Maurice Jones-Drew considered retiring after 2013 season

After spending the first eight years of his NFL career in Jacksonville, Maurice Jones-Drew joined the Oakland Raiders as a free agent three months ago. He was coming off his worst season as a pro. Before that, an injury that necessitated two screws just to hold his left foot together ended his 2012 campaign after six games. 

In other words, there wasn't a whole lot of buzz about his arrival in Oakland, even as he's only two seasons removed from leading the NFL in rushing. At 29 years old, there's an understandable lack of optimism around the league about Jones-Drew's ability to reverse course. 

But for Jones-Drew himself, the fact that he'll even be playing pro football in 2014 is something to be proud of. As he told Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times, after a brutal 2013 season, in which he worked his way back from that grueling foot surgery only to average 3.4 yards per carry for a 4-12 Jaguars team, he thought long and hard about calling it quits. 

"For awhile, I was contemplating retirement because I just didn't feel like I had it anymore," he said. "But that wasn't the case. My trainer helped me get back in shape and gain that foundation that I'd lost with the surgery."

But now, after making up his mind to return, Jones-Drew is determined to make it count. "I'm in the best shape of my life now," he said. "Running fast, running hills, pulling sleds, cutting, jumping. I've rededicated myself to my craft again." 

So intense were his workouts, in fact, that he claims to have thrown up on each of the first five days. After making three straight Pro Bowls from 2009-2011, he had suddenly become a guy with something to prove. Not just to the public, but to himself. 

"I wanted to see if I still had that burning desire," he said. "When you throw up five days in a row and keep coming back, you're like, OK, there's still something there."

"It was tough hearing people say, 'Aw, you don't have it anymore.'"

If nothing else, Jones-Drew has given himself an opportunity to prove them wrong. 

[H/T: NFL.com]