Justin Jamaal Ellis (born December 27, 1990) 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 ...

nose tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

. He was selected by 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 ...

in the fourth round of 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 ...

. 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

Louisiana Tech Bulldogs Louisiana Tech Bulldogs and Lady Techsters, commonly abbreviated LA Tech and Dogs, refer to the sports teams of Louisiana Tech University, in Ruston, Louisiana. The teams compete in Division I of NCAA sports. Since 2013, Louisiana Tech has been ...

Early life

Ellis attended

Neville High School Neville High School is a high school in Monroe, Louisiana, United States. It is administered by the Monroe City Schools Board. It is located 1/2 mile from the Ouachita River. Its mascot is the Tiger. Academics Neville offers a wide variety of a ...

Monroe, Louisiana Monroe is the ninth-largest city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and is the parish seat and largest city of Ouachita Parish. With a 2020 census-tabulated population of 47,702, it is the principal city of the Monroe metropolitan statistical ...

, where he was a two-time first-team all-District 2-4A selection. He was named first-team all-state by the LSWA as a senior, and was a two-time all-Northeast Louisiana selection by the Monroe News-Star. Ellis also lettered three years in

track & field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and ...

, competing in the

shot put The shot put is a track-and-field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical Ball (sports), ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. For men, the sport has been a part of the Olympic Games, modern Olympics since their 1896 Summer Olym ...

, where he finished third in the state as a junior, the

javelin throw The javelin throw is a track and field event where the javelin, a spear about in length, is thrown as far as possible. The javelin thrower gains momentum by running within a predetermined area. Javelin throwing is an event of both the men's de ...

(top-throw of 47.2 meters) and the

discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field sport in which the participant athlete throws an oblate spheroid weight (object), weight called a discus in an attempt to mark a further distance than other competitors. It is a ...

, where he captured the state title with a throw of 47.15 meters in 2009. He was rated a two-star recruit by ''

Rivals.com Rivals.com (stylized as ''rivals'') is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was found ...

''.

College career

Ellis attended

Louisiana Tech University Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public university, public research university in Ruston, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and Carnegie Classification of Institu ...

from 2009 to 2013. He

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 ...

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 ...

in 2009. In 2010, Ellis played in four games and recorded three

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position) A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent ...

. In 2011, he was a second-team All-

Western Athletic Conference The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the Western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, Texas, Utah and Washington (state), Washington. Due to ...

(WAC) selection after appearing in all 13 games, recording 20 tackles, 3.5 for loss, one

sack A sack usually refers to a rectangular-shaped bag. Sack may also refer to: Bags * Flour sack * Gunny sack * Hacky sack, sport * Money sack * Paper sack * Sleeping bag * Stuff sack * Knapsack Other uses * Bed, a slang term * Sack (band), ...

and one

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful h ...

recovery. In 2012, he recorded 21 total tackles with two forced fumbles. In 2013, he recorded a career high 48 tackles, and set career bests in

tackles for loss 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 ...

with 5.5, and sacks with 1.5, earning himself conference honorable mention honors.

Professional career

Oakland Raiders

Ellis was selected by the

in the fourth round (107th overall) of the

. He was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team. On March 9, 2018, Ellis signed a three-year $15 million contract extension with the Raiders. On September 13, 2018, Ellis 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 ...

after suffering a foot injury in Week 1. He was activated off injured reserve on December 1, 2018. On August 31, 2019, Ellis was placed on injured reserve. He was released on October 8, 2019.

Baltimore Ravens

On November 12, 2019, Ellis was signed by 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 ...

. On March 21, 2020, Ellis re-signed with the Ravens. On March 5, 2021, Ellis signed a one-year contract extension with the Ravens. He was released on August 31, 2021, and re-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 ...

the next day. He was promoted to the active roster on September 15, 2021.

New York Giants

On March 23, 2022, 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 ...

signed Ellis to a one-year contract. In Week 13 against the

Washington Commanders 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) East division ...

Ellis recorded his first sack on

Taylor Heinicke Taylor Heinicke ( ; born March 15, 1993) is an American professional football quarterback for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Old Dominion Monarchs football, Old Dominion Monarch ...

Atlanta Falcons

On July 28, 2023, Ellis signed with 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 ...

. He was released on August 26, 2023.

Miami Dolphins

On December 6, 2023, Ellis 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 not signed to a reserve/future contract after the season and thus became a free agent upon the expiration of his practice squad contract.

NFL career statistics

References

External links

Louisiana Tech Bulldogs bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Justin Living people 1990 births Players of American football from Monroe, Louisiana American football defensive tackles Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football players Oakland Raiders players Baltimore Ravens players New York Giants players Atlanta Falcons players Miami Dolphins players