Aravious "Ray-Ray" Armstrong (born March 5, 1991) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wit ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, pl ...

who is a free agent. He played college football at the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, ...

from 2009 to 2012. He was signed by the St. Louis Rams as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player 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 contract at present but who is a ...

Early years

Armstrong attended Seminole High School in

Sanford, Florida Sanford is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Seminole County. As of the 2020 census, its population was 61,051. Known as the "Historic Waterfront Gateway City", Sanford sits on the southern shore ...

. He played both

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

and safety. As a senior, he led Seminole to the 2008 FHSAA Class 6A state championship over

Teddy Bridgewater Theodore Edmond Bridgewater Jr. (born November 10, 1992) is an American football quarterback for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). Born and raised in Miami, Miami, Florida, he graduated from Miami Northwestern Senior Hi ...

Miami Northwestern Miami Northwestern Senior High School is a public four-year high school located in Miami, Florida, United States History Academics Northwestern has long been known for its academic challenges; however, the school has shown an unprecedented ...

. During that year he threw for 1,400 yards and 14

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Americ ...

, rushed for 1,144 yards with 22 touchdowns and caught three passes for 29 yards and one touchdown as a QB. As a safety he had 70 tackles, two

interceptions In ball-playing 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 a player of the same team ...

, three forced

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 ...

s and two fumble recoveries. He was considered the 13th best recruit in 2009 by Rivals.com.

College career

Armstrong accepted a football scholarship from the

. As a freshman for the

Miami Hurricanes The Miami Hurricanes (known informally as The U, UM, or The 'Canes) are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. The Hurricanes compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic A ...

in 2009, Armstrong played in 10 games, recording 14 tackles. As a sophomore in 2010, Armstrong took over as a starter and has 66 tackles, three

interception In ball-playing 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 a player of the same team ...

s and a

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Americ ...

in 11 games. On July 18, 2012, Armstrong was dismissed from the Hurricanes football team for being dishonest during an internal investigation. On August 14, 2012, it was announced that Armstrong had transferred to

Faulkner University Faulkner University is a private Christian university in Montgomery, Alabama. It is affiliated with the Churches of Christ. History The university was founded in 1942 by Dr. Rex Turner, Dr. Leonard Johnson and Joe Greer as Montgomery Bible S ...

and would play for the Faulkner Eagles, an NAIA team, during the 2012 season. However, Armstrong was declared ineligible on September 11, 2012, due to the circumstances of his dismissal from the Miami Hurricanes. NAIA rules prohibit any athlete "who has been permanently banned in a given sport at any four-year institution."

Professional career

St. Louis Rams

Armstrong was signed as an

by the St. Louis Rams after the

2013 NFL Draft The 2013 NFL Draft was the 78th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall i ...

on April 27, 2013. He registered 12

special teams 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 ...

tackles. In 2014, he appeared in 4 games. He was released on October 6.

Oakland Raiders

Armstrong was claimed off waivers by the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Ra ...

on October 7, 2014. He appeared in 11 games (3 starts). In 2015, he appeared in 10 games (2 starts). He was cut on November 24, 2015.

San Francisco 49ers

On November 25, 2015, Armstrong was claimed off waivers by the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

. On March 9, 2016, Armstrong signed a one-year contract extension with the 49ers. On September 21, 2016, he was placed on injured reserve with a pectoral injury. On December 19, 2016, Armstrong signed a two-year contract extension with the 49ers through the 2018 season. On November 25, 2017, Armstrong was released by the 49ers.

New York Giants

On November 27, 2017, Armstrong was claimed off waivers by 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 club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...

. On October 16, 2018, Armstrong was placed on the

injured reserve list 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 th ...

after suffering a concussion in Week 6. He appeared in 6 games and registered 20 tackles. He was released on October 23, 2018.

Cleveland Browns

On October 25, 2018, Armstrong was signed by the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

. He appeared in 9 games. The Browns re-signed Armstrong on a one year $1.550 million contract on March 13, 2019. He was released by the Browns on August 31.

New Orleans Saints

On September 18, 2019, Armstrong was signed by 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 league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

after the team placed linebacker

Alex Anzalone Alex Anzalone (born September 22, 1994) is an American football middle linebacker for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida. He was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the third round of ...

on the

. He appeared in 5 games, playing on

. He was released on October 22.

Dallas Cowboys

On December 24, 2019, Armstrong was signed by 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 club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divis ...

to provide depth because of injuries for the season finale. He had one

tackle 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 club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) ...

. He was not re-signed after the season.

Seattle Seahawks

On October 21, 2020, Armstrong was signed to the

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 club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 a ...

practice squad. He was elevated to the active roster on October 24 and December 12 for the team's weeks 7 and 14 games against 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, an ...

and New York Jets, and reverted to the practice squad after each game. He was released on December 15. On December 30, 2020, Armstrong re-signed with Seattle to their practice squad. His practice squad contract with the team expired after the season on January 18, 2021.

References

External links

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Behind the Facemask: Ray-Ray Armstrong
{{DEFAULTSORT:Armstrong, Ray-Ray 1991 births Living people 2011 University of Miami athletics scandal American football linebackers American football safeties Cleveland Browns players Dallas Cowboys players Miami Hurricanes football players New Orleans Saints players New York Giants players Oakland Raiders players Players of American football from Florida San Francisco 49ers players Seattle Seahawks players Seminole High School (Seminole County, Florida) alumni Sportspeople from Sanford, Florida St. Louis Rams players