A lot of people thought Notre Dame alum and current Baltimore Ravens safety Tommy Zbikowski’s stint as a boxer was just a publicity stunt— but what people didn’t know is that Zbikowski has been serious about boxing for a long time.
He has some skills but it’s hard to tell how good he can be— because he has only been matched with tomato cans so far, but he takes the sport seriously.
Another sign of that is the hiring of legendary trainer Manny Steward.
Baltimore Ravens safety Tommy Zbikowski has hired Hall of Fame trainer Emmanuel Steward, Steward told SI.com. Steward will work Zbikowski’s corner when Zbikowski fights on the undercard of the Yuri Gamboa-Jorge Solis featherweight title fight Saturday night in Atlantic City.
“We did some work on the pads,” Steward said. “He has such beautiful balance. He has a great natural rhythm and he’s always in position when he is punching. He doesn’t box like a football player. He boxes like a boxer.“
The question begs: long term what would be better for Zbikowski?
If he becomes a solid safety in the NFL and plays for ten years, he could probably make somewhere between 10-20 million over the life of his career, but there is no guarantees with that.
If he becomes a decent boxer considering the name recognition, he already has he could probably make around the same, but fighting only a few times a year. Once again, a couple of bad losses and his boxing career could be quickly derailed as well.
It is interesting dilemma as it appears he really does have a passion for boxing maybe more than football. Story worth watching as the lockout continues.