As Patrick McSweeney gears up to start for the New York Jets rookie minicamp, his common connection with the head coach comes to light. The tight end’s joining the league is more than just fulfilling an NFL dream; it’s also a tribute to a late Jets fan.  The 23-year-old wishes to pay tribute to his father, who lost his life heroically in the tragic 9-11 attack.

The Monsignor Farrell product gets his middle name from his late father, Timothy, who was an FDNY firefighter. As a nine-month-old, McSweeney didn’t get much time to make core memories with his father. However, Timothy lives on in his son through his larger-than-life stories. “Unfortunately, I don’t really have any memories of being with my father physically, but I feel like I know him just through the stories,” he said, as per the team’s website. “A lot of stories of just who he was and his character, even old photos and videos.”

The Staten Island native grew up following the Jets, just like his father, who was an avid season ticket holder. Leadership and selflessness are the biggest qualities McSweeney carries with him from the multiple stories he’s heard about him. Timothy proved these qualities when he sacrificed his life trying to save people in need during the 2011 terrorist attack at the World Trade Center. “He was very selfless and something that I try to embody of his, it might sound cliché, but when he when he ran into that building, he was attempting to save innocent people.”

When McSweeney was picked up by the Jets, it was almost like fate. This is not only due to the love for the Jets between the tight end and his father coming to fruition but also because he shares the grief from the tragedy with the head coach.

Robert Saleh’s journey to the NFL from 9-11 tragedy

While Patrick McSweeney made his father’s Jets dream come true after being picked for the rookie camp, Saleh decided to join the professional league after reeling from the loss of his brother, David, in the 2001 attack. Working as a financial credit analyst at the time, the grief made him question his life, and he ultimately decided that he needed to make some changes.

In what now seems like an Eureka moment, Saleh got the trigger to pursue his desire to venture into the world of football as a coach while grieving the hefty loss. In what could have been the onset of a disastrous stage of sorrow, the Michigan native gathered courage and realized the importance of the one life everyone gets. His father Sam recollected Saleh’s reaction after hearing the devastating news. “Right then and there was the turning point for Robert. He said, ‘You know what? I’m going to live my life. I’m going to do something that will make me happy.’ That might have turned his life.”

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Saleh then stepped into the coaching arena, becoming the defensive assistant in his home college, Michigan State University, and the rest is history. The head coach shared the turnaround story with ESPN, saying, “Going through my brother’s experience and the tragedy that he experienced, being able to self-reflect on what I was doing at that moment and realizing that I had a passion for football, really triggered this whole thing.” 

Robert Saleh and Patrick McSweeney are endearing examples of recovering from a life-altering incident and emerging victorious. The HC will now be honing the skills of a group of rookies, including the native, with the common aim of getting the Jets to new heights.