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Ryan McFadden
there will be a moment play in wr forever alex bachman’s head, a reminder of the uncertainty he faced while trying to live out his NFL dreams. playing for New York Giants In 2021, he was confident that he would be elevated from the practice squad for the team’s road matches. philadelphia eagles,
Bachman said he was involved in the special teams game plan during practice and was active last week against dallas cowboys As a COVID-19 replacement player. So he asked his parents to travel to the East Coast from their home state of California so they could watch their son prepare. But when he arrived at Lincoln Financial Field on game day, he noticed that his pads were inside a bag instead of being placed in his locker.
“I went and asked someone about it, and they said, ‘Oh yes, you’re down today,'” Bachman recalled. “I know they were supposed to report it the night before, but no one notified me or anything… I texted my parents, and they were already close to the stadium.”
Bachman will face his former team, the Giants, on Sunday. las vegas raiders ,4:05 PM ET on CBS) That memory still persists.
Since entering the league in 2019, Bachmann has faced constant rejection and concerns about his job security. He has never made the initial 53-man roster, has been waived five times and was on the practice squad of three different teams.
This season with the Raiders, despite a 2-13 record, has provided more stability than during his tenure Los Angeles Ramsgiants and houston texansBachmann was added to the active roster in October and has carved himself a role as a punt returner,
Still, he lives with the thought that each day could be his last in the league and that he will have to find another opportunity elsewhere. To that end, Bachmann drives a rental car and lives in a guesthouse to avoid putting his name on an apartment lease that he might have to break at any time.
There were days when the 29-year-old contemplated the idea of ditching the cleats. However, Bachmann’s passion for football allows him to keep going.
“There’s nothing in life that can prepare you for the NFL, but I wouldn’t change anything at the end of the day,” he told ESPN.
If Bachchan’s fatherHad Dave known that this was what his son would have to do to play in the NFL, he might have encouraged him to pursue a different profession – one with less trouble. He and his wife Leslie are often asked what life is like as a child of professional football.
They will tell you immediately how much load it carries. Throughout Bachman’s journey, they have spent hours praying about his future. Praying that if one door closes, the other opens immediately.
“It’s been an emotional roller coaster,” Dave said. “I’ve told him, ‘I would have gone a long time ago.’ But he just keeps going.”
But Dave knows it will be hard to convince Alex to give up because he’s come too far to get to this point. At Oaks Christian High School in Westlake Village, California, Bachman had to play free safety despite his desire to be a wide receiver.
Over the course of three seasons, he did not record any receptions, so to show colleges that Alex could play wide receiver, Dave had to film him during various football camps and 7-on-7 tournaments he participated in.
After his junior year of high school, Bachman took it upon himself to travel to Wake Forest so he could show his film to the coaching staff. The issue was that he did not have any film that showed him playing wide receiver in pads, so the staff asked Bachman to attend the program’s football camp.
He stood out so much during Wake Forest’s camp that it prompted the Demon Deacons to offer him a scholarship, and he wasted no time in doing so. At the end of his senior year at Oaks Christian, Bachman finally earned offensive snaps. He totaled 13 catches for 195 yards and a touchdown in seven games.
Leslie said, “Alex basically had to sell himself… It’s a crazy story.”
At Wake Forest, Bachman totaled 82 catches for 1,182 yards and 10 touchdowns in 32 games. His best season came as a senior, when he caught 37 passes for 541 yards and six scores.
He had his sights set on the NFL, but his parents said they could not continue paying for all his training fees.
“When it came to the NFL, we said, ‘You’ve got to be in. How bad do you want it?'” Leslie said. “He’s very driven, and you’ve got to keep going on this path.”
For six months during his senior year, Bachman earned $2,500 per month as an Uber driver. Between gathering people at night, he would find tracks for training. The money earned through Uber and the check Bachman received from his grandparents were enough to pay for training before Wake Forest’s 2019 Pro Day.
With 31 NFL teams in attendance, Bachman ran an unofficial 4.40 in the 40-yard dash.
“I know there were a lot of teams [for] other guys on my team, but I was hoping to shut it down and have some conversation,” Bachman said. “I think running [the time] “I did that, which is why I got a chance to be in the NFL in the first place.”
Bachchan’s Dalit journey Playing Division I football still couldn’t prepare him for what he would eventually endure in the NFL.
