Montae Nicholson (born December 4, 1995) 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 ...

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 ...

for the

DC Defenders The DC Defenders are a professional American football team based in Washington, D.C. The Defenders compete in the United Football League (2024), United Football League (UFL) as a member of the XFL Conference. The team was founded by Vince McMaho ...

of the United Football League (UFL). 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 ...

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 ...

and was selected by 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 ...

in the fourth round of the

2017 NFL draft The 2017 NFL draft was the 82nd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. It was held in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art on April 27–29, returning to Philadelphia f ...

Early life

Nicholson attended Gateway High School in

Monroeville, Pennsylvania Monroeville is a Home rule municipality (Pennsylvania), home rule municipality in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is a suburb with mixed residential and commercial developments located about east of Pittsburgh. As of the 202 ...

, where he starred in football,

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

and

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

. His senior year, Nicholson won PIAA gold medals in the 110 hurdles and 400-meter relay along with the state's 60-meter indoor hurdles title. He was named the ''

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review The ''Pittsburgh Tribune-Review'', also known as "the Trib", is the second-largest daily newspaper serving the Greater Pittsburgh metropolitan area of Western Pennsylvania. It transitioned to an all-digital format on December 1, 2016, but rema ...

'' Male Athlete of the Year. Regarded as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Nicholson was ranked as the No. 13

prospect in the class of 2014. He chose Michigan State over offers from

Florida State Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

Ohio State The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...

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 ...

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with ca ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

, and

Virginia Tech The Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, commonly referred to as Virginia Tech (VT), is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States ...

, among others.

College career

Nicholson played safety for Michigan State from 2014-2016. A three-year letterman, Nicholson played in 38 games with 23 starts, recording 200 tackles, 4 interceptions, 4 pass deflections, 3 fumble recoveries and 1 forced fumble. As a junior in 2016, he played in 11 games, starting 10 and being voted honorable mention All-

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representatives in 1 ...

at safety.

Professional career

Washington Redskins

2017

The

selected Nicholson in the fourth round (123rd overall) of the

. On May 11, 2017, Nicholson signed a four-year, 3 million contract. Throughout

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events ...

, he competed for the job as a backup safety against

Will Blackmon William Edwards Blackmon (born October 27, 1984) is an American former professional football safety and return specialist. He played college football for the Boston College Eagles, and was selected in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL draft by ...

, Deshazor Everett, Earl Wolff, Josh Evans, Stefan McClure, and Fish Smithson. Head coach Jay Gruden named him the backup

strong safety Safety (S), historically known as a safetyman, is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free sa ...

, behind Deshazor Everett, to begin the regular season after the original starting strong safety, Su'a Cravens, announced his decision to retire a week before their season-opener. He made his professional regular season debut in the Redskins' season-opening 30–17 loss to 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 ...

. On September 17, 2017, Nicholson earned his first career start and made two solo tackles in the Redskins' 27–20 victory at the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

in Week 2. Defensive coordinator Greg Manusky opted to use Nicholson in nickel packages and Everett in base formations. In Week 3, Nicholson recorded a solo tackle, a pass deflection, and made his first career interception off a pass by Derek Carr during a 27–10 victory against 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 ...

. On October 15, 2017, he recorded a season-high six combined tackles and broke up a pass, but left in the second quarter of the Redskins' 26–24 win against the San Francisco 49er after sustaining a

concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include headache, dizziness, difficulty with thinking and concentration, sleep disturbances, a brief ...

. His concussion occurred in the last 45 seconds of the half after Nicholson attempted to tackle wide receiver Pierre Garcon, but lowered shoulder and took a blow directly to his head that knocked off his helmet and rendered him unconscious. His concussion sidelined him for the next two games (Weeks 9–10). On November 18, 2017, he made four solo tackles before leaving in the third quarter of the Redskins' 20–10 victory 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 ...

after receiving another concussion. On December 19, 2017, Nicholson 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 ...

. He finished his rookie season with 24 combined tackles (18 solo), two pass deflections, and an interception in eight games and six starts.

2018

Nicholson entered the 2018 season as the Redskins starting free safety alongside strong safety D. J. Swearinger. He started the first seven games before losing the starting job in Week 9 after the Redskins traded for Ha-Ha Clinton-Dix. He was placed on the reserve/NFI list on December 19, 2018, following an assault and battery arrest.

2019

In week 2 against 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 ...

, Nicholson recorded his first interception of the season off Dak Prescott and returned it 23 yards as the Redskins lost 31–21. In week 5 against 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 ...

, Nicholson intercepted

Tom Brady Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 23 seasons. He spent his first 20 seasons with the New Engla ...

once in the 33–7 loss. He was placed on injured reserve on December 27, 2019. He finished the season with 62 tackles, four passes defensed, and two interceptions through 13 starts. He was waived on March 23, 2020, with a failed physical designation.

DC Defenders

Nicholson signed with the

of the XFL on March 8, 2023. He was placed on the team's reserve list on April 18, and activated on May 16. He re-signed with the team on January 30, 2024, and again on October 4, 2024. He was placed on injured reserve on April 4, 2025, and activated on May 12. He was placed on injured reserve again on May 14.

Personal life

On December 18, 2018, Nicholson was arrested and charged with public swearing, intoxication, and misdemeanor assault in Ashburn, Virginia. The charges were dropped in May 2019. On November 14, 2019, it was reported that the

Loudoun County Loudoun County () is in the northern part of the Virginia, Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. In 2020, the census returned a population of 420,959, making it Virginia's third-most populous county. The county seat is Leesburg, Virgi ...

Sheriff's Office was investigating Nicholson regarding the death of 21 year-old Julia Crabbe. On the night of Crabbe's death, Nicholson and another man were identified as the ones who drove Crabbe to a hospital. Crabbe's cause of death was linked to drug overdose, with Nicholson not being officially charged.

References

External links

*
Michigan State Spartans bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholson, Montae 1995 births Living people American football safeties Michigan State Spartans football players People from Monroeville, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Washington Redskins players 21st-century African-American sportsmen DC Defenders players