When the Winnipeg Blue Bombers selected Jon Ryan with the 24th pick in the third round during the 2004 CFL Draft, he was categorized as a kicker and a receiver.
"My dad talked to me one time. He said: You could probably work your butt off, be a fringe receiver in the CFL, move up and down from the practice squad, maybe a fifth receiver,'" Ryan recalled to SportsCage's Dave Thomas.
"'You could probably do that for four or five years and have a lot of fun. Or you could go and kick for the next decade or two.' When I got to that first training camp, and I was in a couple of receivers drills with guys like Milt Stegall, it became apparent to me that I better keep up with this punting thing because the receiving thing wasn't going to last forever."
Ryan stayed with the Bombers from 2004 to 2005 then headed down south and played for two NFL teams, the Green Bay Packers from 2006 to 2007 and the Seattle Seahawks from 2008 to 2017. Eventually, Ryan made his way back to the CFL and played for his hometown team, the Saskatchewan Roughriders from 2019-2021.
His last team in the CFL was the Edmonton Elks in 2022 and he retired at the end of that season. Last year, Ryan signed a one-day contract with the Seahawks and retired with Seattle. One of Ryan's biggest achievements was when he helped the Seahawks win Super Bowl XLVIII as his team defeated the Denver Broncos 43-8 in 2014. In the CFL, Ryan earned two All-CFL awards, one with the Bombers in 2005 and then one with the Riders in 2019.
"Going down to the USA, there's a lot more emphasis on hang time with the fair catch, it really changes the special teams game down there and that's the biggest thing for me," Ryan said. "It felt like a bigger shift when I returned to the CFL after doing that for 13 years, having to re-adjust to the Canadian game. It took me a little bit, which actually surprised me."
One moment in Ryan's career that his fans will remember was his fake field goal touchdown pass to offensive lineman Garry Gilliam in the 2014 NFC Championship Game.
"I was actually back in Washington with my wife, she had a couple of shows there three weeks ago and luckily enough those people won't let me forget about it," Ryan said. "I'm very happy when I go back there and people want to relive that play with me. If there ever comes a time when I start to forget about it, all I need to do is go back to the Pacific Northwest, go back to the Seattle area and they help remind myself about it."
This year, Ryan will be a part of the 2025 induction class for the Saskatchewan Sports Hall Of Fame.
"It means a lot, it wasn't necessarily something I was expecting," Ryan explained. "Growing up as a kid, taking field trips to the Hall of Fame and seeing guys like Gordie Howe and Mary Bonnie Baker -- now to be able to think my name is going to be along with theirs in that same hall is pretty humbling."
