Joseph William Reed (born January 4, 1998) 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 with ...

wide receiver and

return specialist A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another position ...

for the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

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 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 ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

Early life and high school

Reed grew up in

Charlotte Court House, Virginia Charlotte Court House is a town in and the county seat of Charlotte County, Virginia, United States. The population was 756 at the 2020 census. Geography The town is located near the center of Charlotte County. Virginia State Route 40 passes thro ...

and attended Randolph-Henry High School. He played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

. He played running back as a freshman and moved to wide receiver before his sophomore year. He finished his sophomore season with 33 receptions for 900 yards and 21 total touchdowns and had 15 touchdown receptions as a junior. Reed moved from wide receiver to quarterback for his senior season and rushed for 2,100 yards and 38 touchdowns.

College career

As a freshman, Reed served as the Cavaliers' primary kick returner and returned 28 kicks for 678 yards total (25.1 average). As a sophomore, he returned 29 kicks for 861 yards with two touchdowns and caught 23 passes for 244 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for one touchdown and was named honorable mention All-

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...

(ACC) as a return specialist. Reed was named third-team All-ACC after finishing his junior season with 25 receptions for 465 yards and seven touchdowns and 707 yards and a touchdown on 26 kickoff returns. As a senior, Reed returned 24 kickoffs for 796 yards (33.2 yards per return) and two touchdowns and was named first-team All-ACC as an all-purpose performer and as a return specialist, as well as a first-team All-American by the Walter Camp Foundation and the Football Writers Association of America and won the

Jet Award The Jet Award, named in honor of 1972 Heisman Trophy Winner Johnny "The Jet" Rodgers, is awarded to the top return specialist in college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams ...

as the nation's top return specialist. Reed also led Virginia with 77 receptions for 679 yards and seven touchdowns.

Professional career

Los Angeles Chargers

Reed was selected by the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...

with the 151st overall pick in the fifth round of the

2020 NFL Draft The 2020 NFL Draft was the 85th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2020 NFL season. The first round was held on April 23, followed by the second and third rounds on April 24. The d ...

. He scored his first professional touchdown on a seven-yard rush against the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...

in Week 7. On August 31, 2021, Reed was waived by the Chargers and re-signed to the practice squad the next day. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Chargers on January 18, 2022. On August 30, 2022, Reed was waived by the Chargers and signed to the practice squad the next day.

Chicago Bears

On January 19, 2023, Reed signed a reserve/future contract with the

. He was waived/injured on August 26, 2023.

References

External links

Los Angeles Chargers bioVirginia Cavaliers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reed, Joe 1998 births Living people People from Charlotte County, Virginia Players of American football from Virginia American football wide receivers American football return specialists Virginia Cavaliers football players Los Angeles Chargers players All-American college football players Chicago Bears players