 1: walking in the room and telling him that we're gonna 23 00:00:59,160 --> 00:01:01,640 Speaker 1: be okay. I said, I went to the combine and 24 00:01:01,680 --> 00:01:03,560 Speaker 1: I went to a lot of All Star games, and 25 00:01:03,600 --> 00:01:05,800 Speaker 1: I said, there's not one guy that's a receiver or 26 00:01:05,800 --> 00:01:07,720 Speaker 1: tight end that's better than I am. I'm better than 27 00:01:07,760 --> 00:01:11,600 Speaker 1: those guys. I know I am. And he's like, all right, 28 00:01:11,680 --> 00:01:13,640 Speaker 1: just sleep, don't even worry about it. And I remember 29 00:01:13,640 --> 00:01:16,200 Speaker 1: waking up the next morning. I was like, man, let's 30 00:01:16,200 --> 00:01:18,679 Speaker 1: go just grab a workout, and so we went to 31 00:01:18,720 --> 00:01:20,800 Speaker 1: the University of South Carolina and we were working out. 32 00:01:20,880 --> 00:01:25,200 Speaker 1: I was lifting and someone said, Shannon, telephone, and I 33 00:01:25,240 --> 00:01:27,040 Speaker 1: remember thinking to myself, I asked. My brother's like, well, 34 00:01:27,040 --> 00:01:29,640 Speaker 1: who knows I'm here? And I picked up the phone 35 00:01:29,640 --> 00:01:32,000 Speaker 1: and it was the Broncos and they said, we selected 36 00:01:32,000 --> 00:01:34,840 Speaker 1: you in the seventh round and said you said, I said, 37 00:01:34,840 --> 00:01:37,200 Speaker 1: I'm very excited. I said, I can't wait to get 38 00:01:37,240 --> 00:01:41,480 Speaker 1: there and show you what I got and finished my workout. 39 00:01:41,680 --> 00:01:43,520 Speaker 1: I had a plane take it waiting for me at 40 00:01:43,520 --> 00:01:45,880 Speaker 1: the airport and I flew out to Denver and I 41 00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:49,120 Speaker 1: was on the board for the last cut and a 42 00:01:49,240 --> 00:01:51,480 Speaker 1: coat of mine came to me and he told me, said, Shannon, 43 00:01:52,880 --> 00:01:54,680 Speaker 1: I'm not supposed to share this with you, but your 44 00:01:54,760 --> 00:01:56,440 Speaker 1: name is on the board for being one of the 45 00:01:56,440 --> 00:01:59,360 Speaker 1: final cuts, and uh, he says, I just think you 46 00:01:59,360 --> 00:02:01,559 Speaker 1: should go out there and give it your all tonight, 47 00:02:01,680 --> 00:02:03,440 Speaker 1: because not only are you playing to try to make 48 00:02:03,480 --> 00:02:05,800 Speaker 1: this team, everybody else is gonna get the tape of 49 00:02:05,880 --> 00:02:08,640 Speaker 1: this game and they're gonna be watching it. So maybe 50 00:02:08,680 --> 00:02:10,520 Speaker 1: you can flash something and someone else will pick you 51 00:02:10,560 --> 00:02:12,720 Speaker 1: up if we release you. I remember driving to the 52 00:02:12,760 --> 00:02:16,079 Speaker 1: stadium and it started to rain, and I'm thinking to myself, 53 00:02:17,320 --> 00:02:20,040 Speaker 1: it's raining. We're not gonna throw the football. I'm a receiver. 54 00:02:20,160 --> 00:02:21,840 Speaker 1: How can I show what I can do if it's raining? 55 00:02:22,960 --> 00:02:26,360 Speaker 1: And as the rain started to build, I knew I 56 00:02:26,360 --> 00:02:28,640 Speaker 1: was gonna be on special teams, and I knew I 57 00:02:28,680 --> 00:02:30,919 Speaker 1: was gonna probably play late in the ball game, probably 58 00:02:30,919 --> 00:02:35,200 Speaker 1: the fourth quarters, after the starters came out and I 59 00:02:35,280 --> 00:02:39,160 Speaker 1: needed to flash and made a couple of plays on 60 00:02:39,160 --> 00:02:42,440 Speaker 1: special teams. I got in the ball game on offense 61 00:02:42,480 --> 00:02:45,560 Speaker 1: and I was cutting everything. Every DV DV that got 62 00:02:45,560 --> 00:02:49,720 Speaker 1: close to me, I cut it, and I just remember 63 00:02:49,840 --> 00:02:53,320 Speaker 1: thinking did I do enough? And when I came over 64 00:02:53,360 --> 00:02:57,720 Speaker 1: to work the next the next day and coach told 65 00:02:57,720 --> 00:03:00,320 Speaker 1: me that my name was off the board. I remember 66 00:03:00,400 --> 00:03:02,920 Speaker 1: thinking and it stuck with me every day. I said, 67 00:03:02,960 --> 00:03:06,440 Speaker 1: I need to go to practice every single day and 68 00:03:06,560 --> 00:03:11,160 Speaker 1: give them one reason to keep me, because in that game, 69 00:03:11,240 --> 00:03:14,000 Speaker 1: that preseason game, I gave the Broncos one reason to 70 00:03:14,080 --> 00:03:17,440 Speaker 1: keep me. I hustled, so I went from being a 71 00:03:17,480 --> 00:03:20,400 Speaker 1: seventh round draft pick to barely making the team, to 72 00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:23,680 Speaker 1: playing special teams, to go into eight Pro Bowls, four 73 00:03:23,800 --> 00:03:26,239 Speaker 1: First Team All Pros, three Super Bowls, and go into 74 00:03:26,240 --> 00:03:29,360 Speaker 1: the Hall of Fame. I wouldn't trade that experience for 75 00:03:29,400 --> 00:03:32,080 Speaker 1: anything because I think it helped shape the person that 76 00:03:32,120 --> 00:03:34,720 Speaker 1: I became, and I know it definitely made me the 77 00:03:34,720 --> 00:03:38,839 Speaker 1: players that I became. Shannon Sharp, I'm out.