Former San Francisco 49ers running back and punt returner Jarryd Hayne saw his NFL career last all but one season.
Hayne retired from the NFL Sunday to pursue his dream of competing in the Olympics for the Fiji Sevens rugby team this summer in Rio de Janeiro. While Hayne looks to complete the highly rare feat, he isn't alone in former or current NFL players with their eyes on OIympic gold this summer.
And he isn't the only one with Bay Area ties as well.
Jahvid Best, former Cal Bears standout and first-round NFL Draft pick out of Vallejo, Calif., is looking to compete in the Summer Games for the Caribbean nation of Saint Lucia where his father grew up, in the 100-meter dash.
"I just want to bring pride to Saint Lucia, to the Olympic team, to the sport of athletics," Best said to the St. Lucia News. "I want to carry the flag around the track and make my family and country proud."
Best, now 27, faces complications in being able to compete for the country with so little time until the Olympics begin. To qualify for Rio, Best must confirm his citizenship and obtain a passport, and has to compete at a local event where he has to run at least the qualifying time of 10.16.
[MAIOCCO: Former 49ers RB Hayne back where he can be a star]
In 2008, Best won the California high school 100-meters title with a time of 10.35. His fastest time his senior year was a 10.31. Best didn't run track at Cal, but was known for his speed on the field. He finished his three-year career at Cal with 2,668 rushing yards and 29 touchdowns on the ground.
Best was the No. 30 overall pick by the Detroit Lions in the 2010 NFL Draft. He ran a 4.35 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine, the sixth-fastest among running backs in his draft class.
Jeff Demps, who spent time with the New England Patriots, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Indianapolis Colts as a running back and return man, is looking to make a return to the Summer Games on the track. Demps was on the American 4X100-meter relay team at 2012 Games in London.
Bills receiver and return man Marquise Goodwin is now the world-leading long jumper with his leap of 27 feet, eight and one-half inches at the Meeting Region Guadeloupe on Saturday. Goodwin came home with a 10th place finish at the London Games in 2012.
Patriots safety Nate Ebner has also taken a leave from his team, looking to make the U.S. Olympic rugby team.
Running back Herschel Walker is the only player ever to first play in the NFL and then compete in the Olympics. Walker was on the U.S. bobsled team in the 1992 Winter Olympics.
