Former NFL star Jay Feely says Donald Trump murder attempt pushed him toward political career

Modified Apr 24, 2025 04:05 GMT

Tennessee Titans v Arizona Cardinals - Source: Getty — Jay Feely will run for Congress in Arizona - Source: Getty

Former NFL kicker Jay Feely surprised NFL circles on Tuesday, as he made public his decision to run for the House of Representatives in Arizona. Feely, who played in the NFL from 2001 to 2014, spent a decade as a commentator for CBS Sports before deciding to pivot to poltics.

Feely will run for a seat vacated by Rep. Andy Biggs, who recently announced that he'll run for Governor of Arizona in 2026.

According to the former kicker, in an interview with Fox News after announcing his decision, the assassination attempt on U.S. President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania was an inspiration for his decision to run for the office:

"The lawfare that Democrats did against President Trump and you watched him get shot. That was a big moment for me. I remember starting to really think about running for office the day that he got shot."

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He also revealed that Trump previously asked him to run for the office in 2022, but he declined due to having kids in high school. The situation will be different now, as he lives with just his wife.

In a statement to ESPN, he spoke about his reasons to believe that running for Congress would be a good thing:

"I'm excited about this next chapter of my life. I think that I feel God's calling pressing me into service, and that's really what I believe it is, is the civil service. I don't believe we have enough politicians that get into political office not for self-serving measures and that get into political office and don't want it to be a career, and that's what I believe."

Which teams did Jay Feely play for in the NFL?

In a career that spanned 15 seasons, the former kicker went undrafted in 1999, but after two different stints in the Arena Football League, he moved to the NFL in 2001, signing with the Atlanta Falcons, where he spent four years.

He later had stints with the New York Giants (2005-06), Miami Dolphins (2007), Kansas City Chiefs (2008), and New York Jets (2009). But his biggest success happened in Arizona, with four years with the Cardinals (2010-13).

He ended his career with a one-year stint with the Chicago Bears in 2014.

About the author

Henrique Bulio is an NFL and College Football journalist at Sportskeeda and the Editor-in-Chief of Pro Football Brasil. He has a total 13 years of experience working in American Football, and playing quarterback at an amateur level in Brazil has given him a unique perspective of the game.

Henrique follows the Philadelphia Eagles closely due to Michael Vick's historic performance on MNF against the Washington Commanders in 2010. His all-time favorite player is Ed Reed; he believes that Reed is the greatest safety to ever play the game. Bill Belichick gets the nod as Henrique's favorite coach for coaching the Patriots to glory over two decades.

If Henrique were to be able to go back in time and watch one game, it would be Super Bowl XLIX, where the Patriots and the Seahawks played a complete, back-and-forth game that concluded with one of the biggest talking points in NFL history.

Technical deep dives are Henrique’s specialty, and he ensures never to use misleading words in his articles, since he himself consumes a lot of information off the web. He has had the privilege of interviewing Cairo Santos, Lamar Jackson, Jim Harbaugh, Sean McDermott, Bruce Arians, Matt LaFleur, among others.

Aside from football, Henrique likes to play poker and Counter-Strike.

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