Bachman signed with the Rams as an undrafted free agent in 2019. He was waived/injured and placed on the injured reserve list during the final day of roster cuts. Shortly afterward, he was waived with an injury settlement.
Two months later, he was signed to the Giants’ practice squad, where he spent six weeks of the 2019 season and most of 2020. He made his major league debut in Week 7 of 2020 against the Eagles.
Bachmann played in three games for New York in 2021. He thought he would appear in four games, but the team had different plans for the Week 16 divisional matchup against Philadelphia.
“That was one of many wake-up calls along the way,” Dave said.
Heading into the summer of 2022, Bachmann was confident in his chances of making the Giants’ 53-man roster. He had a strong training camp and had an 11-catch, 122-yard and 2-touchdown performance against the Bengals in the preseason.
But he was waived on roster cutdown day.
“This is a solid blow to your ego and pride,” Bachmann said. “Sometimes things happen that are out of your control, but the season is long, and things can change quickly.”
Three months later, he joined the Texans’ practice squad, where he remained for the entire 2022 season. Bachmann signed a reserve/future contract through January 2023.
Bachman attended Houston’s training camp ahead of the 2023 season. He was waived in August and signed to the practice squad in November. Bachmann ultimately signed another reserve/future contract in January 2024 but was waived in April.
In May 2024, Alex was at Newark Airport after visiting friends in New York. He made a video call to Leslie to express his disappointment and doubt whether he would get another opportunity.
“He said, ‘Mom, I think it’s time. I’m not getting calls,'” Leslie said. “I [said]’I’m going to pray about it and just get on your flight. While he was on his flight, his agent called and said the Raiders wanted him to come work out. I was crying.”
On May 22, Bachmann signed with Las Vegas. He bounced between the practice squad and the active roster but managed to play in six games during the 2024 season. He even made his first career start in the team’s Week 7 loss to his first team, the Rams.
In his second season with the Raiders in 2025, Bachman performed well during training camp. Even though he was not on the initial 53-man roster, Las Vegas immediately signed him to the practice squad and signed him ahead of the season opener. new England Patriots,
Bachman was added to the active roster after linebacker Brennan Jackson Was placed on the injured reserve list. In 10 games, Bachman has totaled 94 yards on 15 punt returns.
Bachman said, “It’s been a little more comfortable… I hope I’ll be here tomorrow.”
Coach Pete Carroll said he has been rooting for Bachman for some time, hoping he would get his chance. Carroll said Bachmann spoke to the team a few weeks ago to share his journey.
“He’s been driven around. And a lot of people could have been discouraged,” Carroll said. “We’ve seen nothing but really productive, high-performance stuff throughout practice that keeps reminding you that this guy needs to be a part of what we’re doing.”
The Raiders have given Bachman some rest. But this has not changed his mentality. While in Las Vegas, he made a deal with a local rental car company to avoid shipping his 2016 Toyota from his home in Austin, Texas.
“Cost about $2,000 to ship [my car] It’s $2,000 to get it out here and ship it back,” Bachman said. “But I can get a good rental car here for $3,500 and I can take it whenever I need it.”
Luckily for Bachmann, he is able to live rent-free in a guesthouse. Dave asked a friend of his from the Marines if Alex could borrow a room so he wouldn’t be tied to an apartment if he had to leave and join another team. Last year in Las Vegas, Bachmann rented a room in a house that belonged to a former teammate.
As another source of income, Bachmann occasionally rents out rooms in his Texas home.
Leslie said, “He always looks at it like, this mortgage is not going away, and that’s his main focus. So he cuts corners and other things.”
Bachman has learned to play through the pain, knowing he can’t miss too much practice. He played despite some ankle sprains during training camp. He simply wrapped his ankle, took Tylenol and continued playing to show that he was willing to do anything to help the team.
Bachmann recently broke his thumb, causing him to miss two games, but he returned to the Raiders lost 23-21 to Houston in Week 16.
“It hasn’t even been a month. He’s playing with a broken thumb and you wouldn’t even know it,” Carroll said.
Bachmann could have given up at any moment. He has a passion for sports broadcasting and exploring his entrepreneurial interests. But amidst all this, his love for the game kept him going and gave him a chance to cherish the moment.
“You’re still playing a child’s game, so enjoy each day,” Bachman said.
