Wow welcome back John thank you just tell the audience what happened
over the last two years I was fortunate I made it to the finals in season 11 it
was unbelievable I was playing in the NFL at the time I played for the
Philadelphia so yeah thank you my man and at the end of that season they
happen to trade me to a team called the New Orleans Saints and so I took a
physical and when I got the results they said hey sit down we don't know how to
tell you this but don't stand up don't walk don't lift anything over 5
pounds don't drink caffeine you're gonna do absolutely nothing because you're
going to be an emergency open heart surgery next 24 hours
you know there's um there's humbling moments that happen in all our lives
when I was 12 years old my father murdered my mother and my dad went to
prison I lost both my parents my entire world got turned upside down I
got credit magic to saving my life it gave me purpose it gave me hope and
it gave me something to be proud of and then I discovered football and it was
these two completely different worlds that kind of balanced me and it helped
me discover who I was as a person when I auditioned for America's Got Talent
I was the long snapper for the Philadelphia's it's not a trip because
it's magic it was amazing after I went back to Philadelphia to keep playing
football they discovered that I had an ascending aortic aneurysm that vein
ended up blowing up like the size of a coke imp and at my aorta bursts you're
dead right away I said you're never playing football ever again and you're
gonna go into emergency open heart surgery now you know I remember when I
put my helmet down knowing it's the last time
that's a lifetime of hard work right there that is just taken from me it's
crazy to think about all the things that I might not have had the chance to do
I'm so thankful that I get to wake up and love my wife and get to live again
the Eagles gave me a Super Bowl ring which is really really cool and they
said hey John for you the Super Bowl isn't this game it isn't this season
the Super Bowl for you is life to be here on America's Got Talent champions I
mean this is life come full circle it's another chance for me to stand up
and to say why I belong here I've learned that life is really short if you
got a dream go get it and to be able to come back and win a championship look I
didn't win last time okay so I'm here to win and this is this is what it's about
and I honestly want that title that's why I'm here let me tell you apart from
your story you are extraordinary about as to what you do as well so I'm really
curious now to see how the act has stepped up from when we last saw you
well man let's roll let's do it
this America's Got Talent champion I tell you what what defines a champion
starts right here in the head and before the show we had all you guys had pieces
of paper and you had different color pens and you can write whatever word you
wanted those papers got thrown in this box there's thousands of papers in there
Simon don't look I'll put your hand in there and I want you to pull out one
piece of paper and do not look at it I just want you to hold it your hand just
get one I've got it crunch it you got it yeah Heidi guess
what you're gonna follow the lead okay you're gonna reach in here don't look
you're gonna pull out one piece of paper you got it yes Mel B it's your turn
don't look I want you to reach in there grab out one piece of paper is that one
yeah yeah you got it got it all right now guess what Howie unfortunate you
don't get to gravity but I love that yeah but guess what
here are a bunch of pieces of paper that we did not pick all right and you can
see that they're all different right this one wrote unbeatable right go ahead
and open one read it discipline discipline all these are the choices you
guys did not pick this is what I love baby I got to play 14 years in the NFL
and I got to surround myself with champions everywhere and learn from them
and I learned that it starts with the words that you tell yourself from the
moment you get out of bed you know Delta champion does we compete so Howie you
versus me you win in a ferocious game of tic-tac-toe you just sit tight okay it's
a very simple game I'll go first I shall go here okay Howie
I'll go top right top right it is and think about this every move you make is
gonna dictate what I do so I tell you what
I shall go here Howie where would you like to go but I don't want you to get
that third I'm gonna go up in the middle in the middle of Center thought I had
you on that
apparently they agree they agree all right um I'd say what I shall go here
yep oh come on all right they're saying it but bottom right but
that's where I thought all right good all right um okay I tell you what I'm
gonna go here I'm gonna go left on no yeah oh you know what encroach time I
made a mistake dang it okay you know what I tell you
what I didn't win you didn't win and we tied before we
started everybody in the audience wrote a word and you got different colors you
could have choose from Simon you reached in there and you grabbed one what's your
word courage and what color is it in blue Heidi
yes what word did you pick what does it say yet hard work and maybe you have a
word yes what is it it is hot in black in tic-tac-toe there's over two hundred
and fifty five thousand different combinations and though it might not
look like I won before I started I printed a picture on the back of each
piece right here and guess what we had three words that were chosen
Simon years was courage in blue mm-hmm Heidi years was mine was hard work I
work in red and Mel B years was hot in black in black I thought I would make a
prediction out of every random choice Simon
oh my god I got magic all over here
wish I had a golden buzzer right now Howie it is truly worthy of a golden
buzzer and I want to say something to you John like you are so much more than
just a magician so much more than just an athlete so much more than just a
champion this is exactly what is worthy of moving on I mean what you did right
before our eyes is pure pure magic I think your showmanship and your words
of wisdom just as the icing on the cake you're brilliant absolutely when you
talk you command the stage the magic was amazing well done all the way around
yeah John I'm gonna say this is the best we've seen you on any performance you've
now in fact every didn't that happens in your life you never evict him no you
inspire people you deserve to go through to the final
thank you guys again thank you it's a great day to be alive thank you