Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman has faced doubters throughout his career. He started as a community college quarterback at College of San Mateo before transferring to Kent State. But he didn’t stand much of a chance as a pro QB, so after the Patriots drafted him in the seventh round, he had to reinvent himself as a receiver.
NFL execs weren’t the only ones who doubted Edelman’s ability to succeed in the NFL. When Edelman was at San Mateo, an English teacher told him to rethink his life goals because making the NFL wasn’t realistic. While many trolls and doubters hide behind a screen, Edelman’s teacher came forward and wrote an apology letter, which the receiver shared on Twitter.
set your goals high.
do whatever it takes to achieve them. #motivation pic.twitter.com/1eoaG2yp9w— Julian Edelman (@Edelman11) July 18, 2017
Here’s what the letter, dated June 14, says:
“Dear Jules,
I’m not sure you’ll remember me: I was your teacher for your English 100 class at CSM in the spring of 2006. I’ve been wanting to write to you for, oh, what seems like a thousand years, to apologize to you for a flippant comment I made to you that semester. You may not even remember it, but I’ve felt bad about it for years. You had made some comment about “going to the league,” and I said something about setting realistic goals, about how few people successfully enter the ranks of the professional athlete, blah, blah, blah. I don’t think it fazed you, frankly, but whenever I think back on it, I feel terrible, not because you proved me wrong, but because I stupidly voiced an uneducated opinion that implied I had distain for your passion for the game. I think it was early in the semester, before I knew you, but how I could ever have doubted your tenacity and grit is beyond me! Again, I doubt you’ve even thought about it twice, but even so, I am sorry for wedging my foot so firmly in my mouth that day.”
Edelman is about to enter his ninth year in the league, and he’s a two-time Super Bowl winner. He also made one of the greatest catches in Super Bowl history during the Patriots’ remarkable comeback against the Falcons in February.
Edelman still has doubters who think he’s simply a product of Bill Belichick’s system and Tom Brady’s quarterbacking, but whatever they think, Edelman is the one with $16 million career earnings and two championship rings.
