Chauncey Jamal Tolbert Washington (born April 29, 1985) is an American former 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 ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

who played in 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) for the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis, Missouri, from 1995 through the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, California, where the team had played ...

, and

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

. He was selected by the Jaguars in the seventh round of the

2008 NFL draft The 2008 NFL draft was the 73rd NFL draft, annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York (state), New York ...

. 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 ...

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

Early life

Washington had a heralded career as an athlete at South Torrance High School. In his Senior 2002 season, he earned numerous

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors, running for 1,549 yards on 140 carries (11.1 avg.) with 23 TDs while catching 13 passes for 200 yards (15.4 avg.) with 2 TDs in 2002 despite missing 5 games with a knee injury. He also earned substantial notice as a sophomore and junior player. As a Senior, Washington was ranked as the #12 running back in the nation by ESPN.com was aggressively recruited by USC and

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the ...

, as well as

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

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 ...

, Oregon State, ASU,

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

and

Washington State Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

College career

Although Washington admitted he grew up as a rival-

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

fan, he became USC's second commitment to the 2003 recruiting class in May 2002. That class also included two other highly touted running backs: 2005

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

-winner Reggie Bush as well as

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

high school all-star and future USC touchdown leader

LenDale White LenDale Anthony White (born December 20, 1984) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Tennessee Titans in the second round (45th overall) of the ...

. Going into their freshman 2003 season, all three backs were considered to be talented enough to challenge for the starting position and all three played during the USC opener at Auburn. Washington's freshman season was limited by a nagging ankle injury suffered in the second game of the season that caused him to miss half the season and the 2004 spring practice due to a stress fracture in the ankle. He was ruled academically ineligible for the 2004 season and was

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

. Washington was again academically ineligible for the 2005 season and lost his

athletic scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private school, private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on their ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the U ...

. After considering entering the

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 ...

, leaving USC or transferring to a different school (with easier academic requirements), Washington was encouraged by his parents, teammates and university staff to stay in school and focus on academics while paying his own way through school. After much focus and hard work, Washington finally regained academic eligibility in the spring of 2006, and regained his scholarship that August. Initially planned as the starting running back for the 2006 USC Trojans, the

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Sports * Redshirt (college sports) Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically ...

junior suffered a

hamstring A hamstring () is any one of the three posterior thigh muscles in human anatomy between the hip and the knee: from medial to lateral, the semimembranosus, semitendinosus and biceps femoris. Etymology The word " ham" is derived from the Old ...

injury in pre-season practice, but had re-gained the starting position by midseason. He told the

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

' Gary Klein that he had decided to forego the

2007 NFL draft The 2007 NFL draft was the 72nd annual meeting of National Football League franchises to select newly eligible American football players. It took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 28 and April 29, 2007. The draf ...

and return for his redshirt senior season. Going into 2007 spring practice, Washington's grades again became a concern. At the start of the 2007 season, Washington was again sidelined with an injury and did not play in the Trojans' opener. However, he rushed for over 900 yards and was a Pac-10 honorable mention player.

Professional career

Jacksonville Jaguars

Washington was selected by the

in the seventh round, overall pick 213, of the

. On June 26, 2008 Washington signed a contract of four years worth $1.6 million. He was waived by the Jaguars on September 5, 2009.

Dallas Cowboys (first stint)

On September 22, 2009, Washington 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 ...

. On October 3, he was promoted to the active roster because of injuries to Marion Barber III and Felix Jones.

Safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

Marvin White was waived to make room for Washington on the roster. After playing in the team's loss 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 ...

on October 4, the Cowboys waived Washington the following day and signed cornerback Cletis Gordon. He was re-signed to the practice squad on October 6, only to be promoted a second time to the active roster on October 10. He was waived again on October 12 and signed to the team's practice squad the next day.

New York Jets

Washington was signed off the Cowboys' practice squad on December 14, 2009 by the

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 ...

. Washington would be waived by the team on September 5, 2010. Washington would later be re-signed to the team's practice squad on September 7, 2010.

St. Louis Rams

Washington was signed off of the New York Jets practice squad on September 28, 2010 by the

. He was waived on October 18 and signed to the Rams practice squad on October 19. He was released by the Rams on August 4, 2011.

Dallas Cowboys (second stint)

On November 30, 2011, he was signed to the Cowboys' practice squad. On December 23, he was promoted to the active roster. His only stats came 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 ...

, recording one carry for minus-1 yard and 2 receptions for 13 yards. He wasn't re-signed after the season.

References

External links

Jacksonville Jaguars bioUSC Trojans bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Washington, Chauncey 1985 births Living people Players of American football from Torrance, California American football running backs USC Trojans football players Jacksonville Jaguars players Dallas Cowboys players New York Jets players Players of American football from Carson, California St. Louis Rams players South High School (Torrance, California) alumni