This NFL player just signed with a team 2 months after a cancer diagnosis
Nearly two months after he announced his Hodgkin lymphoma diagnosis, NFL tight end Foster Moreau has signed a contract with the New Orleans Saints — the team that may have saved his life.
The three-year, $12 million deal includes $8 million in fully guaranteed money and $3 million in incentives. It also allows Moreau to stay in his home state, where he has been undergoing treatment, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported.
In March, Moreau, who previously played for the Las Vegas Raiders, visited the Saints during free agency. He met with team physician Dr. John Amoss, who discovered an inflamed lymph node and diagnosed Moreau with Hodgkin lymphoma, as the Deseret News previously reported.
Hodgkin lymphoma is a cancer that starts in white blood cells called lymphocytes and is most commonly found in early adulthood, according to the American Cancer Society.
After his diagnosis, the tight end appeared on “The Adam Schefter” podcast and discussed how the diagnosis almost didn’t happen.
The cancer was found during Moreau’s second physical in 24 hours. (He met with the Cincinnati Bengals just before visiting the Saints.) Moreau said he underwent a traditional football physical with the Bengals and the inflamed lymph node went undetected.
But Amoss performed a more thorough physical, which led to the diagnosis. Moreau noted that if he had signed with the Bengals, his cancer may have never been diagnosed.
“I am a believer in God, and his timing is absolute,” he told Schefter.
Can Foster Moreau play football this season?
In the interview, he said he planned to return to football once he is healthy.
“Thinking about being able to play this year, I wouldn’t say it’s out of the question, but I’d also say it’s not my main priority,” he said.
In April, Moreau told Michael Strahan on “Good Morning America” that he had Stage 2 cancer, meaning the cancer had spread from its initial location, but he said it was a slow spread.
“So I’m preparing for my opponent, right?” he said. “Hodgkin’s lymphoma, chemotherapy, I’m preparing for being on an IV, for six, seven, eight hours. Whatever it takes, right? Because I mean, there’s no other option. There’s no option.”
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His “whatever it takes” approach appears to be working as his return to football could come sooner than expected. His agent, Joe Linta, told ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler that Moreau plans to play this season.
“Locked on Saints” host and Crescent City Sports’ Saints analyst Ross Jackson reported that he heard Moreau could be on the field with the Saints before the start of training camp.
Moreau’s new contract reunites him with his former Raiders quarterback Derek Carr, who was released by Las Vegas and signed with New Orleans in March. Carr shared his excitement when he retweeted Schefter’s tweet about the deal.
“The mission hasn’t changed... let’s get it,” he wrote.
To say Carr is excited about the reunion is an understatement. Zach Ewing of the Advocate/Times-Picayune was with Carr when the quarterback first heard the news.
“I need to go give that guy a hug,” Carr said, per Ewing’s tweet.
