Joshua Khiry Malone (born March 21, 1996) 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 ...

. 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

Tennessee Volunteers The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in Division I of the National Colleg ...

. He played for the

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

and

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

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) and the

DC Defenders The DC Defenders are a professional American football team based in Washington, D.C. The Defenders compete in the United Football League (2024), United Football League (UFL) as a member of the XFL Conference. The team was founded by Vince McMaho ...

of the XFL.

Early life

Malone attended Station Camp High School in

Gallatin, Tennessee Gallatin is a city in and the county seat of Sumner County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 30,278 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 census and 44,431 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Named for United States Secre ...

, where he played

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

for the Bison. He had a successful high school career at Station Camp. As a junior in 2012, he had 28 receptions for 408 yards and five

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

s. In addition, he had 15 rushes for 101 yards and a rushing touchdown. He had numerous accomplishments during his senior season in 2013. He had 71 receptions for 1,404 yards and 19 receiving touchdowns and 23 rushes for 227 yards and three rushing touchdowns during his senior season. His successful senior season warranted an invitation to play in the 2014 U.S. Army All-American Game.

College career

Before the 2014

season, Malone committed to play for the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...

under head coach

Butch Jones Lyle Allen "Butch" Jones Jr. (born January 17, 1968) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach at Arkansas State University. Jones previously served as a special assistant to the head coach and offensive analyst at the Univ ...

. In 2014, as a

true freshman The following terms are used in American football, both conventional and indoor. Some of these terms are also in use in Canadian football; for a list of terms unique to that code, see '' Glossary of Canadian football''. 0–9 ...

, Malone played in all 12 regular season games and the 2015 TaxSlayer Bowl against

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

. He made his collegiate debut against Utah State on August 31 at

Neyland Stadium Neyland Stadium ( ) is a sports stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. It serves primarily as the home of the Tennessee Volunteers football team, but is also used to host large conventions and has been a site for several National Footba ...

. In his collegiate debut, he had two receptions for 26 yards. Against

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...

(SEC) East

rival A rivalry is the state of two people or Social group, groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each ...

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 ...

on September 27, he had five receptions for 43 yards and a 20-yard rush in the loss at

Sanford Stadium Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium is the on-campus playing venue for football at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, United States (also known as UGA). The 93,033-seat stadium is the ninth-largest American football stadium in the NCAA ...

. Against

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 a season-high 75 yards on five receptions at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. He had his first career touchdown against

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

in their annual rivalry game on October 25 at home. In the 2014 season, Malone had 23 receptions for 201 yards and a touchdown. In his sophomore season in 2015, Malone played in all 12 regular season games and the

2016 Outback Bowl The 2016 Outback Bowl was an American college football bowl game that was played on January 1, 2016, at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. It was the 30th edition of the Outback Bowl (previously called the Hall of Fame Bowl), featuring the ...

against Northwestern. He started twelve games for the Volunteers. In the home opener, Malone had his first touchdown of the season in a 2OT loss to the

Oklahoma Sooners The Oklahoma Sooners are the college athletics in the United States , athletic teams that represent the University of Oklahoma, located in Norman, Oklahoma, Norman. The 19 men's and women's varsity teams are called the "Sooners", a reference to ...

. On October 10, he led the Vols in catches in their upset 38–31 victory over #19 Georgia at Neyland Stadium. He had his first career game with over 100 receiving yards at

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

Commonwealth Stadium Commonwealth Stadium is an open-air, multi-purpose stadium located in the McCauley, Edmonton, McCauley neighbourhood of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It has a seating capacity of 56,302, making it the largest open-air stadium in Canada. Primarily ...

. In the game, he had a career-long 75-yard touchdown reception from quarterback

Joshua Dobbs Robert Joshua Dobbs (born January 26, 1995) is an American professional football quarterback for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers, and was selected by the Pitt ...

. He finished third on the team with 31 catches for 405 yards and two touchdowns. In his junior season in 2016, Malone appeared in all 12 regular season games and the bowl game. He had a 67-yard receiving touchdown in the season opening 20–13 overtime victory against Appalachian State on September 1. In the 2016 Pilot Flying J Battle at Bristol against

Virginia Tech The Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, commonly referred to as Virginia Tech (VT), is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States ...

, he had two receptions for 46 yards and a touchdown. Against the

Ohio Bobcats The Ohio Bobcats are the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I Intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio University, located in Athens, Ohio, United States. Ohio University is a charter member (1946 ...

the following week, he had five receptions for 69 yards and two touchdowns. He had four catches for 91 yards and a 42-yard touchdown in the 38–28 win against SEC East Rival

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

on September 24. On November 5, against the

Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles The Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Tennessee Technological University (TTU), located in Cookeville, Tennessee, United States. The TTU athletic program is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) and ...

, he had five receptions for 112 yards and two touchdowns. He had a career-high 121 receiving yards and one touchdown at Vanderbilt on November 26. In his final game with the Volunteers, he had five receptions for 120 yards and one touchdown in the 2016 Music City Bowl victory over

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

on December 30. In the 2016 season, he finished third in the SEC in receiving yards and touchdowns, with 972 and 11, respectively. After the 2016 season, Malone declared his intentions to enter the

2017 NFL draft The 2017 NFL draft was the 82nd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. It was held in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art on April 27–29, returning to Philadelphia f ...

