Cameron Shainaan Tom (born June 21, 1995) 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 with ...

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

who is a free agent. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Southern Miss The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a public research university with its main campus located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor's, ma ...

and signed with 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 ...

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 ...

in 2017.

Early years

Tom attended and played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

Catholic High School Catholic schools are pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered under the aegis or in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school syste ...

. He played offensive guard for the Bears.

College career

Tom attended and played college football at Southern Miss from 2013–2016 under head coaches

Todd Monken Todd Robert Monken (born February 5, 1966) is an American football coach who currently serves as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Georgia. He is also the former offensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns, ...

and

Jay Hopson James Walter Hopson (born October 13, 1968) is an American football coach and former player. In 2016Hopsonmade history as the only head coach in the history of the state of Mississippi to guide two different in-state universities to bowl games whe ...

. As a freshman, he started nine games. He made his debut in the season opener against

Texas State Texas State University is a public research university in San Marcos, Texas. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has grown to the second largest university in the Greater Austin metropolitan area and the fifth largest university ...

and earned his first start against

Boise State Boise State University (BSU) is a public research university in Boise, Idaho. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding baccalaureate and master's degrees It became a publ ...

. As a sophomore, he started all 12 games. As a junior, he started all 14 games at the center position.

Professional career

New Orleans Saints

Tom signed with the

as an undrafted free agent on May 1, 2017. He was waived on September 2, 2017, and was signed to the Saints'

practice squad In sports, 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. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

the next day. He was promoted to the active roster on October 25, 2017. He made his NFL debut in Week 3 of the 2018 season against the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

. On August 31, 2019, Tom 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 th ...

. On April 8, 2020, Tom re-signed with the Saints. He was waived on September 5, 2020, and signed to the practice squad the next day. He was elevated to the active roster on November 29 for the team's week 12 game against the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

, and reverted to the practice squad after the game. He was elevated again on January 16, 2021, for the team's divisional playoff game against the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

, and reverted to the practice squad again following the game. His practice squad contract with the team expired after the season on January 25, 2021.

Miami Dolphins

On February 3, 2021, Tom signed a reserve/futures contract with the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...

. He was waived on August 31, 2021 and re-signed to the practice squad the next day. He was promoted to the active roster on November 10, 2021. He was waived on December 4 and re-signed to the practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on December 24, 2021.

Philadelphia Eagles

Tom was signed by 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 club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

on July 27, . He was waived on August 30, 2022 and signed to the practice squad the next day. On February 17, 2023, Tom signed a reserve/future contract with the Eagles. He was released on August 27 as part of final roster cuts before the start of the 2023 season.

Los Angeles Chargers

On October 9, 2023, Tom was signed to the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...

practice squad. He was signed to the active roster on December 18.

Personal life

Tom's brother Zach is also an offensive lineman in the NFL and went to college at Wake Forest.

References

External links

Twitter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tom, Cameron 1995 births Living people American football centers Catholic High School (Baton Rouge, Louisiana) alumni Miami Dolphins players New Orleans Saints players Players of American football from Baton Rouge, Louisiana Southern Miss Golden Eagles football players Philadelphia Eagles players Los Angeles Chargers players