James Kelley Washington (born August 21, 1979) 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 ...

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 ...

and

special teamer In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

. He was selected 65th overall by 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 ...

in the third round of the

2003 NFL draft The 2003 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League (NFL) teams selected amateur college football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually since 1936 NF ...

. 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 ...

. Washington was also a member of the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

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 ...

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 ...

, and the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

Early life

Washington was born in

Stephens City, Virginia Stephens City ( ) is an List of towns in Virginia, incorporated town in the southern part of Frederick County, Virginia, United States, with a population of 2,016 at the time of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, and an estimated po ...

, where he attended

Sherando High School Sherando High School is a public secondary school within Frederick County, Virginia, United States, and is part of Frederick County Public Schools. The school is located east of the town of Stephens City. History Sherando High School was open ...

, and was a letterman in football, basketball, and baseball. In football, he was a two-way starter as a quarterback and defensive back and as a senior he was an All-State selection. He twice led his team to the Virginia Class AA-Division 4 State Championship game, though the Warriors lost both times.

Baseball career

He was taken in the tenth round of the June 1997 professional baseball draft by the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. The team plays its home games at LoanDepot Park. The ...

and signed as a shortstop. Washington spent four years in the minor leagues, often rooming with future All-Star pitcher

Josh Beckett Joshua Patrick Beckett (born May 15, 1980) is an American former professional baseball pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). A three-time MLB All-Star, he played for the Florida Marlins, the Boston Red Sox, and the Los Angeles Dodgers. Afte ...

. He never played higher than Single-A.

College career

Washington spent two seasons at 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 ...

. As a 22-year-old freshman in 2001, he caught 70 passes for 1,080 yards and seven touchdowns and made the freshman All-American team. In 2001, he etched his name in the Tennessee school history with a single-game record 256 receiving yards on 11 catches in the regular season matchup with LSU. Considered a lock to be a first-round pick if he left early, Washington stayed for his sophomore year but was limited to four games due to injuries. After missing the first two games of that 2002 season with a knee sprain, and suffered a concussion October 12 at Georgia that sidelined him for the remainder of the season. He underwent surgery on November 19 to fuse two vertebrae in his neck.

Professional career

Cincinnati Bengals

Washington was selected 65th overall by the

in the third round of the

. He made his NFL debut in Week 1 of the 2003 season against the Broncos. He scord his first NFL touchdown in Week 8 against the Seahawks on an eight-yard reception from Jon Kitna. He never got much playing time while in Cincinnati, recording just 893 yards and nine touchdowns in four seasons. In Cincinnati, he was famous for his signature "Squirrel" dance after scoring touchdowns. He was released following the 2006 season.

New England Patriots

On March 11, 2007, Washington agreed to a five-year deal with the

, reuniting him with his college teammate and fellow wide receiver

Donté Stallworth Donté Lamar Stallworth (born November 10, 1980) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for ten seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers and was se ...

. The deal, with a $300,000 signing bonus and a $4-million bonus due in the 2008, could be worth as much as $22 million over five years. While Washington had not been used as a wide receiver by the Patriots, he had seen time on special teams, blocking a punt against 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 ...

. On February 29, 2008, Washington was re-signed by the Patriots under a new contract. Washington was released by the Patriots on February 17, 2009.

Baltimore Ravens

The

invited Washington to an offseason mini-camp to try out for the team, competing against fellow veteran, free-agent receivers Jerry Porter and

Tab Perry Tab Wilson Perry (born January 20, 1982) is an American former professional football wide receiver. He was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the sixth round of the 2005 NFL draft. He played college football at UCLA. Perry was also a member ...

. Washington outperformed Porter and Perry, and on May 14, 2009, Washington agreed to terms on a contract with the Ravens. During the 2009 season, set career highs across the board, with 31 receptions, 431 yards, and two touchdowns.

Philadelphia Eagles

Washington was signed by the

on July 31, 2010. Washington was released by the Eagles on September 5, 2010, after failing to make the 53-man roster.

San Diego Chargers

The

signed Washington to a short-term contract on November 4, 2010. He had 13 catches for 173 yards and a touchdown in the 2010 season. His lone touchdown came in Week 16 against the Bengals.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Washington, Kelley 1979 births Living people People from Stephens City, Virginia Players of American football from Virginia American football wide receivers Tennessee Volunteers football players Cincinnati Bengals players New England Patriots players Baltimore Ravens players Philadelphia Eagles players San Diego Chargers players Baseball players from Virginia Gulf Coast Marlins players Brevard County Manatees players Kane County Cougars players Baseball shortstops Baseball third basemen