Jahad Thomas (born November 6, 1995) is a former American professional

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 American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

. 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 ...

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

, where he earned second-team All-

American Athletic Conference The American Athletic Conference (The American or AAC) is an American collegiate athletic conference, featuring 11 member universities and five affiliate member universities that compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) ...

honors in 2016. He 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 divisi ...

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 ...

after the 2017 NFL Draft.

Early life

Thomas was born to Connie Thomas and Eddie Roberts in

Elizabeth, New Jersey Elizabeth is a city and the county seat of Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.New J ...

. Thomas was a two-sport athlete at Elizabeth High School where he played both football and basketball. Thomas captained both teams. In football, Thomas played both running back and cornerback. He played alongside his college quarterback, Phillip Walker who currently plays for the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...

. Coming out of high school, Thomas was ranked as three-star prospect by ESPN and the fourth best running back in the state of New Jersey. Thomas also played in the North-South All-Star Football Game.

College career

Thomas decided to sign with the Temple Owls in 2013. In his freshman team with the Owls, Thomas served as the team's kick returner. He missed a game against the Army Black Knights with a knee injury. His special teams play was good enough to warrant a spot on Phil Steele's All-Conference Third-team. During the summer before his Sophomore year at Temple, Thomas transitioned into becoming a full-time running back. He did not start in the team's first game against Vanderbilt, but led the team with 44 yards on 12 carries. Temple went on to win that game. Later in the year, Thomas made his first start against

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. His best start of the season came against

Tulsa Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma and List of United States cities by population, 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

when he ran for 152 yards and caught a 20-yard touchdown, the first of his Temple career. Thomas' best year came as a Junior. He led Temple's offense with 1,262 rushing yards, 1,677 all-purpose yards, and scored 114 points. That year, Temple went 10–4 and 7–1 in the American Athletic Conference. On October 31, 2015, College Gameday was held in Philadelphia for Temple vs. Notre Dame. Temple went on to appear in the 2015 American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game and the 2015 Boca Raton Bowl. In his final year with Temple, Thomas ran for 953 yards. He gained enough yards to move up to fourth on Temple's all-time list in total yards. That year, Temple went on to win the

2016 American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game The 2016 American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game, held on Saturday, December 3, 2016, was the second football championship game for that conference. Houston defeated Temple, 24–13, in last year's game. Teams Navy The Navy Mids ...

, but lost in the 2016 Military Bowl against Wake Forest.

Professional career

Entering the draft, Thomas was labeled as a "Productive running back lacking in NFL-caliber size and strength but who makes up for it with his quickness and ability to help as a pass catcher and return man" by Lance Zierlein of NFL.com.

Dallas Cowboys

Thomas signed with the

as an undrafted free agent on May 12, 2017. He was waived on July 28, 2017.

New York Jets

On August 23, 2017, Thomas was signed by the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

. He was waived on September 2, 2017. He was re-signed to the practice squad on October 10, 2017. He was released on October 18, 2017. He was re-signed on December 12, 2017. He was promoted to the active roster on December 30, 2017. He was waived on April 14, 2018.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers

On May 26, 2018, Thomas and the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West division. They play their home games at IG Fiel ...

announced that they had agreed to terms. He was cut by the team before the season started on June 10.

San Diego Fleet

In late 2018, Thomas was allocated to the

Memphis Express The Memphis Express was a professional American football franchise based in Memphis, Tennessee. It was a member of the Alliance of American Football (AAF) during its single season in 2019. They played their home games at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stad ...

of the

Alliance of American Football The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan are ...

. On January 21, 2019, he was traded to the

San Diego Fleet The San Diego Fleet was a professional American football franchise based in San Diego, California, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF). The league began play in February 2019, with the team playing its home game ...

for tight end Darryl Richardson in the first trade in league history. He did not make the final roster.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Jahad Living people 1995 births Elizabeth High School (New Jersey) alumni Players of American football from New Jersey Sportspeople from Elizabeth, New Jersey American football running backs Temple Owls football players Dallas Cowboys players New York Jets players Memphis Express (American football) players San Diego Fleet players