John Michael Skelton (born March 17, 1988) is a former

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 ...

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 ...

. 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 Fordham and was drafted by the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

in the fifth round of the

2010 NFL Draft The 2010 NFL Draft was the 75th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The 2010 draft took place over three days, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, with the firs ...

. He was also a member of the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...

and

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the Canadian F ...

High school career

Skelton attended

Burges High School Burges is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Alan Burges (1911–2002), Australian botanist * Anthony Burges (or Burgess; d. 1664), English Nonconformist clergyman *Cornelius Burges (1589?–1665), English minister * Daniel Burg ...

El Paso El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the s ...

, where his father served as an assistant coach. He lettered in

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

, and

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. After passing for 2,172 yards and 15 touchdowns as a senior in football, he earned first-team All-District I Class-AAAA and All-City honors, and was named the Offensive MVP by the ''

El Paso Times The ''El Paso Times'' is the newspaper for the US city of El Paso, Texas. The newspaper has an approximate daily circulation of 65,000 and 125,000 on Sundays. The paper is the only English-language daily in El Paso (when the '' El Paso Herald-Po ...

'' in 2005. He finished his football career as the starting quarterback in the 2006 El Paso All-Star Game. In basketball, Skelton earned All-City, All-District and All-Region honors. Changing positions every year in baseball, he earned All-District honors all four years and All-City honors in 2006.

College career

In 2006, midway through his freshman year at Fordham, Skelton won the starting quarterback position and started every game for the rest of his college career. He received

Patriot League The Patriot League is a collegiate athletic conference comprising private institutions of higher education and two United States service academies based in the Northeastern United States. Outside the Ivy League, it is among the most selective gr ...

rookie player of the week honors in that season. Skelton had a solid first full year as the starting quarterback in 2007, being named 2007 Second-team All-Patriot League in a season in which he threw for 22 touchdowns (the third best single season total in Fordham history). He threw for over 200 yards in seven games in 2007 and for over 300 yards in two games and ranked second in the Patriot League in passing yards per game and total offense. He led the Fordham Rams to a Patriot League championship, earning them a trip to the NCAA FCS playoffs. In the playoff game against the

University of Massachusetts The University of Massachusetts is the five-campus public university system and the only public research system in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes five campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, and a medica ...

, Skelton set a Patriot League playoff record for touchdowns responsible for at five(5), throwing for 3 and running for 2. In 2008, Fordham struggled to a 5–6 record, missing the playoffs. However, Skelton put up good numbers for the Fordham Rams with 2,650 yards, and 15 touchdowns with 7 interceptions, finishing the season ranked second in the Patriot League in passing average (236.8 yards/game) and total offense (244.5). John Skelton's senior year, the 2009 season, was a record-shattering one, with new school records for completions and passing yards. He led the NCAA FCS in passing yards/game (337.09) and total passing yards (3,708), ranked second in total offense (348.18/yards/game), and ranked third in completions per game (25.82). Out of the 11 scheduled games, Skelton threw for over 300 yards eight times, 4 times exceeding 400 yards. During his four-year career at Fordham, he completed 802 passes for 9,923 yards and 69 touchdowns, all school records. In recognition of his accomplishments and strong interest from NFL scouts and teams, Skelton played in the prestigious

East-West Shrine Game East West (or East and West) may refer to: *East–West dichotomy, the contrast between Eastern and Western society or culture Arts and entertainment Books, journals and magazines *'' East, West'', an anthology of short stories written by Salm ...

on January 23, 2010, at the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando and participated in the

NFL Scouting Combine The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Footb ...

in February.

Awards and honors

* 2006 Patriot League Rookie of the Week * 2007 Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week * 2007 Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week * 2007 Second-team All-Patriot League selection * 2008 Preseason All American by Consensus Draft Services * 2009 Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week * 2009 Preseason All American by Consensus Draft Services * 2009 College Sporting News National All-Star * 2009 Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week * 2009 ECAC Offensive Player of the Week * 2009 NCAA Championship Subdivision (FCS) National Leader in Passing Yards Per Game * 2009 NCAA Championship Subdivision (FCS) National Leader in Total Passing Yards * 2009 Invited to play in the 4th annual

Texas vs. The Nation Game Texas vs The Nation was an American college football All-star game, all-star bowl game played from 2007 to 2013. Originally played at the Sun Bowl Stadium, the format of the game pitted 50 top-rated college seniors who played college or high scho ...

