Ladarius Green (born May 29, 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 with ...
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 ...
. 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
Louisiana–Lafayette and was drafted by the
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...
in the fourth round of the
2012 NFL Draft
The 2012 NFL draft was the 77th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players for their rosters. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held ...
.
Early life
Green was born in
Berlin, Germany
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constituent ...
, where his parents served in the military. He moved to
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 to ...
when he was three years old. He attended
Booker T. Washington High School in
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal ...
, where he played football and ran track.
College career
Green attended the
University of Louisiana at Lafayette
The University of Louisiana at Lafayette (UL Lafayette, University of Louisiana, ULL, or UL) is a public research university in Lafayette, Louisiana. It has the largest enrollment within the nine-campus University of Louisiana System and the s ...
from 2008 to 2011. He finished his career with 149
receptions for 2,201 yards and 22
touchdowns
A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether Rush (gridiron football), running, Forward pass, passing, returning a Kickoff (gridiron football), kickoff or Punt (gridiron football), punt, or recovering a Turno ...
.
[
]
Professional career
Pre-draft
From his junior to senior season, Green went from a virtually unknown prospect to a late riser after two solid seasons. Coming out of Louisiana-Lafayette, Green was initially projected to be a late round draft choice. Mel Kiper named him to his list of Top 5 tight ends in the 2012 NFL Draft. Green received mainly positive reviews for his quick footwork, ability to use his frame for boxing out and catching, athleticism, body control, and large catch radius. Scouts also thought that he was a raw talent that would have to be a project for whoever drafted him. He was invited to the NFL scouting combine and completed all the workouts and positional drills. Green's draft stock increased after an impressive combine performance. After the combine he was projected to be drafted in the third or fourth round by the majority of analysts and was rated as the third best tight end out of the 73 available by NFLDraftScout.com. He began receiving comparisons to the top two tight ends in the draft, Coby Fleener
Jacoby Fleener (born September 20, 1988) is a former American football tight end. After playing at Joliet Catholic Academy during high school, Fleener played college football at Stanford University. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in th ...
and Dwayne Allen
Dwayne Lamont Allen (born February 24, 1990) is a former American football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons. He played college football at Clemson, where he won the John Mackey Award as a junior, and ...
.
2012 NFL Draft
Green was selected in fourth round (110th overall) of the 2012 NFL Draft
The 2012 NFL draft was the 77th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players for their rosters. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held ...
by the San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...
.[ On May 12, 2012, the San Diego Chargers signed Green to a four-year, $2.55 million rookie contract that also included a signing bonus of $450,900.]
San Diego Chargers
2012
He entered training camp competing for the backup tight end position behind Pro-bowler Antonio Gates. He ultimately entered the regular season as the fourth tight end on the Chargers' depth chart, behind veterans Randy McMichael
Randy Montez McMichael (born June 28, 1979) is a former American football tight end in the National Football He was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the fourth round of the 2002 NFL Draft. He played college football at Georgia.
Early years
Mc ...
and Dante Rosario
Dante Santiago Rosario (born October 25, 1984) is a former American football tight end. He was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the fifth round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football for Oregon Ducks football, Oregon.
He was also ...
. On September 16, 2012, he made his professional regular-season debut against the 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 caught his first career pass on a 31-yard reception from Philip Rivers
Philip Michael Rivers (born December 8, 1981) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons, primarily with the Chargers franchise. He played college football at NC State and was sele ...
. During Week 11, he caught a season-high three passes for 25 receiving yards in a 23–30 loss to 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 ...
. The following week, he was credited with his first career start against 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 ...
but finished the loss without logging a statistic. He finished his rookie season with a total of four catches for 56 receiving yards, while appearing in four games and starting one.
2013
To begin his second season, Green was named the third tight end on the depth chart behind longtime veteran Antonio Gates and newly acquired free agent veteran John Phillips. Green began to prove himself as a reliable pass-catching option behind Gates and was able to produce as the third tight end, as the Chargers ran many multiple tight end sets and John Phillips was primarily used as a blocking tight end. On September 22, 2016, Green started the week 3 matchup against the 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 caught his first two passes of the season for 48-yards during the Charger's 17-20 loss. On November 17, 2013, Green caught a season-high four passes for a season-high 81 receiving yards in a 16-20 loss to 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 pla ...
. The following week, he caught his first career touchdown on a 60-yard touchdown pass from Philip Rivers against 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 tea ...
. He finished the victory with three receptions for 80 receiving yards and a touchdown.
