James Anthony Molinaro (born April 27, 1981) is a retired

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 ...

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...

in the

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(NFL). He was drafted by the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

in the

2004 NFL Draft The 2004 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 24–25, 2004 at the Theater at ...

in the sixth round with the 180th overall pick. 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 ...

at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

High school career

Molinaro was a ''

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'' "Honorable Mention All-American" during his high school football career at

Bethlehem Catholic High School Bethlehem Catholic High School, more commonly referred to as Becahi or just Beca, is a parochial high school located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The school is within the Diocese of Allentown and is located at 2133 Madison Avenue in Bethlehem in ...

Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Bethlehem is a city in Northampton and Lehigh Counties in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, Bethlehem had a total population of 75,781. Of this, 55,639 were in Northampton County and 19, ...

1997 season

Molinaro was named a "First-team Associated Press Big School All-State" selection in 1997 and again in 1998, his junior and senior years. In 1997, he was one of five finalists for the "Pennsylvania Lineman of the Year Award", posting 46 tackles, 17 of them solo, 12.5 sacks, four tackles for losses, 15 forced passes and one batted pass.

1998 season

During his senior year at Bethlehem Catholic, in 1998, Molinaro recorded 18 solo tackles, 29 assists, 11.5 sacks, 8 forced passes, and 4 batted passes, helping lead Bethlehem Catholic to a 7-4 record. Molinaro was a three-year starter for Bethlehem Catholic, earning four letters in football as an offensive and

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

College career

Molinaro was recruited out of Bethlehem Catholic by the

. After redshirting his first season, Molinaro played as a reserve

in 2000, during which he posted one solo tackle. In 2001, Molinaro appeared in six games, seeing most of his action on

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

, but starting at

right tackle Tackle is a playing position in gridiron football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a tackle played on both offense and defense. In the modern system of specialized units, ...

in Notre Dame's game against the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

. In 2002, Molinaro appeared in every game for the Fighting Irish and had two starts, mostly playing offensive lineman and appearing on special teams. In 2003, Molinaro started every game for the Fighting Irish and graded out at 83.1 percent for blocking consistency, posting 104 knockdown blocks. He was named both an "All-Independent" and "Super Sleeper" selection by ''The NFL Draft Report'' following his senior year at Notre Dame.

NFL career

Washington Redskins

Molinaro entered the

and was selected in the sixth round, with the 180th overall selection, by the

. With the Redskins, he appeared in 24 games in his first two NFL seasons (2004 and 2005). In 2005, he helped lead the Redskins to their first NFL playoff appearance since 1999.

Dallas Cowboys

On March 21, 2008, he signed with 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 ...

Post-NFL career

Molinaro is active in real estate development in 2015 he was nominated “40 under 40” in the Piedmont Triad region of

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. Molinaro has been involved in various retail, industrial, and commercial developments in North Carolina,

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, and

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. He resides in

Summerfield, North Carolina Summerfield is a town in Guilford County, North Carolina. The population was 7,018 at the 2000 census. At the 2010 census, the population had risen to 10,232. The town is largely regarded as a suburb of Greensboro and as development has grown, th ...

with his wife Erin (married in 2013) and son James Anthony Molinaro III (born in 2016).

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Molinaro, Jim 1981 births Living people American football offensive tackles Bethlehem Catholic High School alumni Dallas Cowboys players Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players Players of American football from Pennsylvania Sportspeople from Northampton County, Pennsylvania Sportspeople from Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Washington Redskins players