Jeffrey Matthew Ogden (born February 22, 1975) is a former American football wide receiver,

kickoff Kickoff or kick-off may refer to * Kick-off (association football) * Kickoff (gridiron football) * ''Kick Off'' (series), a series of computer association football games * ''Kick Off'' (album), a 1985 album by Onyanko Club * ''Kick Off'' (mag ...

and punt returner 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 ...

for 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 divi ...

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 p ...

and

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 it ...

. He played college football at Eastern Washington University.

Early years

Ogden was born with a problem in his foot that led specialists to believe that he would have a permanent limp. He eventually overcame the physical problem and turned into a top-ranked youth

gymnast Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, sh ...

. He attended

Snohomish High School Snohomish High School (SHS) is a secondary school located in the Snohomish School District, in Snohomish, Washington, United States. SHS, built for 1200 students, contains 1,689 9th–12th graders (as of 2016–17). The school serves primarily t ...

, where he played as wide receiver,

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

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. Ther ...

and defensive back in American football. He also

lettered Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

in track and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

College career

Following one year spent as a

pole vault Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the Myc ...

er at

Clackamas Community College Clackamas Community College (CCC) is a public community college in Oregon City, Oregon. Founded in 1966, it is one of the largest community colleges in the state of Oregon. Clackamas Community College offers courses at three campuses: the centr ...

, he walked-on at Eastern Washington University. As a freshman, he appeared in 4 games, collecting one reception for 4 yards. As a sophomore, he suffered a season-ending back injury after starting the first three games, finishing with 2 receptions for 36 yards. As a junior, he appeared in 10 games, making 10 receptions for 216 yards. Although he only had 13 receptions going into his senior year, he would start 14 games at wide receiver for the 1997 football team that compiled a 12-2 record, won the

Big Sky Conference The Big Sky Conference (BSC) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I with football competing in the Football Championship Subdivision. Member institutions are located in the western United States in the eig ...

title and advanced to the semifinals of the

Division I-AA The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athleti ...

playoffs. He led the team with 57 receptions for 1,148 yards (school record) and 13 receiving touchdown]s (tied school record). He also practiced gymnastics.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Ogden was signed 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 ...

by the Dallas Cowboys after the

1998 NFL Draft The 1998 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 18–19, 1998, at the Theater at M ...

. He had some notable preseason performances, but never developed into a consistent wide receiver. In the regular season, he usually was the team's fifth receiver and played mostly on special teams, making 10 tackles (tied for sixth on the team). In 1999, he returned 12 kickoffs for a 21-yard average and made five special teams tackles. In 2000, he was allocated to the

Rhein Fire Rhein may refer to: Places * Rhine, a major river in Europe (german: Rhein, link=no) * Rhein, a village in the municipality of Morsbach in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany * Rhein (Ostpreussen), a former name of the town Ryn in Poland Ships * SM ...

of NFL Europe, where he ranked fifth in the league with 44 receptions for 635 yards, despite missing the last two games with a sprained right foot. He also had 7 touchdowns, while helping the team finish with the league's best record (7-3) and winning

World Bowl 2000 World Bowl 2000 (also referred to as World Bowl VIII) was the eighth championship game of the NFL Europe League. It was held at Waldstadion in Frankfurt, Germany on June 25, 2000. The match-up was between the 6–4 Scottish Claymores and the 7–3 ...

. He returned to the Cowboys with a sprained foot and later injured the left one, which caused him to miss most of

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events, ...

. On August 22, he was traded to the

in exchange for a seventh round draft choice, which the team later used to select

Pete Hunter Ralph Everette "Pete" Hunter (born May 25, 1980) is a former professional American football defensive back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, Cleveland Browns and Seattle Seahawks. He played college footba ...

Miami Dolphins

In 2000, he reunited with offensive coordinator

Chan Gailey Thomas Chandler Gailey Jr. (born January 5, 1952) is a former American football coach. Most recently in 2020, he was the offensive coordinator for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). Gailey has previously served as the hea ...

, who was his head coach with the Dallas Cowboys and also found a niche as a returner. Against the Green Bay Packers, he returned a punt for an 81-yard touchdown, the third-longest punt return in team history. He also finished the season with a league leading and franchise single-season record 17-yard punt return average. In 2001, his 11.8-yard punt return average ranked eighth in the NFL. On September 1, 2002, he was waived after being passed on the depth chart by Albert Johnson. He left as the Dolphins' all-time team leader in punt return average (13.7-yard) and third all-time in punt return yards (700 yards).

Baltimore Ravens

On September 10, 2002, he was signed as a

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 ...

by the

to play on special teams. He appeared in 3 games and was declared inactive in 10, while sharing punt return duties with

Chris McAlister Christopher James McAlister (born June 14, 1977) is a former American college and professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL) for eleven seasons. He played college football for the University of Ar ...

. He wasn't re-signed at the end of the season. Ogden's most productive season as a wide receiver was in 1999, when he caught 12 passes for 144 yards in 10 games. He caught his only touchdown reception in 2001. He ended his professional career playing in 67 games, registering 28 receptions for 304 yards and one touchdown.

Personal life

He owns a fitness club. He was an assistant coach in NFL Europe and at

Duquesne University Duquesne University of the Holy Spirit ( or ; Duquesne University or Duquesne) is a private Catholic research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded by members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit , image = Holy Gh ...

. Ogden appeared in seasons 7 and 8 of the

Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels *Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 *Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing company ...

show ''

The Millionaire Matchmaker ''The Millionaire Matchmaker'' was an American reality television series on Bravo that premiered on January 22, 2008, and is hosted by Patti Stanger. ''The Millionaire Matchmaker'' follows Patti Stanger, owner of the Beverly Hills-based "Millio ...

'', where he sought a date.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ogden, Jeff 1975 births Living people People from Snohomish, Washington Players of American football from Washington (state) American football return specialists American football wide receivers Eastern Washington Eagles football players Dallas Cowboys players Rhein Fire players Miami Dolphins players Baltimore Ravens players Duquesne Dukes football coaches