* 2009 Played in the

- January 23, 2010 * 2009 Accepted invitation to the

Records

Fordham University school career records: * ''Total offense'': 10,488 * ''Touchdown passes'': 69 * ''Passing yards'': 9,928 * ''Pass completions'': 802 * ''Pass attempts'': 1363 * ''Combined touchdowns'': 83

Statistics

''Source'':

Professional career

Arizona Cardinals

2010 season

Skelton was selected by the

in the fifth round of the

. He was signed on July 14. After

Matt Leinart Matthew Stephen Leinart (born May 11, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons. He played college football at USC, where he won the Heisman Trophy ...

was released, he was named the third-string quarterback for the Cardinals. Skelton's first NFL game experience was a 2010 preseason game against the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...

where he led the Cardinals to two touchdown drives in two possessions as Arizona rallied for a victory. He completed five passes out of six attempts for 84 yards and achieved a perfect passer rating of 158.3. Skelton entered in the fourth quarter of a game against the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arr ...

to make his NFL debut, and he completed three of his six passes for 45 yards with a passer rating of 75.0. The Cardinals still failed to win, losing to the Rams 19–6. Skelton was named the starting quarterback thereafter. In his first career NFL start, Skelton led the Cardinals to a 43–13 victory over the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

, snapping a seven-game losing streak for the Cardinals. He completed 15 of his 37 passes with 146 passing yards. He was nominated for Rookie of the Week after this game, but

Rob Gronkowski Robert James Gronkowski (born May 14, 1989) is an American former football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. Nicknamed "Gronk", Gronkowski played nine seasons for the New England Patriots, then played h ...

of the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

wound up winning the award. In Skelton's third NFL start, on Christmas Day, he led the game-winning drive, bringing the Cardinals in field goal range where

Jay Feely Thomas James "Jay" Feely (born May 23, 1976) is a former American football placekicker and current sportscaster. He started his career with the Florida Bobcats in the Arena Football League as a street free agent in 1999 before playing for seve ...

was able to kick the game winning

field goal A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. The entire ba ...

. The Cardinals won 27-26 against 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 ...

. Skelton would lose the last game of the season against the

for the Cardinals throwing both a touchdown pass and an interception. He would finish his rookie season with two touchdown passes and two interceptions, a total of 662 passing yards, and a QB rating of 62.3.

2011 season

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, Skelton stepped into the starting quarterback position for an injured

Kevin Kolb Kevin Benjamin Kolb (; born August 24, 1984) is a former American football quarterback. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He has also been a member of the Arizona Cardinals and the Buffalo Bills ...

. He helped end the Cardinals' six-game losing streak in his first game as starter against the

in week 9, winning 19–13. For the rest of 2011 he threw for 1,913 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions with a quarterback rating of 68.9. Skelton started seven games in total and the team had a 5–2 record during his starts.

2012 season

On August 31, 2012, Skelton was named the starting quarterback for the Cardinals for game one against the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

on September 9. Shortly after, Skelton lost his job due to an ankle injury in week 1. He started four games following Kolb's injury before being benched in favor of 6th round rookie

Ryan Lindley Ryan George Lindley (born June 22, 1989) is an American football coach and former quarterback who is currently the quarterbacks coach at San Diego State University. He played college football at San Diego State, and was drafted by the Arizona ...

. Skelton started one more game due to poor play from Lindley only before being benched for the season after a four interception performance in a rematch against the Seahawks on week 14. On April 1, 2013, Skelton was released.

Cincinnati Bengals

On April 3, 2013, the

claimed Skelton off waivers. Skelton was waived by the Bengals on August 31, 2013.

San Francisco 49ers

On October 2, 2013, Skelton was signed by the

. He was waived on October 9 after the 49ers acquired

McLeod Bethel-Thompson McLeod John Baltazar Bethel-Thompson (born July 3, 1988) is an American professional football quarterback for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at UCLA and Sacramento State. He is the gran ...

Tennessee Titans

On November 18, 2013, Skelton was signed by the

. Skelton was waived by the Titans on December 17, 2013.

Montreal Alouettes

On February 6, 2015, Skelton was signed by the

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

. He was released in May 2015.

NFL career statistics

Personal life

His brother Steve Skelton played

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

for Fordham and practiced with the

and

but was cut before the regular season and never played in a professional game. In November 2021, John Skelton qualified for the March 2022

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city council race.

References

External links

Fordham Rams bio

Arizona Cardinals bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skelton, John 1988 births Living people American football quarterbacks Canadian football quarterbacks American players of Canadian football Arizona Cardinals players Cincinnati Bengals players Fordham Rams football players Montreal Alouettes players Players of American football from El Paso, Texas San Francisco 49ers players Tennessee Titans players