Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson Reveals Why Getting Cut From The Calgary Football Team Was The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Him

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson - either you’re old enough to remember him as one of the most iconic professional wrestlers of all time, or you know him as the action movie actor he is today.

But, for a very brief period of time, he also attempted a professional football career. In Canada.

He played football professionally for the CFL’s Calgary Stampeders. Yep, it's true. There are even photos to prove it!

If @TheRock decided to come out of retirement and come back to his @CFL home... 👀✨🏈 Had to represent a different path towards legacy for #LegacyNight! #CalStampeders pic.twitter.com/ViqE7II8b9

August 4, 2018

He wasn’t successful though, and was cut from the team and he recently spoke out about the experience.

He was cut from the team just two months into the 1995 season. In an Instagram video, "The Rock" says that being released from the team was a blessing in disguise.

In the video, "The Rock" says he was watching TV when a CFL game between the BC Lions and Edmonton Eskimos appeared. 

@therockembedded via  

His old coach now works for the Lions.

“That guy right there, Wally Buono, was my coach when I played in the CFL for Calgary,” Johnson said pointing to his old mentor on the TV.

"Sometimes in life, something you want so badly, your dreams that don’t happen sometimes, they’re the best things that never happened,” he said.

“So for me, playing in the NFL was the best thing that never happened. I thank you CFL, I thank you Wally Buono. To everybody out there, keep working hard. Sometimes, your biggest dreams that don’t come true are the best things that never happened,” he said. 

You can see the whole instagram video below. 

Cheers to dreams not coming true 🥃 Not an easy concept to process, but the idea that sometimes our biggest and most important dreams that DON’T COME TRUE are often times the BEST THING that never happened. I’m shooting JUNGLE CRUISE now and right before I get called to set, I look up and see a CFL (Canadian Football League) game on my TV. I do a double take and realize that’s the same field I played on when I played in the CFL. I do a triple take and see the very man who coached and mentored me, but ultimately had to cut me from the team, Wally Buono who is now head coach and GM of the BC LIONS in Vancouver. Playing ball, I was always the “hardest worker in the room” and did everything I could to make the CFL and then hopefully, make it to the NFL where I dreamed of having an All Pro/Super Bowl Champion football career. Instead, I was cut from the team, told I wasn’t good enough - and sent home with $7 bucks to my name. After years of blood, sweat, guts and tears, my dream was over. Fell into depression, didn’t know what to do or where to turn. Eventually, I picked myself back up again, said fuck this and refocused and committed myself to a different path. The rest is history. I’ve been there, so I encourage you to keep working hard and remember that sometimes our dreams that don’t come true, can ultimately become the best thing that never happened.

A post shared by therock (@therock) on Aug 11, 2018 at 8:15pm PDT

Johnson is currently working on a movie called Jungle Cruise. His net worth is now valued at $220 million, and he's one of the most highly paid actors on the planet. Clearly, he's doing just fine without a CFL career.