James Daniels (born September 13, 1997) 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 wi ...

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

for the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North Division. Founded in , the Ste ...

of 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 ...

(NFL). He played college football at

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

Early years

Daniels attended Harding High School in

Warren, Ohio Warren is a city in and the county seat of Trumbull County, Ohio, United States. Located in northeastern Ohio, Warren lies approximately northwest of Youngstown and southeast of Cleveland. The population was 39,201 at the 2020 census. The hi ...

and was a three year starter for the varsity football team. Along with football, he also participated in track. He committed to play football for the Iowa Hawkeyes in July 2014, choosing the Hawkeyes over schools such as

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

, Auburn, and

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

among others.

College career

Daniels played center at Iowa from 2015 to 2017. After his junior season in 2017, he chose to forgo his senior season and enter the 2018 NFL Draft. He played in 37 games for the Hawkeyes over three years.

Professional career

Chicago Bears

Daniels was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the second round, 39th overall, of the 2018 NFL Draft. Eric Kush started the 2018 season at left guard, though Daniels was slowly integrated into the role by splitting time with Kush as the year progressed. On October 28, he became the starter at the position against the New York Jets after Kush suffered a neck injury. He started 10 games as a rookie, nine at left guard and one at right guard. Before the 2019 season, Daniels was moved to

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 eccentrici ...

, with then-incumbent center

Cody Whitehair Cody Michael Whitehair (born July 11, 1992) is an American football offensive guard for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Kansas State. High school career A native of Abilene, Kansas, Whiteh ...

shifting to left guard. In November, with the Bears' offense struggling and right guard

Kyle Long Kyle Howard Long (born December 5, 1988) is an American football guard who is a free agent. The son of Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive end Howie Long and the younger brother of former defensive end Chris Long. He played college football at ...

being placed on injured reserve, Daniels returned to left guard. In the fifth game of the 2020 season 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) South division. The cl ...

, Daniels suffered a season-ending pectoral muscle tear. He was placed on injured reserve on October 14.

Pittsburgh Steelers

On March 17, 2022, Daniels signed a three-year, $26.5 million contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Personal life

Daniels is the younger brother of running back LeShun Daniels, who was his teammate at Iowa, and was signed by the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2017.

References

External links

Chicago Bears bioIowa bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Daniels, James 1997 births Living people Sportspeople from Warren, Ohio Players of American football from Ohio American football centers American football offensive guards Iowa Hawkeyes football players Chicago Bears players Pittsburgh Steelers players