EARTH CITY, Mo. -- Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Stedman Bailey's recovery from the two gunshot wounds to the head he suffered in late November has been mostly tracked via social media.
Bailey has taken to Twitter and Instagram to post updates on moving around the hospital, being released from a recovery center and even making trips to the gym. He has made it clear that he not only intends to return to his former life but also wants to return to the NFL and, presumably, the Rams.
To that end, Bailey recently was the subject of the most detailed update on his progress yet with a YouTube video spanning 5 minutes, 45 seconds. Bailey introduced the video by offering some insight from his doctors on his playing future.
"Since that incident, doctors have told me that they don't think I'll be able to make a return to the NFL," Bailey said in the video. "When somebody tells me that they don't think I can do something, you know I'll do everything that I can to prove them wrong. I like to call it 'Steddy Ambition.' And I will be making a return to the NFL."
Bailey went on to relay what happened two nights before Thanksgiving, saying that he was waiting with his older cousin in a car outside a friend's house when some people across the street shot into the car. He then offered details on the seven-hour surgery he went through the following day.
As Bailey delved further into the dangers of his return to football, he noted that his neurosurgeon warned him that the head injury he suffered in the shooting would make playing the game again an elevated risk.
"My neurosurgeon was also extremely concerned about me making a return to the NFL, because when I did get shot in the head, it was pretty much like the worst kind of concussions that you can have," Bailey said. "Just being that football is such a physical sport, guys have concussions all the time. I would say that's probably the scariest part about it, because at the end of the day, I just want to have my mind functioning where I can be a good family man, be a good dad, just be myself. That's one thing I think is scary."
The video also showed Bailey's daily workout routine, and he noted he is encouraged by his ability to continue lifting weights and running on a consistent basis. He acknowledged there is a big drop-off in the weights he lifted but said he knows it will be a process to get him back to where he once was.
"It's still a dream of mine to do good things in the NFL," Bailey said. "I just came off my third year of being in the NFL, and I feel like I've got so much more in me. I want to at least have a 10-year career, so after three years, I feel like I still have a lot left in my tank to just keep going and continue to live out my dream."