April 27. 2012 will be a day Isaiah Pead will never forget. He got a call from the St. Louis Rams and they told him they had selected him with the 50th overall pick in the second round of the 2012 NFL Draft. The former Cincinnati Bearcats running back was coming fresh off his senior season where he rushed for almost 1.300 yards and totaled 15 touchdowns. Throughout his four years at Cincy, Pead totaled over 4,000 yards from scrimmage and 33 touchdowns. Pead even took home MVP of the Senior Bowl after he led both the North and South teams in rushing. His hard work had finally paid off.
Pead would spend the next four seasons with the Rams. However, he would struggle to get reps on offense, as the Rams had great running back depth with players such as Tre Mason, Zac Stacy, Benny Cunningham, and eventually Todd Gurley. Pead had also tore his ACL on a kickoff return in a preseason game in 2013, causing him to miss the entire season. Pead unfortunately was not able to stick to Rams roster, as they would later release him a few weeks into the 2015 season.
Pead was signed a month later by the Pittsburgh Steelers following Le’Veon Bell suffering a season ending injury. But Pead would be released just three weeks later. In the offseason before the 2016 season, Pead was signed by the Miami Dolphins. He would appear in three games and total eight carries for 22 yards and one catch for six yards. Pead however would be released in mid-October.
Then came November 12, 2016. Another day Isaiah Pead will never forget. That early morning, Pead was in a major car accident. He was driving his 2011 Cadillac CTS and lost control of it. He was ejected from the car and suffered a major injury in which part of Pead’s leg had to be amputated. His football career would officially come to an end there, but Pead’s journey in life was just beginning.
Pead recently took his first steps in a new prosthetic leg, as shown by the video below from his Twitter page:
https://twitter.com/iPead/status/992550736402755591
Pead has also set apart a big goal for himself: 2020 Paralympic Gold. He had tweeted back in April about contacting the USA Paralympic Team. Pead has stated he wants to compete in the 400-meter dash, an event he dominated while a member of the Track & Field team at Eastmoor Academy High School in Columbus, Ohio.
Pead’s ambition is off the charts, and we are rooting for him. Pead told TMZ “if they let me on the track, I’m going for the gold. Period.” Pead also stated he has no intentions of slowing down after the 2020 Paralympics in Tokyo. “The next (Paralympics 2024), I’ll be 34, and the next one I’ll be 38, so I think maybe three gold medals,” Pead stated. “Those three (gold medals) in the Paralympics, God be willing, sounds like a hell of a career.”
There is no doubt it will take a lot of challenging work to accomplish these goals Pead has set out for himself, but he has the heart, will, and ambition to get it done. Pead ran a 4.47 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine in 2012, so his speed is undeniable. Once Pead gets acclimated and completely comfortable with his prosthetic leg, he will be leaving everyone else in the dust. Good Luck Isaiah, St. Louis is rooting for you. See you in 2020 on the big stage.
