Rock Bottom
Johnson was no stranger to mental illness and was suffering from depression after sustaining injuries in college, but finally losing his football career was rock bottom for him. He returned to Miami, and his relationship with then girlfriend Dany Garcia suffered due to the enormous stress he was experiencing.
“The dreams I had, they’re dashed. There is no more football. My relationship was crushed. That was my absolute worst time. I looked in my pocket, and I had seven bucks. Wow. Seven bucks to my name,” recalled Johnson.
Seven Bucks
The Rock felt like he’s failing at life after leaving Canada, and it seemed everyone else around him was thriving. Warren Sapp, who replaced him in the starting lineup while in college, just signed a huge NFL deal, something he’s been dreaming of since childhood.
“It was like the success I wanted so badly and worked so hard for years was happening all around me to everyone else but me. And I’ll never forget that. The term ‘seven bucks’ has a lot of meaning,” Johnson told Esquire.
Years down the road he launched a production company called Seven Bucks, but a lot had to happen in between for him to reach that place.