Jaylen Waddle (born November 25, 1998) 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 ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

for the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). 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 ...

for the

Alabama Crimson Tide The Alabama Crimson Tide refers to the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic varsity teams that represent the University of Alabama, located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide teams compete in the Na ...

and was selected sixth overall by the Dolphins in the

2021 NFL draft The 2021 NFL draft was the 86th National Football League draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland, Ohio from April 29 to May ...

Early life

Waddle attended Episcopal High School in

Bellaire, Texas Bellaire is a city in southwestern Harris County, Texas, United States, within the metropolitan area.. Retrieved on January 24, 2010. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the city population was 17,202. It is surrounded by th ...

. As a senior, he played in the U.S. Army All-American Game. He committed to the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of ...

to play

. He made the selection on

National Signing Day National Signing Day has traditionally been the first day that a high school senior can sign a binding National Letter of Intent for a collegiate sport with a school that is a Division II member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association ...

of 2018 and chose the Crimson Tide over

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

Florida State Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

TCU TCU may stand for: Education * Tanzania Commission for Universities, regulatory body for Universities in Tanzania * Texas Christian University, a private university in Fort Worth, Texas ** TCU Horned Frogs, the athletic programs of the school * Tok ...

, and

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

College career

On September 29, 2018, against

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

, Waddle had three receptions for 138 yards and two receiving touchdowns to go with a 63-yard punt return for a touchdown. In the SEC Championship against

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, he had four receptions for 113 yards and a touchdown in the win. As a true freshman at Alabama in 2018, Waddle was named the SEC Freshman of the Year after recording 45 receptions for 848 yards and seven touchdowns. As a

punt returner A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punt (gridiron football), punts and kickoff (gridiron football), kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusivel ...

, he also returned 16 punts for 233 yards and a touchdown. Waddle returned to the Crimson Tide for his sophomore season in 2019. He recorded 33 receptions for 560 yards and scored six receiving touchdowns. He also returned a punt 77 yards for a touchdown against

LSU Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

and a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown against Auburn. He was named first-team All-SEC as a return specialist and was named SEC Special Teams Player of the Year. He led the NCAA in punt return yards with 487. In his first four games of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

-shortened 2020 season, Waddle recorded at least 120 receiving yards in each of the games. He had eight receptions for 134 yards and two touchdowns in the win over

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

on September 26. In the following game, a win over

, he had five receptions for 142 yards and one touchdown. In the next game, a win over

Ole Miss OLE, Ole or Olé may refer to: * Olé, a cheering expression used in Spain * Ole (name), a male given name, includes a list of people named Ole * Overhead lines equipment, used to transmit electrical energy to trams, trolleybuses or trains Co ...

, he had six receptions for 120 yards. In the next game, against Georgia, he had six receptions for 161 yards and a touchdown in the win. On October 24, Waddle broke his right ankle when he was tackled while returning the opening kickoff in a game against

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

. Waddle returned for the

National Championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

game against

Ohio State The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...

. On January 14, 2021, Waddle announced that he would forgo his senior season and enter the

College statistics

Professional career

2021

Waddle was drafted sixth overall in the

by the

, reuniting him with his college quarterback

Tua Tagovailoa Tuanigamanuolepola Donny Tagovailoa ( ; born March 2, 1998) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide ...

. On May 14, 2021, Waddle signed with the Dolphins on a $27.1 million deal. In his first NFL game on September 12, 2021, Waddle faced off against former Alabama teammate quarterback

Mac Jones Michael McCorkle "Mac" Jones (born September 5, 1998) is an American professional football quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). Jones played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide, where he set t ...

and the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

. Waddle caught 4 of his 6 targets for 61 receiving yards, and also caught his first NFL receiving touchdown on a 3-yard pass from Tua Tagovailoa in the 17–16 win against the New England Patriots. His first big breakthrough came in Week 12 against the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

, finishing with 137 receiving yards as the Dolphins won 33–10. Throughout the season, Waddle became known for his waddling celebrations after touchdowns, inspired by his last name. In his 16th game of the season, Waddle set the NFL rookie record for receptions in a season with 104, beating

Anquan Boldin Anquan Kenmile Boldin Sr. (; born October 3, 1980) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for 14 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Florida State Seminoles and w ...

's old record of 101. His record was broken by Puka Nacua in 2023. Waddle finished his rookie season with 104 receptions for 1,015 yards and seven total touchdowns. He was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team.

2022

In a Week 2 game against the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its home g ...

, Waddle had a career high of 11 receptions, 171 yards, and 2 touchdowns including the game winner to help the Dolphins comeback from a 35–14 4th quarter deficit, eventually winning the game 42–38. In Week 8 against the Lions, he had eight receptions for 106 yards and two touchdowns in the win. In a Week 16 game against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

, he had an 84-yard receiving touchdown, setting the record for longest play during an NFL Christmas game. Waddle finished the season with 75 receptions, 1,356 receiving yards, 8 receiving touchdowns. The latter two figures set career highs. He also finished the season with 18.1 yards per catch which led the league.

2023

In a Week 2 game against the Patriots, Waddle went down and was ruled out of the game. He was later reported to be in concussion protocol. Before a Week 3 game against the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

, Waddle was ruled out with a concussion. He had seven catches for 121 yards and a touchdown against the Patriots in Week 8. he had eight receptions for 142 yards and a touchdown against the Jets in Week 15. He finished the season with 72 catches for 1,014 yards and four touchdowns in 14 games.

2024

On April 29, 2024, the Dolphins picked up the fifth-year option on Waddle's contract. On May 30, Waddle and the Dolphins agreed to a three–year, $84.75 million contract extension. In week 12, he had eight receptions for 144 yards and a touchdown in a 34–15 win over the Patriots. In the 2024 season, he had 58 receptions for 744 yards and two touchdowns.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Postseason

References

External links

Alabama Crimson Tide bio

Miami Dolphins bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waddle, Jaylen Living people 1998 births 21st-century African-American sportsmen Alabama Crimson Tide football players All-American college football players American football wide receivers Miami Dolphins players Players of American football from Houston