National Football League

Pete Carroll says it would be 'all but impossible' for Nate Robinson to make the NFL

Published Jun. 15, 2016 8:09 a.m. ET

foxsports

Three-time NBA dunk champion Nate Robinson has a football background and football skills but hasn't played competitively over a decade.

Nevertheless, NFL teams look far and wide for potential contributors. Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll also has a relationship with Robinson, and so he decided to give the 32-year-old former University of Washington Husky cornerback (he played one season on a football scholarship) a tryout on Monday.

The next day, Carroll offered an upbeat (as Carroll does) but realistic assessment of Robinson's chances, via Seahawks.com:

Recently Buffalo Bills head coach Rex Ryan jested that LeBron James could play tight end in the NFL.

"You look at him, he's physical ... look at the range -- there's no way you can cover him," Ryan said. "Fast, physical, we'll give it a shot."

It's a fun thought experiment and I certainly wouldn't doubt LeBron, but it would be extremely difficult for anyone on the other side of 30 to make an NFL roster.

There's no debate, @nate_robinson is "An amazing athlete." Here's how his workout went: https://t.co/4jzpFAm31o pic.twitter.com/8eMgNL7pX1
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) June 15, 2016