John Bosa proud to see son Joey go to Chargers in 1st round

SAN DIEGO (AP) Nearly three decades after he was a first-round draft pick of the Miami Dolphins, John Bosa sat with his wife, Cheryl, in the third row of the

SAN DIEGO (AP) Nearly three decades after he was a first-round draft pick of the Miami Dolphins, John Bosa sat with his wife, Cheryl, in the third row of the Chargers' team meeting room and listened as their son, Joey, was introduced as San Diego's first-round pick in the NFL draft.

The Bosas were pretty much running on adrenaline, having been in Chicago for the first round Thursday night and then flying to San Diego on Friday morning.

The Chargers took Joey Bosa, a defensive end from Ohio State, with the third pick overall.

''It's unbelievable to watch my son stand up at the podium and do such a wonderful job as a 20-year-old,'' John Bosa said. ''He worked so hard, sacrificed so much. A lot of people said, `You went through it so you were able to help him.' But the truth of the matter is, what I went through in 1987 doesn't even resemble what he's gone through. We had the combine, but we didn't have pro days and mock drafts and all that, so the pressure was much less back then.

''But what he's done, I'm proud of what he's done, proud of how he's handled it. He's just a football player. He wants to get back to work. I think that's what San Diego will love and these coaches will love about him is he's never satisfied. He always wants to get better every day. I think that's what makes great players great. He's just never happy with his performance. He always wants to get better.''

John Bosa was the 16th pick overall in the 1987 draft, out of Boston College. He played in the NFL for three seasons, also as a defensive end.

He said Joey has his same mentality.

''But physically and athletically, he was better at 18 than I ever was, honestly,'' John Bosa said. ''I was 280 and played in a 3-4 defense in a very different time. But physically and athletically, that kid at 18 had skills I never had. But that's part of coaching and the evolution of playing defensive end.

''But he's just a wonderful athlete, and much more fine-tuned. In the 80s we weren't so worried about diet and all the little things these guys are doing.''

John Bosa said he knew his son had what it takes back in high school. He played at St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, which John Bosa compared to a junior college in terms of working out year round.

''Football is not a real fun sport to practice,'' John Bosa said. ''You have to love football. Sundays or Saturdays or Friday nights are great. But the grind of football, so that you have to see in somebody. In high school, that's where I saw it.''

Not being able to go on family vacations and going through 6 a.m. workouts didn't sap Joey's enthusiasm, his dad said.

''To see him have that passion and never complain, I knew he had it all.''

Cheryl Bosa, an Ohio State grad, made it to all of Joey's college games. She'll have some juggling to do this fall because there's one more defensive end in the Bosa pipeline. Nick Bosa will be a freshman at Ohio State this fall.

''I already looked at the schedule. Fortunately we've got a bunch of games that are in the Midwest this year, so I'll be able to leave Columbus on Saturdays and fly to Kansas City and Nashville and wherever we are,'' she said. ''I'll get out here when I can. My best friend lives in Houston and we play in Houston over Thanksgiving. So I'm like, `All right. We've got that one set up.' `'

Joey Bosa said his father has ''just really been there every step of the way for me, making sure I keep my head on straight, knowing what's important, and that's football. Just being grateful and thankful every single day for the position I'm in and the opportunity I get.''

On Friday, Joey Bosa met Philip Rivers and Manti Te'o.

''They seem like great guys that are ready to win some games. I'm excited to come in this atmosphere,'' he said.

The Chargers are trying to bounce back from a 4-12 season in which they went winless in the AFC West.

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