FLOWERY BRANCH — On the outskirts of Timmonsville, S.C., Tyquan Abraham was living in a troubled home and headed down the wrong path.
He was leniently home-schooled and experimenting with alcohol and smoking.
John Abraham, his famous uncle, using a lesson from the grandmother that helped to rear him, took his nephew into his home a little over a year ago. He since has added two other nephews, Jajuan Josey and Bryson Josey, and their mother, Ryan Josey, to his household.
Helping his extended family was part of the reason why Abraham signed a three-year, $16.72 million contract to return to the Falcons in March. The Titans and Broncos expressed interest and there was a least one undisclosed NFL team with a more lucrative offer on the table.
For Abraham, one of the top defensive ends in the NFL over the past 12 years, it literally was about family, both his biological family and his football family.
He usually misses most of the team’s offseason programs and works out with a trainer in Florida. But this offseason, he was checking on homework and making sure that rooms were clean.
“I raise my nephew now, so I’m trying to get him back in his right ways,” Abraham said. “He’s in summer school now. I’ve been here most of the time.”
Abraham’s memories of his own father are sketchy. He remembers his biological father bringing a sack of toys for Christmas when he was 6 years old. But when the parents got into an argument, the father left with the sack of toys.
So, with no fatherly plan to work from, he leans on lessons that his grandmother taught him. He stresses education and keeping the house clean with chores.
“The 16-year-old [Tyquan] and 14-year-old [Jajuan], they need to be in school and be around kids,” Abraham said. “They were kind of just sitting in the house. ... Pretty much not doing [anything].”
He is noticing signs of improvement.
“First of all, just getting them to school,” Abraham said. “[Nothing] else really matters right now. I want to get them back on track now, like my first nephew [Tyquan].”
Tyquan pressed Abraham to let him play football, but he had to earn that right by hitting the books and not a tackling dummy.
“I’m going to let him play football this year,” Abraham said. “Last year, it was more like getting his grades right. He’s in summer school now. I’m trying to get him back in his right grade.”
He’s been impressed with his football skills.
“I saw him in the spring game, and he did pretty good,” Abraham said. “I was surprised. He kept telling me that he was an athlete, but I didn’t believe him. He played pretty good, and he’s doing well. He’s really growing up and becoming a mature young man.”
Abraham’s other message to his nephews is that they don’t need to be in a hurry to grow up.
“I tell them to enjoy not worrying about paying bills and all of that [stuff] we have to do right now as adults,” Abraham said. “It’s crazy out here.”
The younger Abraham’s mother is still battling her demons.
“She’s up and down,” Abraham said. “Some things you can’t stress too much because she is grown. She’s a grown women and she can do what she wants to do. I’m worried about the kids. The older that you get, the more you realize that it’s about the kids.”
Abraham, 33, who also has two daughters, is clearly at a new station in his personal life.
“When I was younger, I probably couldn’t do this,” Abraham said. “But just seeing my grandma taking my cousins in and everybody else in when they were doing bad and all of that stuff, I feel like I was comfortable doing it. I feel like I’m old enough and can handle it. I can juggle both.”
Abraham didn’t flinch when he didn’t get any Father’s Day cards.
“They are boys,” Abraham said. “You know how boys are. As long as they tell you ‘Happy Father’s Day’, you’ll take that right now. ... As long as they are doing good in school and clean their rooms, I’m happy.”
With everything quiet on the home front, Abraham fully participated in the team’s minicamp. He’s ready to help the Falcons continue their quest to reach greater heights in the NFL. That was another issue that made it difficult to leave in free agency.
“They have taken care of me all of the years that I’ve been here,” said Abraham, who was acquired in a trade with the New York Jets in 2006. “I wanted to be here. The money wasn’t really a factor. I felt like the Falcons have a great chance of being a Super Bowl team. Once we get past that hump of the first round, I think we’ll be OK.
“I really feel like we’ve got something special. That’s why I wanted to come back.”
Abraham, who played at South Carolina, broke into the league under Falcons defensive coordinator Mike Nolan. He knew what to expect from the schematically revamped defense.
Abraham will be featured as one of the defensive ends and will play in a three-point stance or stand up like a linebacker. He’s fine with the new role and considers himself to be a defensive end in a linebacker’s body.
“I’m glad to be back with him and glad that we have the opportunity to do some great things together,” said Abraham, who has 112 career sacks, tops among active NFL players.
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