Richard Rhondel James Jr. (born September 5, 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 ...

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 ...

. 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 ...

Middle Tennessee Middle Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of Tennessee that composes roughly the central portion of the state. It is delineated according to state law as 41 of the state's 95 counties. Middle Tennessee contains the state's capital an ...

and was selected by the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the 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 ...

in the seventh round of the

2018 NFL draft The 2018 NFL draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington southwest of Dallas; it was ...

. He has also played for 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 ...

. With the Chiefs, he won

Super Bowl LVIII Super Bowl LVIII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2023 NFL season, 2023 season. A rematch of Super Bowl LIV four years prior, the American Football Conference (AFC) 20 ...

Early life

James attended Riverview High School in

Sarasota, Florida Sarasota () is a city in and the county seat of Sarasota County, Florida, United States. It is located in Southwest Florida, the southern end of the Tampa Bay area, and north of Fort Myers, Florida, Fort Myers and Punta Gorda, Florida, Punta Gord ...

. Along with playing

, he also participated and lettered in track, winning multiple state titles. James originally committed to play football for the Georgia Southern Eagles in December 2013, but decommitted after a coaching change. He then committed to play football for the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders in January 2014 and signed in February 2014.

College career

James did not play as a true freshman in 2014 and ended up choosing to

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Sports * Redshirt (college sports) 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 ...

. As a redshirt freshman in 2015, James played in all 13 of Middle Tennessee's games, catching 108 passes for 1,346 yards and eight

touchdowns 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 ...

. He also rushed for 146 yards and one touchdown on 12 attempts. He was named to the 2015 All-

Conference USA Conference USA (CUSA) is a collegiate athletic conference of member institutions in the Southern and Western United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. CUSA's offices are located in Dallas, Texas. Mem ...

(C-USA) First Team and the 2015 C-USA All-Freshman Team. In 2016, James once again played in all 13 games, catching 105 passes for 1,625 yards, tallying 12 touchdowns, along with rushing for 339 yards and four touchdowns on 38 attempts. He was named to the 2016 C-USA All-Conference First Team. As a redshirt junior in 2017, James played in five games, catching 31 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns. However, he broke his collarbone against

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia *Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria ** Marshall railway station Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Is ...

and was ruled out for the season. During his limited playing time in 2017, James became Middle Tennessee's career leader in receiving yards (3,261) and receiving touchdowns (23). After the season, James declared for the

College statistics

Professional career

San Francisco 49ers

James was selected by the

in the seventh round with the 240th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. During Week 5 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. The ...

, he made his first NFL reception, which went for seven yards. During a Week 14 victory against 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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

, James scored his first NFL touchdown after returning a 97-yard kickoff return in the first quarter. In the regular-season finale against 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 ...

, he caught three passes for 32 yards and a touchdown. James finished his rookie year with 655 return yards and a touchdown along with nine receptions for 130 yards and a touchdown. James was placed on the reserve/

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

list by the 49ers on July 27, 2020. He was activated from the reserve/COVID-19 list and subsequently placed on the active/ non-football injury list eight days later. He was activated on September 3, 2020. He 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 ...

on September 18, 2020, after suffering a hamstring injury in Week 1. He was designated to return from injured reserve on October 7, and began practicing with the team again. He was activated on October 17. On November 5, 2020, on ''

Thursday Night Football ''Thursday Night Football'' (often abbreviated as ''TNF'') is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games that broadcast primarily on Thursday nights. Most of the games kick off at 8:15 Eastern Time (8:20 prior to ...

'' against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

, James had nine receptions for 184 yards and a touchdown, which was higher than either of his season totals in 2018 and 2019. However the 49ers lost 34–17. On August 28, 2021, James was waived/injured by the 49ers after undergoing knee surgery and was placed on injured reserve.

New York Giants

On March 25, 2022, James signed with the

. In Week 8 against the

James fumbled twice on 2 different punt returns. The second fumble came in the fourth quarter and cost the Giants any chance of making a comeback. In the 2022 regular season, James accumulated 57 receptions for 569 yards and four touchdowns, contributing to the Giants' first playoff berth since 2016.

Kansas City Chiefs

James signed with the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

on April 11, 2023. He was placed on injured reserve on September 23, 2023. He was activated on November 18. James played in

where the Chiefs beat his former team

25–22.

NFL career statistics

References

External links

Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:James, Richie 1995 births Living people Players of American football from Sarasota, Florida Riverview High School (Sarasota, Florida) alumni American football wide receivers Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football players San Francisco 49ers players New York Giants players Kansas City Chiefs players