Saints' Hargrove: From rock bottom to Super Bowl

Few people other than Anthony Hargrove know exactly what the bottom was for him. He was a drug addict who lived a brutal and unforgiving life. The bottom was probably deep, but it may have been deeper than publicly understood.

Hargrove's story is one of perseverance and hope, but it also contains sharp edges and cautionary tales. He was exiled by the NFL for the entire 2008 season after repeat violations of the league's drug policy. After time in drug rehabilitation and being reinstated by commissioner Roger Goodell, Hargrove, a defensive tackle, sent a video to a number of NFL teams explaining his story and how he had corrected his life.

The Saints took a chance on Hargrove, and the rest of the story is remarkable. He hasn't eroded the trust the Saints and his teammates have put in him and as a result, Hargrove is quite possibly the best story of Super Bowl XLIV.

Did he think, considering his past, he'd be right here, right now?

"You're talking to somebody who's been through a lot," Hargrove said. "I don't believe [anything is] unrealistic. But when you're sitting there and you're going through it, all you have is your thoughts and wishes. So to say if it's realistic or not, I don't know. But I know what I wanted at that point. If I had gotten my opportunity, I was going to do whatever it took to get here. Did I think it was going to happen this fast? No. But did I want it this fast? Yeah."

The concern isn't gone. Recovering addicts face the possibility of a relapse. It's a cold truth that remains in the thoughts of not just Hargrove but many of the Saints players.

"We watch out for each other, but mostly probably him," Saints teammate Will Smith said. "We know he can be on edge sometimes, so we try to do our best to help him out as much as we can. He's always on edge. Everybody cares for him so much that they don't want to see him doing something he'll regret. For the most part, he's a stand-up guy. Everybody always has that feeling that you've got to watch out for him every now and then."

Hargrove, 26, was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., and spent time in the foster care system. His mother died of complications of AIDS when he was 9, and he settled with an aunt in Florida.

He flunked out of Georgia Tech but was still drafted in the third round by the St. Louis Rams in 2004, despite being out of football for at least a year. It was then when everything began to disintegrate. He disappeared for several practices without explanation, and the Rams eventually traded him to Buffalo.

There things went from bad to worse. He was arrested after an altercation with police outside a Buffalo-area club. Soon after that he failed a drug test and was suspended for four games. He was then suspended for an entire season after failing another drug test for what he said was use of cocaine and marijuana, as well as alcohol.

Hargrove spent more than a year in various rehab facilities. Much of the time he was alone. He didn't want friends and family to see him.