Los Angeles Rams

After being shot in the head, Stedman Bailey wants back in the NFL

Published Nov. 15, 2016 2:21 p.m. ET

Bruce Feldman

MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — Last November Stedman Bailey was shot in the head while sitting in his car with three of his family members in Miami Gardens, Florida. The 25-year-old Bailey, who spent three seasons with the St. Louis Rams, was in surgery for seven hours and had several plates and screws inserted into his head from the incident that almost cost him his life.

Bailey is back at West Virginia working to pursue his degree and helping his old school as a student assistant but last week told FOX Sports that he hopes to resume his playing career as a NFL wide receiver.

"Physically I feel great,” Bailey said. "I feel like I could line up and compete right now, but the doctors and specialists who did the surgery on my head said that I need at least a full year to heal up before they can re-evaluate because contact wouldn’t be too good. After November, I’ll start to re-evaluate again. Hopefully, I’ll get good results.”

Bailey, a third-round pick in 2013, has 59 catches for 843 yards and four touchdowns in his NFL career. "I’d be extremely hurt if I can’t play again,” he said. "This would only be my fourth year and I still feel like I have so much to give. “

Whether he gets to play another down in the NFL or not, Bailey said he plans to get involved in motivational speaking down the road to try to inspire people from his own experiences.

"Had the bullet hit a different spot in my head, it could’ve been a much worse result,” he said. "I think about that all the time. I am very blessed. A part of my purpose of my life is to speak out and reach people to push through and overcome adversity."

Bailey said the events of that night last November happened all so fast. "It was such a crazy situation,” he said, adding that he’s heard three individuals involved in the shooting have been captured.

With his NFL career on hold, Bailey is determined to make good on a promise he made to his mother to graduate from college. He said he is 22 credits away from his communications degree and is taking 15 this semester.

Dana Holgorsen, his old coach, said that when he agreed to have Bailey help out as a student assistant he had no expectations.

“His job is to get his degree,” Holgorsen said. "He goes to class. I see him carrying his book bags around, but he’s also really helped us out. I see him bringing young guys over, working on little technique [things]. He’s just a very positive guy that picks these guys up.”

Bailey, a former first-team All-American in 2012, caught a staggering 114 passes for a school-record 1,622 yards and 25 TDs that season as a junior. “Our receivers listen to him because of who he is,” said WVU QB Skyler Howard. “You can tell that they’re really engaged when he talks to them.”

As much as Bailey hopes he can help the Mountaineer receivers with subtle tricks of the trade that he has learned, he’s even more adamant about hammering home a bigger message: “Play every play like it’s your last,” he said. “Make the most of this opportunity. Hopefully, I can rub off on them.”