MALIBU, Calif. -- Geno Smith closed his eyes and prayed for something positive before taking his next step inside Aventura Hospital and Medical Center outside Miami two and a half years ago. As soon as he edged into that crowded patient room, he saw Stedman Bailey lying prone on a stiff bed, surrounded by a group of loved ones that included Bailey's grandmother and Kayvon Webster, a close friend who played cornerback for the Denver Broncos at the time. An unknown assailant had shot Bailey twice in the head just days earlier, spraying 30 bullets into a rented SUV where four other people, including two children, had been discussing dinner plans. This was the first opportunity for Smith to assess the damage for himself.
Bailey laid motionless. A thick, white bandage covered his skull, and his eyes were swollen and closed, as if someone had just beaten him relentlessly with a baseball bat. There wasn't even the option of Bailey holding a conversation, as a tube inserted into his throat during his seven-hour surgery had damaged his vocal cords. "We would just tell him that if he could hear us, just wiggle a thumb," Webster said.
A multitude of nightmarish thoughts ran through Smith's mind as he stood over Bailey, including the possibility that his longtime pal might never walk again. They had grown up together in Miami, had known each other since junior high school and had become stars at West Virginia, with Bailey setting records as a wide receiver (including single-season marks for receiving yards and touchdown receptions and the career mark for touchdown catches) catching passes from Smith, the all-conference quarterback. When they entered the NFL in 2013 -- Smith was the New York Jets' second-round pick, while Bailey went in the third round to the St. Louis Rams -- they never imagined a day when the gun violence that too often plagued parts of Miami would catch up to them.
Smith kept pondering how such a tragedy could happen when Bailey's eyes slowly opened. As Bailey raised his right hand, Smith moved closer, leaning over to glean what his friend was trying to do. Bailey continued reaching his hand forward until it clutched Smith's right hand. What is he trying to tell me? Smith thought.
The next thing Smith knew, his buddy was playfully tugging at Smith's fingers until Smith instinctively followed that lead.
"He gave me our secret handshake," Smith said. "We've had one for a long time. And when I saw that, despite everything that was going on, it was a big sign. I knew he was going to be OK."
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Bailey nearly lost his life on Nov. 24, 2015. What he's mostly thought about since that day is how he can save his career. In early April, as he walked his five-month-old German shepherd, King, across a narrow beach in Point Mugu State Park, Bailey talked constantly about returning to the NFL. He started going to that spot in Malibu months ago, after he missed church one Sunday morning and a friend suggested that beach as another option for reflection. It's been a sacred sanctuary ever since, a private space where Bailey can meditate while keeping his eyes on the prize he's coveted ever since he landed in that Miami hospital room.
At 27 years old, Bailey's mindset couldn't be any clearer: Somebody stole his dream from him, and he's determined to get it back. Even when doctors cringed at the notion, he told himself he was going to play football again, and that's exactly what he plans on doing.
"It's important to play (again) because it's something that I worked my whole life for, to make it to the big leagues," Bailey said. "I got a chance to taste it, to play for three years, and then a very unfortunate incident happened. But, just based off the odds that I've been able to overcome over these last couple years, it's been nothing short of a miracle. If it's healthy for me to go out there and play, then I'm definitely all in for it."
The "if" that Bailey mentioned is a huge one. It's the only question he knows he can't control in this process, the one that might lead to a team doctor deciding he's already played his last football game. Even though Bailey didn't suffer any brain damage in that shooting, head trauma has been a controversial topic in the NFL for nearly two decades. For Bailey to have a chance at returning to the league, somebody with a medical degree must believe he's not placing himself in harm's way.
Bailey already feels confident that he's taken every possible precaution -- he had a titanium plate inserted into his skull last October to protect his brain -- and he's never shown any issues related to head trauma. Dr. Jeffrey Kutcher, a Michigan-based neurologist who works as a consultant with the NFL Players Association, added that people too often misconstrue the fact that concussions involve the brain and not the skull.
