Rush James "R. J." Archer II (born August 5, 1987) 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 ...

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

who played in the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 Arena Football League season, 1987 season, making it the third longest-runnin ...

(AFL) and

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL). 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

William & Mary Tribe The William & Mary Tribe is a moniker for the College of William & Mary's athletic teams and the university's community more broadly. William & Mary has won two team national championships (both in men's tennis), the AIAW championships in wo ...

. Archer went undrafted in the

2010 NFL draft The 2010 NFL draft was the 75th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The 2010 NFL draft, draft took place over three days, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, with the first ...

, afterwards signing with the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

of 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).

Early life

Archer was a three-year starter at Albemarle High School. He holds the school's record for passing yards (4,568),

touchdown 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 ...

passes (41), completions, and attempts.

College career

Archer enrolled at

The College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (abbreviated as W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1693 under a royal charter issued by King William III and Queen Mary II, it is the second-oldest institut ...

and was

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 ...

his first year, during which time he ran the

scout team The following terms are used in American football, both conventional and indoor. Some of these terms are also in use in Canadian football Canadian football, or simply football, is a Sports in Canada, sport in Canada in which two teams of ...

. During the

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

and 2007 seasons, he changed positions from quarterback to

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 ...

, where he totaled 69 receptions. In

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, he moved back to quarterback, but was not the full-time starter until the 2009 season when he threw for 16 touchdowns and nine

interception In Ball game, ball-playing Competitive sport, competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for ...

College statistics

Professional career

Archer was rated the 17th best quarterback in the

by NFLDraftScout.com. Archer went undrafted in the

, but was signed by the Vikings as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. He was released prior to training camp on June 29. On November 10, 2010, Archer signed with the

Spokane Shock The Spokane Shock were a professional indoor American football team based in Spokane, Washington, that played their home games at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena. The team was initially a member of arenafootball2 (af2), the Shock won divis ...

of the

. With injuries to Vikings quarterbacks

Brett Favre Brett Lorenzo Favre ( ; born October 10, 1969) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons, primarily with the Green Bay Packers. Favre had 321 cons ...

and Joe Webb, Minnesota re-signed him 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 ...

on December 7. He was subsequently placed on the Other League Exempt list by the Spokane Shock. He was elevated to the Vikings' 53-man roster on December 20 when quarterback

Tarvaris Jackson Tarvaris D'Andre Jackson (April 21, 1983 – April 12, 2020) was an American professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL). Jackson played college football for the Arkansas Razorbacks and the Alabama State ...

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 took the roster spot of guard Steve Hutchinson. The next day, it was reported that Archer was waived by the Vikings in favor of quarterback

Rhett Bomar Rhett Matthew Bomar (born July 2, 1985) is an American former professional football quarterback. He was selected by the New York Giants in the fifth round of the 2009 NFL draft. He played college football at the University of Oklahoma and Sam Ho ...

, who was signed off the practice squad of 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 ...

. Archer played for the Milwaukee Mustangs of the

in 2011 and the

Georgia Force The Georgia Force was an Arena Football League (AFL) team based in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States (part of suburban Atlanta) that played in the South Division of the American Conference. The team was owned by Doug MacGregor and Donn ...

of the AFL in 2012. On June 22, 2012, Archer was signed by the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

. He was waived on August 23. On October 11, 2012, Archer was added to the practice roster of the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division (CFL), West division. They play thei ...

of the CFL. He was promoted to the active roster on November 1 and dressed in one game for the Blue Bombers during the 2012 season but did not record any statistics. From 2013 to 2014, Archer played for the

Jacksonville Sharks The Jacksonville Sharks are a professional indoor football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, that competes in the Indoor Football League (IFL). The team plays its home games at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. They were members of the Are ...

of the Arena Football League, recording 104 touchdowns on 5,381 passing yards. On February 9, 2015, Archer was signed by

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

. He was released on September 5, 2015. On September 22, 2015, Archer signed with the

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions playe ...

. He dressed in two games for the Lions but did not record any statistics. He was released following the season. On December 3, 2015, the Sharks activated Archer from the other league exempt list.

AFL statistics

''Stats from ArenaFan'':

References

External links

Detroit Lions bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Archer, R. J. 1987 births Living people American football quarterbacks American football wide receivers Canadian football quarterbacks Georgia Force players Milwaukee Mustangs (2009–2012) players Minnesota Vikings players Detroit Lions players William & Mary Tribe football players Players of American football from Charlottesville, Virginia Jacksonville Sharks players Seattle Seahawks players Winnipeg Blue Bombers players BC Lions players Albemarle High School (Virginia) alumni Players of Canadian football from Virginia