How Ryan Leaf Turned His Life Around After Hitting Rock Bottom

 

Who is Ryan Leaf?

Former American Football player, American Ryan David Leaf, was born in Great Falls, Montana USA, on 15 May 1976, making Taurus his zodiac sign. He spent three seasons playing for the San Diego Chargers and the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL), while he then also played for both the Seattle Seahawks and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a single season. Ryan’s today also known for being a former convict and drug addict.

Education and early life

Ryan was raised alongside his brother Brady Leaf in Great Falls by their parents, about whom not many details have been disclosed because Ryan respects their privacy; his brother’s today a professional American Football player.

Ryan became interested in playing football while attending Charles M. Russell High School, and led his team to the 1992 Montana state title. He matriculated in 1994, and then enrolled at Washington State University, playing football for their Cougars under head coach Mike Price; he started 24 of the Cougars’ 32 games, and led them to their first Pac-10 Championship in the university’s history; the team reached the 1998 Rose Bowl, but lost to the Michigan Wolverines 21-16 – Ryan was named first-team All-America and Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year. He graduated with an Associate’s degree in 1998, thus making himself eligible for the 1998 NFL Draft.

Ryan’s career

Ryan was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in 1998, and signed a four-year $31 million worth contract, which included the $11.25 million signing bonus.

The Chargers won their first two games and Ryan played well, however, his colleagues and coach were dissatisfied with his poor behavior. He was hospitalized with a viral infection three days prior to the Chargers’ third game against the Kansas City Chiefs – Ryan started the game, but performed poorly. As Ryan continued to perform poorly, he lost his starting position to Craig Whelihan, while he lso continued to behave poorly towards his colleagues and media.

He suffered an injury while training with the Chargers before the 1999 season, and then missed the entire season because of surgery to fix his shoulder’s labral tear. After continuing to play poorly, with the Chargers finishing the 2000 season winning only one of their 16 games, Ryan was released from the team on 28 February 2001; during the three years that he played for the Chargers, Ryan won four of the 18 games which he started, while 33 of his 46 passes were intercepted.

He was signed to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on 2 March 2001, but as his performed was mediocre, he was asked if he was willing to play for a lower salary, and to be demoted to fourth quarterback; after refusing, Ryan was released by the Buccaneers on 3 September of the same year.

He signed with the Dallas Cowboys a day later, but was then released the following day; the Cowboys signed Ryan again on 12 October 2001 – he appeared in only four games, all four losses, and was released in May 2002.

The Seattle Seahawks offered Ryan a chance, and he signed a one-year contract with them, however, he abruptly retired from football by the end of the year.

ESPN ranked Ryan #1 on their list ’25 biggest sports flops from 1979 through 2004’, and he was ranked #6 worst NFL player of all time by the magazine “Deadspin” in 2011.

Ryan moved to San Diego, California in 2002, and became a financial consultant. He then re-enrolled at Washington State University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2005.

Ryan became a volunteer quarterbacks coach at West Texas A&M University in 2006, but resigned in November 2008, a day after he was put on indefinite leave.

For a couple of months starting from October 2009, Ryan worked for a travel company in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada as their business development manager. He signed a contract with Crimson Oak Publishing in December 2010, promising to author at least three memoirs; Ryan’s debut book (and so far only) “596 Switch: The Improbable Journey from The Palouse to Pasadena”, was published in October 2011.

He began working for Transcend Recovery Community as a program ambassador in April 2018, and is today hosting his own radio show on the Pac-12 Network; he has also worked as an NFL analyst for several networks, including ESPN and Sky Sports.

Just a couple 43 year old dad’s taking in a ball game on a Saturday afternoon on Rocky Top…yeah right!! #GOAT #25yearsolderandwiser #HOF #Peyton pic.twitter.com/7auZLgi99S

— Ryan D Leaf (@RyanDLeaf) September 1, 2019

Legal issues

Ryan was put on 10 years probation in Texas in April 2010, after pleading guilty to obtaining a controlled substance by fraud, and was also ordered to pay $20,000.

He was arrested on drug charges, theft and burglary in Montana on 30 March 2012, and again four days later; because he’d violated his parole, an arrest warrant for Ryan was issued in Texas. He was sentenced to spend seven years behind bars in Montana on 19 June 2012, while a Texas judge sentenced him to five years behind bars on 9 September 2014, allowing the time he served in Montana to be deducted from his Texas sentence.

Ryan was released from prison on 3 December 2014, under Great Falls Probation and Parole’s supervision.

More recently, on 22 May 2020, Ryan was arrested on domestic battery charges.

Love life and marriage

Ryan exchanged vows with American cheerleader and dancer Nicole Lucia in 2001 – she’s probably known best for being the daughter of American radio show host Raymond Joseph Lucia, Sr., and for having been a Los Angeles Charger Girl (cheerleader). Ryan and Nicole split in November 2003, and their divorce was finalized in 2004.

He began dating American former professional volleyball player Anna Kleinsorge sometime in mid-2010s, and they became engaged in 2017; Anna gave birth to their son McGyver Fitzgerald Leaf in October 2017. It’s unknown whether or not Anna and Ryan are still together today, but most of Ryan’s fans believe that they are.

Ryan seems to be engaged to Anna Kleinsorge as of April 2023, was once married to Nicole Lucia, and has a son with Anna.

Interesting facts and hobbies

Ryan’s brother Brady played for the Oregon Ducks (college football) from 2003 through 2006.

The doctors found a benign tumor on Ryan’s brain in June 2011, and it was removed surgically in the same month.

He’s followed by close to 30,000 people on Instagram, and has posted more than 500 pictures onto the network, most of these relating to football.

Ryan’s still today physically highly active, as he works out at the gym on a daily basis, while he also likes to play golf and basketball in his spare time.

His favorite actor is Sylvester Stallone, and some of Ryan’s favorite movies include “Creed”, “Rocky Balboa”, and “The Expendables”.

Height, eyes and wealth

Ryan’s age is 46. His eyes and hair are brown, he’s 6ft 5ins (1.96m) tall and weighs around 235lbs (110kgs).

Ryan’s net worth’s been estimated at just over $1,000, as of April 2023.