"One of the most important aspects of this case is that the bullet didn't touch his brain," said Kutcher, who has not met Bailey. "Everything being equal, his brain came out OK, so there shouldn't be any additional risk of him playing football now than he had before the shooting. As long as the structure of his skull is intact, he should be fine."
Bailey also has pushed himself into spectacular shape. After losing nearly 30 pounds following the shooting, he's back to carrying 190 pounds on his 5-foot-10 frame, just four pounds shy of his playing weight in his last season with the Rams. Bailey works out relentlessly with former Rams teammates these days, and he participated in two college pro days in March (at Marshall and West Virginia). Essentially, there isn't anything he won't do to earn another opportunity in the league.
That combination of passion and potential has impressed plenty of people. After watching Bailey run sharp routes and display strong hands at West Virginia's pro day, Mountaineers head coach Dana Holgorsen said, "He looks like the same old Stedman to me. We called him 'Steady B' because that's what he was -- steady. He still runs those smooth routes. He still has those same great hands. I would think somebody would give him a shot because he looks the same way he always has."
Added an AFC scout in attendance: "You wanted to see if he could still do the key stuff -- running the routes, catching the ball, (maintaining) his stamina, all the things you have to know before guys get to camp and start hitting. But he looked good to me. He didn't blow the 40 out of the water (this scout clocked Bailey at 4.62 seconds), but he ran well. I told our people that he had a good workout. He definitely did enough to stir up a conversation with some teams. After that, it's all about how people feel about the risk."
The other thing that caught the scout's eye at West Virginia's pro day was Bailey's behavior. One minute, he was off to the side, telling a running back how to tighten his routes coming out of the backfield. The next, Bailey was teaching a receiver how to catch the ball in a manner that prevented defenders from reaching it and knocking it out. He even made a point of continually boosting the confidence of the young Division II quarterback throwing him passes.
Bailey didn't hide his enthusiasm for being back in a place that enabled him to reach the pinnacle -- to this point -- of his football dreams.
"I'm a religious person, so I will ask God why would something like that happen to me?" Bailey said. "I'm not a gangbanger. You just have to understand that certain things happen in life that are out of our control. But the way you respond to it pretty much determines what kind of person you are. So I've just always been determined to just fight through all the adversity. I'm moving on and just looking forward to what's to come."
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The people who know Bailey say it's not surprising that he's not bitter about what happened, or that he's so intent on returning to the NFL. A positive attitude and a single-minded nature are what earned him a spot in pro football in the first place. Growing up in Miramar, Florida, a suburb of Miami, he learned the value of being tough at an early age. He also never relented when things weren't going his way.
When the marquee in-state programs didn't want him -- Miami, Florida State and Florida all ignored him coming out of Miramar High -- Bailey set his sights on West Virginia. He even convinced Smith to come along with him, even though the four-star QB recruit was seriously thinking about attending Alabama. One day after high school practice, the team's coach told Smith and Bailey that a local radio station wanted to interview them to see about their college choices. When Smith followed Bailey to the microphone, the host informed him that Bailey had said both players were committing to the Mountaineers. It says something about Bailey's persuasiveness that Smith actually decided to attend West Virginia.
"I think Stedman really wanted me to go with him," Smith said.
What Bailey understood was that his chances for prosperity would improve greatly if he had his quarterback along for the ride. He wound up amassing 210 career receptions, 3,218 yards and 41 scores, then declared for the 2013 NFL Draft after his 25-touchdown junior season.
Bailey spent his first few years in the NFL trying to find a rhythm on some mediocre teams. In those three seasons, he totaled 59 receptions for 843 yards and scored four total touchdowns. Like a lot of Rams players in those days, he struggled to generate big numbers in the conservative offense favored by then-head coach Jeff Fisher. Bailey also was suspended twice -- he missed the first two games of the 2014 season for violating the league's policy on performance-enhancing substances, while a positive test for marijuana resulted in a four-game suspension in 2015. Still, Bailey felt optimistic about his future in the league.
"He was on track to being a good, reliable wide receiver in the NFL, similar to what he was at West Virginia," said Rams general manager Les Snead. "He was one of those guys who you call
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