Eric Samuel Parker (born April 14, 1979) 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 with ...

wide receiver 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 ...

. He was signed by the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...

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 2002. 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 ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

. Parker spent the first six seasons of his career with the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

Early years

Parker attended

Joliet West High School Joliet West High School, along with Joliet Central, comprises district 204 Joliet Township High School district in Joliet, Illinois. West's mascot is the Tiger. Construction and expansion The school was originally constructed in 1964, one yea ...

Joliet, Illinois Joliet ( ) is a city in Will County, Illinois, Will and Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the cit ...

College career

Parker attended the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...

after graduating from Joliet West.

Professional career

Houston Texans

Coming out of college, Parker was labeled as injury-prone and thus was passed over in the draft. He was originally signed by the

as an

, but was released by in July.Texans Transactions – Houston Texans

San Diego Chargers

Shortly after his release from the Texans, Parker was signed by the San Diego Chargers. He spent some time on the practice squad and eventually made the active roster in late 2002. Parker had a productive campaign in 2003 before a shoulder injury cut his season short. His best season was in 2005 when he caught 57 passes for 725 yards. During the 2006 offseason, the Chargers signed Parker to a new five-year deal. In 2006, Parker and then #1 wide receiver

Keenan McCardell Keenan Wayne McCardell (; born January 6, 1970) is an American football coach and former wide receiver who is the wide receivers coach for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the wide receivers c ...

both ended the season with zero touchdown catches. Teammates

LaDainian Tomlinson LaDainian Tarshane Tomlinson (born June 23, 1979) is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. After a successful college career with the TCU Horned Frogs, the San Diego Chargers se ...

, tight end

Antonio Gates Antonio Ethan Gates Sr. (born June 18, 1980) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end for the San Diego / Los Angeles Chargers during his entire career in the National Football League (NFL). He was named to the Pro ...

and wide receiver

Vincent Jackson Vincent Terrell Jackson (January 14, 1983 – February 15, 2021) was an American professional football player who played as a wide receiver for 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Northern Colorado, ...

accounted for the majority of the Chargers' scores. Parker's 2006 season came to a disappointing end in the Divisional Round of the playoffs. In a game the Chargers lost to the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

by three points, Parker dropped two passes and fumbled a crucial third-quarter punt, which led to three points for the opposing team. In 2007, Eric Parker injured his toe during training camp. This led to the Chargers putting him on season-ending injured reserve. He was released by the team on July 23, 2008. In March 2009, Eric Parker joined the coaching staff of the San Diego Chargers as a wide receivers and conditioning assistant. He also coaches wrestling at

Helix Charter High School Helix High School, in La Mesa, California, is a charter high school built in 1952. It received its charter in 1998. Part of the Grossmont Union High School District, it serves a mid-level socioeconomic community and has a student body of approx ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Eric 1979 births Living people Players of American football from Chicago People from Shorewood, Illinois American football wide receivers Tennessee Volunteers football players San Diego Chargers players