Hightower Living Second NFL Life With Saints

Tim Hightower's NFL career was over. Nobody was calling his phone, and a starting gig anywhere was completely out of the picture...then 2015 happened.

After playing his final regular season game for the Washington Redskins in 2011, Hightower didn't register a single carry in an NFL game until the Saints decided to call him up this season. Sure, he bounced around and still collected a few paychecks, but he wasn't contributing in the stat column come Sunday. Even when the Saints signed him, they probably never expected to get this large of a return on their investment.

Four years removed from the game, a true journeyman now finds himself in the workhorse role. After torching the Jags for 169 yards and two touchdowns on 30 total touches, the magnitude of his resurgence was too much to ignore.

Want to know how much the game of football means to NFL players? Read Hightower's statement from Twitter:

"I couldn't sleep last night...Just so humbled and thankful for everything. This has been a true journey that has tested me in every way, and I love it and am thankful for it. I needed every lesson, every bit of courage, strength, wisdom and resolve...I needed forgiveness, love for myself and my family, love for God...I needed faith beyond anything I could have ever seen phusically...I'm just amazed at how blessed I am and how good God has been to me...To have a positive impact on my family, community and so many I love means more to me than any accolade or dollar amount. I'm so glad I didn't give up....I can't imagine what life would be like if I had to wonder what if..."
He turns 30 years old this May. Will he still be a member of the Saints when that time comes around? Your heart tells you yes, but his experiences tell him to keep a packed bag.

NFL careers are fleeting. It's not just injuries that can cut them short. If there's a younger or cheaper player to get the job done, general managers pull the trigger without losing a second of sleep. That means most endings don't have comebacks in the NFL. When you're tagged as "washed up," your agent doesn't call as much. Hightower might have been washed up and lost at sea in his football life, but like a message in a bottle, he floated to the Saints when they were in need of an answer.

You can't predict that Mark Ingram and Khiry Robinson get season ending injuries, or that CJ Spiller will be a complete lost cause. If you told Hightower he'd be carrying the ball 27 times for two touchdowns in an NFL divisional game back in 2013 or 2014, he would probably have asked what lamp you came out of and how many wishes he had left. The Saints needed a RB, and Hightower still had the hunger for the NFL.

I won't go so far as to say it was a match made in heaven, but it definitely feels like touching the clouds for a man who thought his career was over.