College statistics

Professional career

Pre-draft

Coming out of Tennessee, Malone was projected to be a third round pick by the majority of

NFL draft The NFL draft, officially known as the Annual Player Selection Meeting, is an annual event which serves as the most common source of player recruitment in the National Football League. Each team is given a position in the drafting order in reve ...

experts and scouts. He received an invitation to the

NFL combine The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Foot ...

and completed all of the required combine and positional drills. On March 31, 2017, Malone participated at Tennessee's

pro day The NFL draft, officially known as the Annual Player Selection Meeting, is an annual event which serves as the most common source of player recruitment in the National Football League. Each team is given a position in the drafting order in reve ...

, along with Joshua Dobbs, Alvin Kamara,

Cameron Sutton Cameron Amir Sutton (born February 27, 1995) is an American professional football cornerback for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers, and was selected by the Stee ...

Jalen Reeves-Maybin Jalen Ahmad Reeves-Maybin (born January 31, 1995) is an American professional football linebacker and special teamer. He played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers. He was selected by the Lions in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL dr ...

, Derek Barnett,

Jason Croom Jason Croom (born February 28, 1994) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers. Early life Croom attended and played hig ...

, former Saint's wide receiver

Robert Meachem Robert Emery Meachem (born September 28, 1984) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the New Orleans Saints. He played college football for the Tennessee ...

, and 17 other prospects. Around 100 scouts and team representatives from all 32 NFL teams attended, including

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

head coach

Mike Tomlin Michael Pettaway Tomlin (born March 15, 1972) is an American professional American football, football coach who is the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League (NFL). Since joining the Steelers in 2007, he has led t ...

, as Malone performed all of the combine and positional drills. He was ranked the 12th best

prospect in the draft by NFLDraftScout.com.

Cincinnati Bengals

The

selected Malone in the fourth round (128th overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft. He was the 18th wide receiver and the fifth of six Tennessee Volunteers to be selected in the 2017 NFL Draft. On May 17, 2017, the Bengals signed him to a four-year, $2.99 million contract with a signing bonus of $599,241. He joined a deep wide receiver group with the Bengals and competed with John Ross, Brandon LaFell, Tyler Boyd, and

Cody Core Cody Dylan Core (born April 17, 1994) is an American former professional football wide receiver. He played college football at Mississippi and was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the sixth round of the 2016 NFL draft. He has also been a me ...

throughout training camp for a job as the starting wide receiver. Head coach

Marvin Lewis Marvin Roland Lewis Jr. (born September 23, 1958) is an American professional American football, football coach. He recently served as the assistant head coach for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). Lewis was previously ...

named Malone the fifth wide receiver on the Bengals' depth chart behind A. J. Green, Brandon LaFell, Cody Core, and Tyler Boyd. Although Malone was healthy, he was inactive for the first five games of the season. On October 22, 2017, he made his professional regular season debut during a 29–14 loss to the Steelers. The following week, Malone caught two receptions for 35-yards and scored his first career touchdown on a 25-yard pass from

Andy Dalton Andrew Gregory Dalton (born October 29, 1987) is an American professional football quarterback for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). Nicknamed "the Red Rifle", he played college football for the TCU Horned Frogs, wher ...

during a 24–23 victory over the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

. On September 1, 2019, Malone was waived by the Bengals.

New York Jets

On September 4, 2019, Malone was signed to the

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

of the

. He was promoted to the active roster on December 19, 2019. On September 5, 2020, Malone was waived by the Jets and signed to the practice squad the next day. He was elevated to the active roster on September 12 for the team's week 1 game against the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

and reverted to the practice squad on September 14. He was again elevated to the active roster on September 19 for the team's week 2 game against the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

and reverted to the practice squad on September 21. He was promoted to the active roster on September 22, 2020. He was waived on October 10, and re-signed to the practice squad three days later. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Jets on January 4, 2021. On August 24, 2021, Malone was waived by the Jets.

Denver Broncos

On October 5, 2021, Malone was signed to 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 ...

practice squad. He was released on October 12.

Green Bay Packers

On December 14, 2021, Malone was signed to 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 ...

practice squad. His contract expired when the teams season ended on January 22, 2022.

Tennessee Titans

On February 22, 2022, Malone signed with the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

. He was released on August 16, 2022.

Pittsburgh Steelers

On October 18, 2022, Malone signed with the Steelers practice-squad. He was released on October 29, 2022. He signed back with the practice squad on November 8, 2022, then released on November 29.

DC Defenders

On February 3, 2023, Malone was signed by the

of the XFL. He was released on March 15, 2023.

Personal life

Josh is the son of Rebecca and Cordell Malone.

References

External links

Tennessee Volunteers bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Malone, Josh 1996 births Living people Sportspeople from Gallatin, Tennessee Players of American football from Tennessee American football wide receivers Tennessee Volunteers football players Cincinnati Bengals players New York Jets players Denver Broncos players Green Bay Packers players Tennessee Titans players Pittsburgh Steelers players DC Defenders players