James Robert Stone (born April 26, 1992) 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 ...

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

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

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

and

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 ...

. 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 ...

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 ...

Early life

Stone 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 Maplewood High School in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

. He was the Tennessee AA Lineman of the Year and named to the Tennessee Sports Writers All-State first-team. He competed in the 2010

Under Armour All-America Game The Under Armour High School All-America Game is a high school football all-star game typically held in early January in the United States, U.S. U.S. state, state of Florida created to spotlight the nation’s top high school seniors. The game wa ...

College career

Stone played from 2010 to 2013 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 ...

under head coaches Derek Dooley and

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 ...

Professional career

Pre-draft

Stone was rated the 10th best center in the

2014 NFL draft The 2014 NFL draft was the 79th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players to the league. The draft, officially the "Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall in New Y ...

by NFLDraftScout.com.

Atlanta Falcons

Stone signed with the

on May 10, 2014, after going undrafted in the 2014 NFL Draft. He made his NFL debut on October 5, 2014, against the

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

. In the 2014 season, Stone was in 12 games, starting nine at center. On November 30, 2014, Stone's offense recorded 500 total yards versus the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

. On December 8, 2014, Stone's offense recorded 465 total yards 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 ...

. Stone blocked for an offense that was 8th in the NFL in total offense with 378.2 yards per game. That same offense was 5th in passing yards per game with 284.6 yards a game. On October 11, 2015, Stone filled in at center for an injured

Mike Person Michael Sean Person (born May 17, 1988) is an American former professional football guard. He was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the seventh round of the 2011 NFL draft. He played college football for the Montana State Bobcats. Person ...

, the offense gained a season-high 418 total yards, including 176 yards on the ground against the

Washington Redskins 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) NFC East, East ...

. On October 15, 2015, Stone made his first start of the season, the offense gained 413 total yards, including 150 rushing yards against the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

. On December 18, 2015, Stone was placed on injured reserve with a knee injury. He was released by the Falcons with an injury settlement on July 19, 2016.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On January 20, 2017, Stone signed a reserve/future contract with the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

. He was waived on September 2, 2017.

Oakland Raiders

On September 4, 2017, Stone was signed to the

' practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on December 20, 2017. On September 1, 2018, Stone was released by the Raiders.

Chicago Bears

On September 3, 2018, Stone was signed to 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 ...

' practice squad. He was released on November 17, 2018. Stone was suspended for the first three weeks of the

2019 NFL season The 2019 NFL season was the 100th season of the National Football League (NFL) and the 54th of the Super Bowl era. The season began on September 5, 2019, with the NFL Kickoff Game, in which the Green Bay Packers defeated the Chicago Bears. T ...

, and was reinstated from suspension on September 24, 2019.

References

External links

*
Tennessee Volunteers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stone, James Living people 1992 births Players of American football from Nashville, Tennessee American football centers Under Armour All-American football players Tennessee Volunteers football players Atlanta Falcons players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Oakland Raiders players Chicago Bears players 21st-century African-American sportsmen