Crossword Genius

Was he cured? (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

bacon

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'was he cured?' is the definition.
The answer is a person as well as being a singular noun. This is suggested by the definition.

'was he' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'he' could be 'con' and 'con' is found within the answer.
The remaining letters 'ba' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for bacon that I've seen before include "Francis --, Irish painter" , "Artist - meat" , "Shakespeare's ghost, some say" , "sizzler" , "Thin slices of pig" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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