Elijah Lamont McGuire Jr. (born June 1, 1994) is an American former

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). 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 UL Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns.

Early life

McGuire attended and 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 Vandebilt Catholic High School. He was selected to the all-state first-team as an athlete by The Louisiana Sports Writers Association as a senior. He led the state of Louisiana with 2,603 rushing yards, 11.8 rushing average and 31

touchdowns 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 ...

while Vandebilt Catholic High School finished with an 11–2 record. He also was selected to the first-team all-region honorable mention.

College career

McGuire attended and played

for the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns from 2013–2016. McGuire also played basketball for

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 ...

for one year, the 2015–16 season.

2013 season

As a freshman, McGuire played in 13 games. He made his collegiate debut in a loss at

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

, where he had 12 rushing yards and a 31-yard reception in the 34–14 loss. On September 14, against Nicholls State, he had 137 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns in the 70–7 victory. On November 16, against Georgia State, he had a great performance with 107 rushing yards to go along with three receptions for 125 yards and two receiving touchdowns in the 35–21 victory. Overall, he finished the 2013 season with 863 rushing yards, eight rushing touchdowns, 22 receptions, 384 receiving yards, and three receiving touchdowns.

2014 season

As a sophomore, McGuire played in 13 games. He started the season off strong with 129 rushing yards and a touchdown against Southern in the 45–6 victory. On September 20, he had 10 receptions for 106 receiving yards to along with 31 yards against Boise State in the 34–9 victory. On October 21, against Arkansas State, he had 265 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in the 55–40 victory. On November 1, against South Alabama, he had 116 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, and 90 receiving yards in the 19–9 victory. The next week, against

New Mexico State New Mexico State University (NMSU or NM State) is a Public university system, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States. Founded in 1888, it is the state's oldest public institution ...

, he had 136 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown to go along with a four-yard touchdown reception in the 44–16 victory. In the regular season finale against

Troy Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek mythology, Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destina ...

, he had 169 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in the 42–23 victory. Overall, he finished the 2014 season with 1,264 rushing yards, 14 rushing touchdowns, 45 receptions, 468 receiving yards, and two receiving touchdowns.

2015 season

As a junior, McGuire played in 12 games. In the second game of the season against Northwestern State, he had 14 carries for 165 yards and five rushing touchdowns in the 44–17 victory. On October 10, against Texas State, he had 170 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown in the 49–27 victory. In the next game, at Arkansas State, he had a great receiving day with 10 receptions for 134 yards and a touchdown in the loss in the 37–27 loss. On November 21, against

, he had 159 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in the 37–34 loss. Overall, in the 2015 season, he finished with 1,047 rushing yards, 13 rushing touchdowns, 34 receptions, 304 receiving yards, and three receiving touchdowns.

2016 season

As a senior, McGuire played in 13 games. In the second game, against McNeese State, he had 139 rushing yards in the 30–22 victory. In the next game against South Alabama, he had 223 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown in the 28–23 victory. On October 22, against Texas State, he had 112 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in the 27–3 victory. On November 19, against the

Georgia Bulldogs The Georgia Bulldogs are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The offic ...

, he had 129 rushing yards in the 35–21 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 ...

. In his final collegiate game, he had 99 rushing yards in the 28–21 loss to Southern Miss in the 2016 New Orleans Bowl. Overall, he finished the 2016 season with 1,127 rushing yards, seven rushing touchdowns, 29 receptions, 238 receiving yards, and two receiving touchdowns.

College statistics

Football Basketball , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 16 , , 0 , , 3.7 , , .286 , , .143 , , .200 , , .812 , , 0.2 , , .125 , , 0 , , .625

Professional career

New York Jets

McGuire was drafted in the sixth round with the 188th overall pick 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 ...

in the 2017 NFL draft. He was the 20th

selected in that year's draft. In Week 2, in the 45–20 loss to the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team based in Oakland, California, from its founding in 1960 to 1981, and again from 1995 to 2019 before Oakland Raiders relocation to Las Vegas, relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan ...

, McGuire had six rushes for 29 yards for his debut in the Jets backfield. On October 1, 2017, during Week 4 against 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 ...

, McGuire rushed for 93 yards, including one for a 69-yard touchdown, as the Jets won 23–20 in overtime. Overall, he finished his rookie season with 315 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, 17 receptions, 177 receiving yards, and one receiving touchdown. On September 3, 2018, McGuire was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

with a foot injury. He was activated off injured reserve on November 2, 2018. In the 2018 season, he finished with 276 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. In addition, he had 19 receptions for 193 receiving yard and one receiving touchdown. McGuire was released on August 30, 2019, as part of the final roster cuts.

Cleveland Browns

On September 2, 2019, McGuire 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

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

. He was signed to the active roster on September 16, 2019. He was waived by the Browns on September 19, 2019, and re-signed to the practice squad on September 21, 2019. The Browns released McGuire from their practice squad on October 22, 2019.

Kansas City Chiefs (first stint)

On November 25, 2019, McGuire was signed to the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

practice squad. McGuire won

Super Bowl LIV Super Bowl LIV was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2019 NFL season, 2019 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion 2019 Kansas City Chiefs season, Kansas City ...

with the Chiefs after they defeated 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 ...

31–20. He re-signed with the Chiefs on February 5, 2020. He was waived on September 5, 2020.

Dallas Cowboys

After being released from the Chiefs, the

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 ...

signed McGuire to their practice squad on September 9, 2020. He was released on October 27.

Miami Dolphins

On December 9, 2020, McGuire was signed to 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 ...

' practice squad. He was elevated to the active roster on December 12 for the team's Week 14 game against the

, and reverted to the practice squad after the game. He was released on December 14, 2020.

Kansas City Chiefs (second stint)

On December 22, 2020, McGuire signed with the practice squad of the

. His practice squad contract with the team expired after the season on February 16, 2021. McGuire re-signed with the Chiefs on March 31, 2021. He was placed on injured reserve on August 17, 2021. He was released on August 26 after reaching an injury settlement with the Chiefs. He was re-signed to the practice squad on October 12. He was released on January 19, 2022.

Personal life

McGuire earned his college degree in General Studies in December 2016.

References

External links

Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football bio

Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns men's basketball bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:McGuire, Elijah 1994 births Living people Players of American football from Houma, Louisiana American football running backs Vandebilt Catholic High School alumni Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football players Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns men's basketball players New York Jets players Cleveland Browns players Kansas City Chiefs players Dallas Cowboys players Miami Dolphins players Basketball players from Louisiana Guards (basketball)