CINCINNATI – Bengals wide receiver John Ross III had no regrets about leaving training camp to care for his 3-year-old son in California after a positive COVID-19 diagnosis.
After Ross’s first practice since joining the team again, Ross said there was no hesitation in leaving when he learned that his son and the son’s mother had contracted the virus. “There was no thought behind it,” Ross said on Sunday. “There was no chance I would stay. With all due respect to everything, I am a father first.”
The fourth-year wide receiver was placed on the reserve COVID-19 list on Aug. 12 when he moved to Southern California.
Ross left so quickly that he debated not to tell the team before he got on the plane. However, since he said that would have been unprofessional, he told his agent, coaches and the Cincinnati front office before he left.
“Just the response I got from the coaches, it put me in a different headroom,” Ross said. “It was very respectful, and I appreciate how they went about it and how much they were there for me.”
According to rookie wide receiver Tee Higgins, that was backed up by his teammates. At first, they did not know the reason for Ross’ absence. But once they found out, they were more than understanding.
“Family comes first no matter what,” Higgins said. “We did not have his back anything. He came back to practice and we welcomed him like he has always been here.”
Ross did his best to stay sharp while in California. He said he had been tempted to sniff out of the house late at night – once even at 2am the next morning – to walk to a nearby park. Ross said he returned to Cincinnati on August 20 after his son and the son’s mother felt much better.
The fifth-year wide receiver from Washington is looking to prove why the Bengals selected him in the first round of the 2016 draft. Cincinnati refused this option to include the option on his rookie deal, which puts Ross in a contract year.
After struggling with several injuries in his first four years, Ross is looking forward to seeing his word this season.
“It’s up to me to show her why I should stay here longer,” Ross said. “I’m looking forward to it.”
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