SASKATOON – Every kid has aspirations of growing up and having a “cool” job, like an astronaut for example. But as we grow older, our career expectations start to come back down to earth.
However not all of us stop pursuing our childhood dreams.
As a young kid growing up in Saskatoon, Brett Boyko dreamed about playing in the National Football League. Last summer, the 23-year-old achieved his lifelong goal by signing with the Philadelphia Eagles.
“It was a dream come true,” said Boyko. “I learned more in this season than I’ve learned in all of my football seasons combined.”
But for a while, it looked like Boyko’s NFL career was coming to an end, before it ever really got started. It was the Eagles final pre-season game, the last chance for players like Boyko to prove that they have what it takes to earn a spot on the roster.
He waited patiently on the sidelines for his chance to step out onto the gridiron. Then he waited some more. Over three hours passed by, and Boyko didn’t get to take a single snap.
Philadelphia cut him the following day.
READ MORE: Saskatoon’s Brett Boyko chasing his NFL dream
However getting released by the Eagles turned out to simply be the end of Brett’s first chapter in the NFL. Later that week Philadelphia signed Boyko to a spot on the team’s practice roster where he spent the entire season training with some of the best offensive linemen on the league.
“There are guys on the o-line like Jason Kelce, Jason Peters, and Lane Johnson. I mean, it’s not too often that you get three guys like that who can show you the ropes.”
Boyko is raising the bar for himself heading into his second NFL season. This year Brett has his sights set on cracking the Eagles main roster.
“The advantage now is I know what to expect,” says Boyko. “For the most part it’s going to be everything I’ve experienced before and I’m more than excited to get back to work.”