Editors Note: This is part 3 of the story. If you missed Part 1, click here, or Part 2, click here.
When we left Rajric last time he had just been signed as an UDFA by the Buffalo Bills after a stressful but unfruitful draft. There wasn’t a rookie camp that year because of the NFL lockout so for him and the other rookies it was right to camp with everyone else. “I got a call one night saying I was going to get an email with my ticket info and I would be flying out around 6pm the next night. The next morning I got a call saying your flight is at noon, get to the airport! So I packed my bag in about 30 minutes, just threw some random things in and flew out to North Carolina where I had a layover. Incidentally I got on the same plane as CJ Spiller to Buffalo. I talked to him and got a little info on what it was like, then about 3 hours later I landed in Buffalo. The next day training camp started”
Being thrust in together and being new, the rookies immediately bonded. There was so much to do and so much to learn that they looked to each other for help and advice. In fact Rajric still speaks to Aaron Williams on a weekly basis and have become very good friends.
With the lockout, the preseason games were on them before they knew it and whilst still trying to learn the playbooks, they were thrust into the live game environment. However this is where Rajric felt most at home. In the first game against Chicago he played the entire fourth quarter. He posted two solo tackles including one touchdown saving tackle. “I felt really good after that game. The next week at practice I got more time on the field. I felt pretty good about my chances at the point.”
In the second game at Denver, Rajric had a reduced role despite his fine performance in the opening game. He played a little in the fourth quarter and on special teams. “I didn’t play much against Denver and didn’t get too many plays my way. I did play some special teams and I knew that’s where I needed to play well to make the team. I did a pretty good job and was still proud of my performance”
The most common thing to come out of rookies’ mouths in regards to the step up is the speed of the game but Coleman found that okay. “The hardest part was the play book. Once I got the play book down, then the game slowed down.” The problem with that was it was then that that the cuts came.
The third game was against the Jaguars but Rajric didn’t see the field at all that day and the writing was firmly on the wall. No explanation had been given for his reduced playing time and being a rookie he didn’t feel able to question it. “They don’t really explain why things happen at that level. The position coach told me not to worry and that he liked what he had seen from me. He said he is pulling for me to make the team and that they have to look into other players but not to worry.”
However the very next day Rajric got a call at the hotel. “They told me they were coming to pick me up and to bring my play book. I knew what that meant. At that point I just started packing my bags. They came and got me and a few other players and we spoke with Chan Gailey. He gave us the ‘You’re good enough to play in the league but it’s a numbers game’ speech and I walked out. I went to talk to my position coach and he told me it wasn’t up to him to let me go. He liked what I showed and wanted to keep me on the team or practice squad and he would put in a good word to other teams about me.”
“I just didn’t want Chan to read me some regurgitated quotes, I wanted honesty. When I spoke to my position coach I believed what he said because he had treated me really well during camp and had even taken extra time to help me out when I needed it. Ultimately it’s all about who the GM likes that makes the team.”
After a workout with Miami that didn’t go anywhere, Coleman went home to wait for a call from another team. That call never came. Arena football didn’t interest him and the CFL entailed a whole new set of problems. He decided that it was time for something else in his life. His dream may have changed a little but the subject matter remained the same. The love affair between football and Rajric Coleman continues.
He started coaching 5 to 7-year-old Pop Warner football and it has ignited something inside him. He’s discovered a passion for coaching, a passion that one day he hopes will lead him back to the NFL and this time to make a home there. He’s starting all over in football, but for him that’s no hardship. He loves it and all the work that comes with it. Some people take a lifetime to discover what they really want out of life and then it’s too late. Rajric has found out what the important stuff is pretty early. He is engaged with a step son and a daughter due in February.
He has his coaching and his future planned. He is happy where he is and happier with where he is going. He may have been chasing the wrong girl all along but he ended up with the right one in the end.
Please enjoy the full audio interview with Rajric and the hosts of Overtime Ireland:
Thanks for Reading. You can follow @daisummers on twitter for your NFL needs, and the follow the site @lastwordonsport and like our Facebook Page while you are at it.
Interested in writing for LastWordOnSports? If so, check out our “Join Our Team” page to find out how.
Football fans…check out our two partnered NFL podcasts – Thursday Night Tailgate Radio and Overtime Ireland. Both shows bring you interesting commentary, critical analysis and fantastic guests including former and current NFL players, coaches and personalities.
