Jacquizz "Quizz" Rodgers (born February 6, 1990) 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 wi ...

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. Th ...

. 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 in the United States, American football rules first gained populari ...

at Oregon State, and was drafted by the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcon ...

in the fifth round of the

2011 NFL Draft The 2011 NFL Draft was the 76th installment of the annual NFL Draft, where the franchises of the National Football League select newly eligible football players. Like the 2010 draft, the 2011 draft was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York ...

High school career

Rodgers attended Lamar Consolidated High School, where he played for the Mustangs

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 ...

team. He broke out during his

sophomore In the United States, a sophomore ( or ) is a person in the second year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. In ...

season with 2,278 rushing yards and 34

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Amer ...

s averaging 9.4 yards per carry. In his junior season, he improved with 2,592 rushing yards and 50 touchdowns. As a

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

, Rodgers led the Mustangs to the 2007 4A Division 1 State Football Championship. In the state championship, he rushed for 233 yards and three touchdowns on 31 carries, blocked an

extra point The conversion, try (American football, also known as a point(s) after touchdown, PAT, or (depending on the number of points) extra point/2-point conversion), or convert (Canadian football) occurs immediately after a touchdown during which the sc ...

, recovered a

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful ...

, and had six tackles on defense as the Mustangs won the state title over a

Robert Griffin III Robert Lee Griffin III (born February 12, 1990), nicknamed RG3 and RGIII, is an American football quarterback who is a free agent. He played college football at Baylor, where he won the Heisman Trophy as a senior, and was selected second overa ...

-led Copperas Cove, 20–14. He finished his senior season with 2,890 rushing yards and 37 touchdowns, as well as 556 yards receiving and five touchdowns. His postseason honors following his senior season included being named the inaugural recipient of the Mr. Texas Football award, the 4A Region III Offensive Player of the Year, first-team all-conference running back and defensive back, second-team all-conference receiver, second-team all-state defensive back, and fourth team all-state running back. He was also named the Built Ford Tough Texas High School Football Player of the Year in Class 4A. In his high school career, Rodgers amassed 8,246 rushing yards. He set the Texas state record for total touchdowns with 135 touchdowns in four years as a varsity player. His high school career is chronicled in Dr. Brent Melloy's book ''UNHERALDED'': How Jacquizz Rodgers led the 2007 Lamar Consolidated Mustangs to an improbable Texas State Championship.

College career

Rodgers, who received offers from

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

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 = 135,7 ...

, Vanderbilt,

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses ** South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

, Baylor, and

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 36th-largest by ...

decided to join his older brother James and enroll at Oregon State. Rodgers started out the season second on the depth chart but quickly took over as the starter. Most notably, his best game in his young college football career came in an upset of the then #1 ranked team in the country, the

USC Trojans The USC Trojans are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Southern California (USC), located in Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the ''Trojans'', the women's athletic teams are referred ...

, when he had 36 carries for 186 yards and two touchdowns. Rodgers broke the

Pac-10 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS; formerly Divisio ...

freshman rushing record during Oregon State's 34-6 victory over

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

on November 8, 2008. At the end of the season, he was unable to play in the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

against

due to injury and was beaten out by

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

's Jahvid Best as the 2008 Pac-10 Rushing Leader. He also missed the

2008 Sun Bowl The 2008 Brut Sun Bowl, part of the 2008–09 NCAA Division I FBS bowl season, was played on December 31, 2008 at the stadium of the same name on the campus of the University of Texas at El Paso in El Paso, Texas. The 75th annual contest pitted ...

. Rodgers finished the season with 1,253 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns. He was named the 2008

Offensive Player of the Year The National Football League Offensive Player of the Year Award is an annual American football award given by various organizations to the National Football League (NFL) player who is considered the top offensive player during the regular season. O ...

. In

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; Protests ...

, Rodgers scored 23 total touchdowns, including one passing and one receiving. He finished the season with over 1,400 yards rushing and 500 yards receiving. After a 38–28 victory over

Stanford Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. S ...

, he recorded 271 total yards and four touchdowns, he was named Rivals.com Player of the Week and

Offensive Player of the Week. In the 2009 Maaco Bowl Las Vegas, he was thrown a backwards lateral, which resulted in the first fumble of his collegiate career. The Beavers lost that game to BYU. Jacquizz Rodgers - 20090814

On September 18, 2010, Rodgers finished with 132 rushing yards, two rushing touchdowns, 22 receiving yards, and a receiving touchdown against Louisville. On October 2, against Arizona State, he had 145 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns. On October 16, against Washington, he had 140 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. On October 30, against California, he had 116 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. In the 2010 season, he finished with 1,184 rushing yards, 14 rushing touchdowns, 44 receptions, 287 receiving yards, and three receiving touchdowns.

College statistics

College awards and honors

Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year Coaches of the Pac-12 Conference bestow the following awards at the end of each football season. The conference was founded in its current form as the Athletic Association of Western Universities in 1959, but traces its roots to the Pacific Coast Co ...

