John Ross is back in the NFL. On Thursday, the former first-round wide receiver signed a one-year deal with the Philadelphia Eagles, the team announced. The specific financial terms were not immediately disclosed. This signing comes after Ross accepted an invitation to Eagles rookie minicamp as a tryout player.
This is the next step in Ross' comeback attempt into the league. The 28-year-old signed a futures/reserve contract with the Kansas City Chiefs in January 2023. Later that July, however, Ross informed the team that he was retiring and was then placed on the reserve/retired list.
Before initially calling it a career, Ross last played in a regular-season game back on Dec. 12, 2021 (Week 14) when he was with the New York Giants. Ross entered the league as the No. 9 overall pick of the Cincinnati Bengals in 2017 out of Washington. His record-breaking speed at the NFL Scouting Combine helped build his hype as he made his transition into the NFL, but was never able to truly live up to that first-round billing.
Injuries limited Ross to three games during his rookie season and plagued him for most of his tenure with the Bengals. In 13 games played (career high) in 2018, he caught 21 passes for 210 yards and seven touchdowns. He notched highs in receptions (28) and receiving yards (506) the following year in 2019 despite only playing in eight contests.
Ross will join an Eagles wide receiver room that is headlined by A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith and also features the likes of Parris Campbell along with rookies Ainias Smith and Johnny Wilson. Ross also comes to Philadelphian in the aftermath of fellow veteran receiver DeVante Parker deciding to retire earlier this week.