There's no room for football in Westbrook's heart. He has moved on from the NFL to jiu-jitsu:
There’s a weightlifting session at a health club in the morning. At night, he walks into that back room and becomes exactly what he and the Redskins had hoped for when he was drafted with the No. 4 overall selection out of Colorado. Here at 7:30 on most nights, Westbrook is the best athlete around, excelling with every movement, while totally at peace.In a room that looks like a basketball court without baskets, and a floor covered with blue mats, the guy who came up short of forecasts to be the best wide receiver ever, is well on his way to elite status in Brazilian jujitsu.
The sport is similar to wrestling in that it’s a ground-based fight, but is far more technical. Westbrook dabbled in martial arts during his football days, but didn’t really get into Brazilian jujitsu until his career ended in 2002. He’s won national and Pan-Am championships as a blue and purple belt and he hopes to soon become a brown belt. If all goes according to plan, he’ll be a black belt — the highest level in the sport — within a couple years. Generally, most black belts take eight to 10 years of intense training to reach that level.
Westbrook dabbled briefly in Ultimate Fighting, defeating former NFL player Jarrod Bunch in his only bout.
Imagine rolling with a guy with these physical attributes:
Westbrook walked away from the game after one last dismal season with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2002.“I could still jump over 40 inches, still run the 40 in about 4.3 and still bench press 400 pounds,” Westbrook said. “I still had my physical skills. But mentally — mentally — the game made me toast.”