(2010) * Pac-10 Freshman Player of the Year (2008) * 3× First-team All-

(2008–2010) * AP First-team All-American (2010) * 2× AP Third-team All-American (2008–2009) * Third all-time in total rushing yards in

Beaver Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers a ...

football history (3,877 yards)

Professional career

On January 10, 2011, Rodgers announced that he would forgo his final year of eligibility and enter the

NFL Draft The National Football League Draft, also called the NFL Draft or (officially) the Player Selection Meeting, is an annual event which serves as the league's most common source of player recruitment. Each team is given a position in the drafting o ...

. He was originally listed as the number five running back prospect entering the draft by

NFL Network NFL Network (occasionally abbreviated on-air as NFLN) is an American sports-oriented pay television network owned by the National Football League (NFL) and is part of NFL Media, which also includes NFL.com, NFL Films, NFL Mobile, NFL Now and NF ...

's draft specialist,

Mike Mayock Michael Francis Mayock (born August 14, 1958) is a former American football executive and former player who served as the general manager of the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL) from 2019 to 2021. Mayock was a safety with ...

Atlanta Falcons

Rodgers was drafted in the fifth round (145th overall) in the

by the

. He was signed by the Falcons on July 28, 2011. He scored his first

on a

reception Reception is a noun form of ''receiving'', or ''to receive'' something, such as art, experience, information, people, products, or vehicles. It may refer to: Astrology * Reception (astrology), when a planet is located in a sign ruled by another ...

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrates ...

against their

NFC South The National Football Conference – Southern Division or NFC South is one of the four Division (sport), divisions of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). It was created prior to the 2002 NFL season, when ...

rival

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

. In Week 17, Rodgers scored his first career rushing touchdown against divisional rival

Tampa Bay Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and shallow estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west-central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, McKay Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay. The largest freshwater ...

. Overall, he finished his rookie season with 205 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, 21 receptions, 188 receiving yards, and one receiving touchdown. The Falcons made the playoffs with a 10–6 record. In the Wild Card Round against the New York Giants, he had four receptions for 18 yards in the 24–2 loss. Rodgers started off the 2012 season with 22 rushing yards, 13 receiving yards, and 104 kick return yards against the Kansas City Chiefs. Overall, he finished the 2012 season with 362 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, 53 receptions, 402 receiving yards, and one receiving touchdown. The Falcons finished with a 13–3 record and made the playoffs. In the Divisional Round against the Seattle Seahawks, he had 64 rushing yards, eight receiving yards, and 105 kick return yards in the 30–28 victory. In the NFC Championship against the San Francisco 49ers, he had 32 rushing yards in the 28–24 loss. On October 7, 2013, Rodgers had 43 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns against the New York Jets. In the 2013 season, he had a career-high 96 rushing attempts for 332 yards as well as total touchdowns with four (two rushing and two receiving). In the 2014 season opener against the New Orleans Saints, Rodgers had 34 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. Overall, in the 2014 season, he finished with 217 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, 29 receptions, 173 receiving yards, and one receiving touchdown.

Chicago Bears

On March 31, 2015, 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 ...

signed Rodgers to a one-year contract. On October 12, 2015, Rodgers was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

after breaking his arm in the Bears' 18–17 victory over the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The t ...

. In the 2015 season, he finished with 41 rushing yards on 14 carries. On March 9, 2016, Rodgers re-signed with the Bears on a one-year contract. He was released by the Bears on September 3, 2016.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On September 13, 2016, Rodgers signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. On October 10, Rodgers had a career-high 30 carries for 101 yards on ''

Monday Night Football ''ESPN Monday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''MNF'' and also known as ''ESPN Monday Night Football on ABC'' for simulcasts) is an American live television broadcast of weekly National Football League (NFL) games currently airing on ESPN, ...

'' helping the Buccaneers defeat the defending NFC Champion

, 17–14. Two weeks later, he rushed 26 times for a career-high 154 yards in a victory over the

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 Nationa ...

. In Week 16, against the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

, he was named starter after Doug Martin was made a healthy scratch, rushing 15 times for 63 yards and a touchdown. Rodgers finished the 2016 season with a career-high 129 carries for 560 yards and two touchdowns in 10 games played. On March 9, 2017, Rodgers signed a two-year contract extension with the Buccaneers. On September 17, against the

, he had 67 rushing yards and a touchdown in the 29–7 victory. Overall, he finished the 2017 season with 244 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, and nine receptions for 74 yards. In the 2018 season, Rodgers finished with 33 carries for 106 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, and 38 receptions for 304 receiving yards.

New Orleans Saints

Rodgers signed with the

on August 3, 2019. He was released during final roster cuts on August 30, 2019.

Career statistics

Personal life

Rodgers is the nephew of former All-Pro safety

Michael Lewis Michael Monroe Lewis (born October 15, 1960) Gale Biography In Context. is an American author and financial journalist. He has also been a contributing editor to ''Vanity Fair'' since 2009, writing mostly on business, finance, and economics. He ...

. His older brother, James Rodgers, was a wide receiver for the

and the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes ( 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 East Division of the Cana ...

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 c ...

(CFL).

References

External links

Oregon State Beavers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodgers, Jacquizz 1990 births Living people American football running backs Atlanta Falcons players Chicago Bears players New Orleans Saints players Oregon State Beavers football players People from Richmond, Texas People from Rosenberg, Texas Players of American football from Texas Sportspeople from the Houston metropolitan area Tampa Bay Buccaneers players