In his first season under new head coach Mike McCoy, Green played all 16 games, while starting 10, collecting 17 receptions for 376 yards along with 3 touchdowns. In a wild card matchup between the 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 ...
and the Bengals, Green made a leaping catch over the safety Chris Crocker, for the Chargers only passing touchdown of the game. He finished the victory with three catches for 34 receiving yards and a touchdown. The Chargers were eliminated from the playoffs the following week by the Denver Broncos in the divionsal championship.
2014
Green began his third season as the backup tight end behind Antonio Gates. Although he was named the backup ahead of John Phillips, Green's role with the Chargers changed under new offensive coordinator Frank Reich
Frank Michael Reich Jr. (; ; born December 4, 1961) is an American football coach and former quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons, primarily with the Buffalo Bills. He played college football at Maryland a ...
, requiring him to block the majority of the time as Gates was the primary pass catching tight end. In the Charger's season opening loss to 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 ...
, Green caught two passes for 24-yards. He earned his first start of the season the following game 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 ...
but finished the loss without a catch. During Week 3, Green caught a season-high four passes for 68 receiving yards during a 28-10 victory at the Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...
. Green ended the season with 19 receptions on 23 targets for 226 yards and averaged 11.6 yards per catch while also starting four games and appearing in 14.
2015
With starting tight end Antonio Gates
Antonio Ethan Gates Sr. (born June 18, 1980) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end for the San Diego / Los Angeles Chargers during his entire career in the National Football League (NFL). He was named to the Pro ...
suspended for four games, Green was temporarily assigned the starting role to begin the season in 2015. During the season opener against the Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...
, Green caught five passes for 74 receiving yards and a touchdown. On October 4, 2015, he caught four passes for 53-yards and caught a 19-yard touchdown reception during a victory over the Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
. He finished the season with a career-high 37 receptions, 429 yards receiving, and four touchdowns. Green's 226 yards after the catch ranked No. 16 among NFL tight ends in 2015. In his last season with the Chargers he started 11 games and appeared in 14.
Pittsburgh Steelers
2016
On March 10, 2016, the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Green to a four-year, $20 million contract that also includes a signing bonus of $4.75 million. The Steelers signed him to help with a depleted tight end corps after longtime veteran Heath Miller
Earl Heath Miller Jr. (born October 22, 1982) is a former American football tight end who played professionally for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons from 2005 to 2015. Miller played college football fo ...
retired during the off-season and Matt Spaeth
Matt Spaeth (born November 24, 1983) is a former American football tight end. He was drafted by the Steelers in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft and later won Super Bowl XLIII with them against the Arizona Cardinals. He has also played for ...
suffered injuries which would eventually result in his failing of the team physical and release. He suffered an ankle injury during the offseason and started the season on the PUP list. He was activated to the active roster on November 12, 2016.
The following day, Green made his highly anticipated regular season debut and finished the loss to 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 ...
with three catches for thirty yards. On December 4, 2016, Green caught six passes for a career-high 110 receiving yards and scored his first touchdown of the season on a 20-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger
Benjamin Todd Roethlisberger Sr. (; born March 2, 1982), nicknamed "Big Ben", is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played college footba ...
in the Steelers' 24-14 victory over the New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
. The following week, Green earned his first start with the Steelers and caught two passes for 24 receiving yards in a 27-20 victory over the Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...
.
He started again the following week against 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 ...
, catching 5 passes for 72 yards. This performance included a 28-yard third-down catch with under 4 minutes to go in the game, which moved the Steelers into Bengals' territory and allowed Pittsburgh to preserve its 4-point lead on the way to a fifth-straight victory. However, this would ultimately be Green's final play for the Steelers during the 2016 season, as during the conclusion of his catch-and-run, upon being tackled, his head hit off the turf, leading him to be helped off the field. He was ultimately diagnosed with a concussion, missing the Steelers' final two regular season games, as well as all three playoff games.
Green was released by the Steelers on May 18, 2017 with a failed physical designation.
Personal life
He is first cousins with offensive guard Tyronne Green
Tyronne Darnell Green (born April 6, 1986) is a former American football guard. Greene was born in Pensacola, Florida and attended Woodham High School where he played both football and basketball. He played college football at Auburn. He was dra ...
, who he played with in San Diego during Ladarius's rookie season.
References
External links
Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns bio
San Diego Chargers bio
Pittsburgh Steelers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Green, Ladarius
1990 births
Living people
Players of American football from Pensacola, Florida
African-American players of American football
American football tight ends
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football players
San Diego Chargers players
Pittsburgh Steelers players
Sportspeople from Berlin
21st-century African-American sportspeople