Josh Doctson (born December 3, 1992) 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 wi ...
wide receiver who is a free agent. He played
college football at
Texas Christian and 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 first round of the
2016 NFL Draft
The 2016 NFL Draft was the 81st annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. As in 2015 NFL Draft, 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park (Chicago), ...
. He has also been a member of the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...
and
New York Jets.
Early years
Doctson attended
Mansfield Legacy High School
Mansfield Legacy High School is a public secondary school located in Mansfield, Texas, United States.
The school is a part of the Mansfield Independent School District and serves sections of the city of Mansfield, Arlington, as well as unincorpo ...
in
Mansfield, Texas
Mansfield is a suburban city in the U.S. state of Texas, and is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex area. The city is located mostly in Tarrant county, with small parts in Ellis and Johnson counties. Its location is approximately 30 mile ...
, where he was a three-year letterman in both
football and
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
. In his first season of football as a junior, he saw action in six games and hauled in 18 passes for 220 yards with a long of 25. As a senior in 2010, he caught 35 passes for 558 yards and 5 touchdowns in nine games, earned first-team All-District 5-5A honors and was voted a team captain, as well as being selected Legacy's Most Valuable Player.
Doctson was rated by ''
Rivals.com
Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel.
History
Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...
'' as a three-star recruit. He committed to the
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming ...
to play
college football on December 14, 2010, choosing the Cowboys over
Duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...
and
Tulsa
Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...
.
College career
Doctson had 35 receptions for 393 yards and five touchdowns in 12 games as a true freshman at Wyoming in 2011. After the season, he transferred to
Texas Christian University
Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private research university in Fort Worth, Texas. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison and Randolph Clark as the Add-Ran Male & Female College. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciple ...
(TCU). After sitting out 2012 due to NCAA transfer rules, Doctson played in 12 games with six starts in his first year at TCU in 2013. He had 36 receptions for 440 yards and four touchdowns that season. As a junior in 2014, Doctson had 65 receptions for school records of 1,018 yards and 11 touchdowns.
College statistics
Professional career
Washington Redskins
Doctson was drafted in the first round, 22nd overall, 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
2016 NFL Draft
The 2016 NFL Draft was the 81st annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. As in 2015 NFL Draft, 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park (Chicago), ...
. Doctson sat out the preseason due to an
Achilles
In Greek mythology, Achilles ( ) or Achilleus ( grc-gre, Ἀχιλλεύς) was a hero of the Trojan War, the greatest of all the Greek warriors, and the central character of Homer's '' Iliad''. He was the son of the Nereid Thetis and Pele ...
injury. He made his first career reception in the season opener in a 16–38 loss 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, A ...
to the
Pittsburgh Steelers. During pregame warmups in Week 3 against the
New York Giants, Doctson aggravated his Achilles injury keeping him sidelined until October 21, 2016, when he was placed on injured reserve.
In a 2017 game against the
Oakland Raiders, Doctson recorded his first career touchdown on a 52-yard reception. He recorded an 11-yard touchdown reception in the win 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 National ...
. Doctson made an essential diving 38-yard reception against the
Seattle Seahawks with less than two minutes and setting up the Redskins at the one yard marker in Seahawks' territory. The following play running back
Rob Kelley scored a touchdown winning the game for the Redskins with a final score of 17–14. In the Thanksgiving game over the
New York Giants, he scored the final touchdown that gave the Redskins both the lead and win.
In 2018, Doctson played in 15 games with 12 starts, finishing as the Redskins second-leading receiver with 44 catches for 532 yards and two touchdowns. On May 1, 2019, the Redskins declined the fifth-year option on Doctson's contract, making him a free agent in 2020. On August 31, 2019, the Redskins released Doctson.
Minnesota Vikings
On September 2, 2019, Doctson signed with the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...
on a one-year deal. He was placed on injured reserve on September 12, 2019. He was designated for return from injured reserve on October 30, 2019, and began practicing with the team again. He was activated on November 15, 2019 prior to Week 11. He played seven snaps without making a reception in the Vikings' 27–23 comeback win 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 headquar ...
, but was waived on November 26, 2019.
New York Jets
On February 22, 2020, Doctson signed with the
New York Jets. On August 6, 2020, he announced he would opt out of the 2020 season due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
. According to reports, Doctson was set on traveling to Africa for a humanitarian mission, because he “feels that his calling is to help the underprivileged at this time.” Doctson was released on May 7, 2021.
Arizona Cardinals
On September 3, 2021, Doctson signed with the
practice squad of the
Arizona Cardinals. He was released on October 12, 2021.
NFL career statistics
References
External links
Arizona Cardinals bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Doctson, Josh
1992 births
Living people
People from Mansfield, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
Sportspeople from the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex
American football wide receivers
Wyoming Cowboys football players
TCU Horned Frogs football players
All-American college football players
Washington Redskins players
Minnesota Vikings players
New York Jets players
Arizona Cardinals players