Jonas Gray (born June 27, 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 Notre Dame. He was signed by the

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 ...

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 i ...

in 2012 and also played for the

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 its ...

and

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 ...

. Gray is best known for his performance with the Patriots in a 2014 game against the Indianapolis Colts.

Early years

From

Pontiac, Michigan Pontiac ( ') is a city in and the county seat of Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 61,606. A northern suburb of Metro Detroit, Pontiac is about northwest of Detroit. Found ...

, Gray went to high school at Detroit Country Day. He helped lead Detroit Country Day to an 11–3 record as a senior and an appearance in the state championship. He rushed for 305 yards on 29 carries and scored four touchdowns in the state semifinal to lead the Yellow Jackets to a 37–30 victory. He gained 2,614 yards on 341 rushes (7.7 avg.) and scored 32 TDs during his senior season, rushing for over 200 yards in five games. He was selected to play in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_ ...

. Gray also competed in

track & field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

at Detroit County. In 2006, he placed fourth in the

200-meter dash The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slight ...

at the MHSAA Division 3 State Finals with a time of 22.84 seconds, and as a senior, placed third in the

100-meter dash The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

with a time of 11.13 seconds. Considered a four-star recruit by '' Rivals.com'', he was rated as the fourth best

prospect of his class.

College career

Gray attended 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 c ...

from 2008 to 2011. He played sparingly his first three seasons, primarily as a back-up to Armando Allen, Robert Hughes and

Cierre Wood Cierre Marcelle Wood (born February 21, 1991) is a former American football running back. He played college football at Notre Dame. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Houston Texans in 2013. High school career Wood attended Santa ...

. As a senior, while splitting carries with Wood, Gray rushed for 791 yards on 114 carries (6.9 avg) while scoring 12 touchdowns. He tore his ACL, MCL, and LCL during a game vs.

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classified ...

Professional career

Miami Dolphins

Gray was signed by the

as an

. He was placed on the PUP list while he rehabbed his injured knee. He was among final cuts on August 31, 2013.

Baltimore Ravens

Gray was signed by the

to their practice squad on September 2, 2013.

New England Patriots

Gray was signed by the

to a future/reserve contract on January 10, 2014. Gray did not survive the final cuts, but was signed to the practice squad the next day. On October 16, 2014 Gray was signed to the active roster before their

Thursday Night Football ''Thursday Night Football'' (often abbreviated as ''TNF'') is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games that broadcast primarily on Thursday nights. Most of the games kick off at 8:15 Eastern Time (8:20 prior to 2 ...

game against the New York Jets. On November 16, 2014, Gray rushed for 201 yards, and a franchise-record four touchdowns on 37 carries in his fourth NFL game, leading the New England Patriots to a 42–20 victory over the host

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

. Gray was the first NFL running back since 1921 to score four rushing touchdowns in a game after entering the game with zero career touchdowns, and the first running back in the Super Bowl era to account for more than 25 percent of rushing touchdowns (4 of 10) in a week with at least 10 games. A correction to the official stats (removing a 2-yard loss that was negated by a 15-yard facemask penalty against the Colts) made his final stats for the game 201 yards on 37 carries. He scored 24 total points in the game, which was tied with

Marshawn Lynch Marshawn Terrell Lynch (born April 22, 1986) is an American former football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. Nicknamed "Beast Mode", he spent the majority of his career with the Seattle Seahawks. Lync ...

for the most by any player in a single game in the 2014 season. Due to a team infraction, however, Gray was benched for the next game. He would only record 91 more total yards in the season, and was inactive for four of the Patriots remaining nine games, including the team's win in

Super Bowl XLIX Super Bowl XLIX was an American football game played to determine the champions of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2014 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots defeated the National Football Conf ...

. Gray finished the season with 89 carries that resulted in 412 total yards and 5 touchdowns. On September 5, 2015, Gray was released by the Patriots.

Miami Dolphins (second stint)

The Dolphins signed Gray to their practice squad on September 9, 2015. On September 11, Gray signed to Dolphins active roster. On September 14, 2015, Gray was waived by the Dolphins, only to be re-added to the practice squad two days later and signed to the active squad on September 22, 2015. He was released again on November 10, 2015, and re-signed to the practice squad the next day.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Gray was signed off the Dolphins' practice squad to 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 pla ...

active roster on December 15, 2015. On August 17, 2016, Gray was waived/injured by the Jaguars. After going unclaimed on waivers, Gray reverted to injured reserve. On August 24, 2016, Gray was released from the Jaguars' injured reserve.

References

External links

Notre Dame Fighting Irish bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, Jonas 1990 births Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players Living people Detroit Country Day School alumni Players of American football from Michigan Sportspeople from Pontiac, Michigan Baltimore Ravens players New England Patriots players Miami Dolphins players Jacksonville Jaguars players American football running backs