The tragic story of Crash the ferret and Velus Jones Jr. of the Chicago Bears.

LAKE FOREST, Illinois. – If you watched “Hard Knocks” on Tuesday night, you learned a new facet in the life of Chicago Bears running back Velus Jones Jr.

He once had a ferret.

This was Jones' idea of ​​an exotic pet and it was captured by Hard Knocks' live microphones.

On Wednesday, Jones was of course asked about this ferret after practice. Jones told the story of Crash the Ferret. It's about friends, namely current Colts receiver Michael Pittman, love, horrible alleys and tragedy.

It all started before a game against Washington State, where half of the Trojans team took a tour of the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho, near Pullman, Washington.

“After we finished the tour, some people took a tour,” Jones said. “Some took a tour of the indoor stadium and stuff. So me (Pittman) and I went to PetSmart on our own time.”

The ferrets immediately caught the attention of Jones and Pittman.

“We went in and thought, 'What the heck are these things?'” Jones said. “I tried to put my hand in the tank and it bit my hand and stuff, but it was a cool experience.”

Remember, he had time to think about it.

“It was just an incredible amount of free time,” Jones said.

During this free time, Jones made a decision when he saw a young ferret.

“They were just trying to grab your hand and stuff, but they weren't biting that much,” Jones said. “Pit and I looked at each other and thought, 'We're going to get one.'”

But it wasn't in Idaho.

Jones returned to Los Angeles and sought help from the Internet.

“We actually made it onto Craigslist,” Jones said. “We made it onto Craigslist and when we got back to campus, we actually found a ferret breeder and it was the most questionable thing ever.”

So Jones and Pittman found themselves in South Central Los Angeles, waiting in an alley for a ferret breeder to bring them a ferret that Jones wanted to buy.

The ferret in question cost $350. As he looked down the dark alley, Jones was suspicious.

“I told him to keep the engine running,” Jones said.

Undeterred – perhaps because of his newfound love of ferrets – Jones waited undaunted for his ferret.

That was until it almost became too much.

“I see someone pull his head out like that and go back up and say, 'Yeah, bro, we're getting out of here,'” Jones said. “And then he actually came out and had like a little ferret in his head. I thought, 'Okay, it's good. It's real.'”

This is how Crash the Ferret became Jones' ferret, named after the video game Crash Bandicoot.

At first it was tough love. But Jones was smitten.

“He kept biting me and Pit said don't drop him. You're going to hurt him,” Jones said. “But he just kept biting. But no, we fell in love with him.”

Crash followed Jones when he left Los Angeles for Tennessee. Jones stayed in Knoxville through the 2022 season, where he declared for the NFL Draft and was selected by the Bears in the third round.

But Crash passed away in 2020. CBS Sports ran an extensive feature on Jones and his ferret – something Jones pulled up on his phone at the podium on Wednesday – and the memory of Crash still stays with Jones today.

“Real men cry, I shed a tear,” Jones said. “He was paralyzed from the waist down and I wanted to take him to a vet, but I think they outsmarted me. They couldn't help him at all. So he was buried at 303 Flats right by the river, his final resting place.”

Now Crash is being memorialized for life by Hard Knocks and NFL Films.

He lives up to the status Jones has created for him in his mind.

“He’s definitely a legend,” Jones said.