Chester Lamar Taylor (born September 22, 1979) also known as Che Tay is a former
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 wi ...
running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball,
and block. Th ...
in the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the majo ...
. He was drafted by the
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...
in the sixth round of the
2002 NFL Draft
The 2002 NFL draft was the 67th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually sinc ...
. In 2006, he signed with the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...
and played four seasons before signing with the
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine ...
. 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 in the United States, American football rules first gained populari ...
at the University of
Toledo.
Early years
Taylor was a four-time all-state running back and sprinter at
River Rouge High School before attending the
University of Toledo
The University of Toledo (UToledo or UT) is a public research university in Toledo, Ohio. It is the northernmost campus of the University System of Ohio. The university also operates a Health Science campus, which includes the University of ...
. While at Toledo, Taylor set school records for rushing yards and touchdowns.
In 2001, he led the Rockets to an impressive victory over in-state rival
Cincinnati Bearcats
The Cincinnati Bearcats are the athletic teams that represent the University of Cincinnati. Though they will move to the Big 12 Conference (XII) the teams are currently a part of the American Athletic Conference (The American), which from 1979 ...
in the
Motor City Bowl
The Little Caesars Pizza Bowl (known as the Motor City Bowl until 2009) was a post-season college football bowl game that was played annually from 1997 to 2013. The first five games (1997–2001) were played at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, ...
, giving Toledo their first bowl win since the
1995 Las Vegas Bowl
The 1995 Las Vegas Bowl was an American college football bowl game played on December 14 at Sam Boyd Stadium in Whitney, Nevada. The fourth edition of the annual Las Vegas Bowl, the Thursday night game was a bowl rematch of the Toledo Roc ...
. He was named the
MVP
In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...
of the game with 31 (Motor City Bowl Record) carries for 190 yards (then a Motor City Bowl Record) and a touchdown. In
track
Track or Tracks may refer to:
Routes or imprints
* Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity
* Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across
* Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...
, Taylor competed in the 100-meter dash and recorded a PR of 11.14 seconds.
Taylor ranked seventh in nation for the 2001 season with 1,492 rushing yards (268 attempts, 5.3 yards-per-carry) and 20 touchdowns. He also hauled in 26 receptions for 242 yards and three touchdowns, with a longest reception of 43 yards.
Taylor was named North Team MVP in the 2002
Hula Bowl
The Hula Bowl is a post-season college football all-star game held annually, usually in January. From inception through the 2021 playing, it was held in Hawaii; since the 2022 edition, it has been played in Orlando, Florida.
The game was first st ...
.
College statistics
Professional career
Baltimore Ravens
Taylor was taken with the 35th pick in the sixth round (207th overall) of the
2002 NFL Draft
The 2002 NFL draft was the 67th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually sinc ...
by the
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...
. He spent four years backing up
Jamal Lewis, seeing minimal yet increasing playing time throughout his tenure with the team. He also developed himself as a receiving threat, making him the Ravens third down back.
Minnesota Vikings
Taylor was signed by the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...
to a four-year, $14.1 million contract on March 12, 2006. On October 22, 2006, Taylor set a Vikings franchise record for longest run from scrimmage when he ran for a 95-yard touchdown in the third quarter, which is also an NFL record for the longest run in the 3rd quarter, 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 club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 a ...
. He also broke 1000 rushing yards for the first time in his NFL career. Taylor and
Adrian Peterson
Adrian Lewis Peterson (born March 21, 1985) is an American football running back who is a free agent. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest running backs in football history. He played college football at Oklahoma, where he set the ...
were considered one of the NFL's top running back tandems.
Chicago Bears
Taylor was signed by the
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine ...
to a four-year, $12.5 million contract on March 5, 2010. In 2010, Taylor shared carries with running back
Matt Forte. His stats fell compared to his times with the Ravens and Vikings and rushed for only 267 yards on 112 carries for a 2.4 yard average.
Taylor was released by Chicago during final cuts on September 3, 2011.
Arizona Cardinals
Taylor was claimed via waivers for a one-year contract by 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) West division, and play th ...
on September 4, 2011.
See also
*
List of Division I FBS rushing touchdown leaders
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Chester
1979 births
Living people
Players of American football from Michigan
African-American players of American football
American football running backs
Toledo Rockets football players
Minnesota Vikings players
Baltimore Ravens players
Chicago Bears players
Arizona Cardinals players
People from River Rouge, Michigan
21st-century African-American sportspeople
20th-century African-American sportspeople