Our national nightmare is over: JuJu Smith-Schuster's lost bicycle has been found and returned.
Yesterday, the Steelers rookie revealed on Twitter that his beloved bicycle had been stolen. You need to understand: this wasn't just any bike. It was literally a way of life. The dynamic receiver doesn't have a car or a driver's license (growing up in Long Beach, he never needed either), so JuJu's only means of transportation is that bicycle. Could he take a Lyft instead? No! The point is JuJu loved that bike, man. That bike meant everything!
Here at The Checkdown, we understood this was an important storyline, and required serious journalism. That's why we gave JuJu's Bike a very special episode of A Football Life.
Last night, JuJu's bicycle was turned in to local police after the man who apparently bought the stolen bike saw that it was the subject of a national search-and-rescue effort. Personally, I'm a little suspicious of that story. Who's to say this Good Samaritan "buyer" wasn't the original Pittsburgh stealer?
Seriously, when's the last time you've ever heard of a stolen bicycle being returned? That never happens. We don't want to give ourselves too much credit here, but this is almost certainly because of The Checkdown's heroic journalistic efforts (Pulitzer pending).
For awhile yesterday, JuJu was inconsolable. Who could blame him?
Thankfully, that dark cloud has passed. JuJu and his bike are reunited, and it feels so good.
We think JuJu will probably be locking his bike up a little differently from now on.
Hey, fun bonus fact: did you know JuJu also plays football? He's pretty damn good too. In fact, his three touchdown catches this season are the most ever for a 20-year-old player. Crazy, right?
JuJu has quickly become one of our favorite new receivers. He's exciting, he's unique, and he's one of the biggest Dragonball Z fans in the NFL, too. He's definitely a player to keep an eye on (and your other eye on his bike).
