Olubunmi Babatunde Rotimi Jr. (born July 16, 1995) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

at Old Dominion and signed with the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

in 2018. Rotimi has also played for the

Arizona Hotshots The Arizona Hotshots were a professional American football franchise based in Tempe, Arizona, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF), which played one season from February 2019 to April 2019. They played their ...

of the

Alliance of American Football The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan area ...

(AAF) and the

New York Guardians New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

of the XFL.

Early life and education

Bunmi Rotimi was born on July 16, 1995, in

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in Northern Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Washington, D.C., D.C. The city's population of 159,467 at the 2020 ...

, to African immigrants. He attended

West Potomac High School West Potomac High School, formerly Groveton High School, is a public high school in the Alexandria area of Fairfax County, Virginia. It was founded in 1985 and is part of the Fairfax County Public Schools district. History West Potomac High Sch ...

, earning all-district honors as a junior, even though his freshman year was the first year he tried playing the sport. Following high school he went to

Old Dominion University Old Dominion University (ODU) is a Public university, public research university in Norfolk, Virginia, United States. Established in 1930 as the two-year Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary, it began by educating people with fewer ...

, where he spent his true freshman year of 2013 as a redshirt. A walk-on, Rotimi played in twelve games as a freshman, starting two at

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

. He recorded 30 tackles in the season. As a sophomore, Rotimi played in twelve games, starting eleven and recording 36 tackles. He also was second on the team with 4.5 sacks. He transitioned to

as a junior, starting thirteen games, and making 44 tackles and seven sacks. He started seven games as a senior, making 29 tackles and 5.5 sacks. Against

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia *Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria ** Marshall railway station Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Is ...

, Rotimi made a blocked field goal. He was named all-Conference USA honorable mention following his senior season.

Professional career

Chicago Bears

After only competing at five NFL Combine drills, Rotimi went unselected in the

2018 NFL draft The 2018 NFL draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington southwest of Dallas; it was ...

. He was signed as an

by the

on May 11. He was released in July before the preseason started.

Arizona Hotshots

His next team after Chicago was the

of the

(AAF). He appeared in five games, making six tackles and a sack before the league folded.

New York Guardians

After the Hotshots folded, Rotimi was signed by the

of the XFL. He played in five games again, making 25 tackles before the league suspended.

Washington Football Team

Rotimi signed with the

Washington Football Team The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

on July 28, 2021. He was released during the team's final roster cuts but signed with their practice squad the following day. He was signed to the active roster on November 13, 2021. He made his first career

sack A sack usually refers to a rectangular-shaped bag. Sack may also refer to: Bags * Flour sack * Gunny sack * Hacky sack, sport * Money sack * Paper sack * Sleeping bag * Stuff sack * Knapsack Other uses * Bed, a slang term * Sack (band), ...

in Week 15 against the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

. On March 16, 2022, the team placed an exclusive-rights free agent tender on Rotimi. He was placed on injured reserve on August 22, 2022, and was released with an injury settlement a week later.

Arlington Renegades

Rotimi played for the

Arlington Renegades The Arlington Renegades are a professional American football team based in Arlington, Texas. The Renegades compete in the United Football League (UFL) as a member of the XFL Conference. The team was founded as the Dallas Renegades by Vince McMah ...

of the XFL in 2023. He re-signed with the team on January 29, 2024.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rotimi, Bunmi 1995 births Living people Players of American football from Virginia American football defensive ends Old Dominion Monarchs football players Chicago Bears players Arizona Hotshots players New York Guardians players Washington Football Team players Arlington Renegades players