Malik Shabazz Heath (born March 3, 2000) 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 with ...

wide receiver for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). 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 Copiah–Lincoln, Mississippi State, and Ole Miss. He entered the 2023 NFL draft but went undrafted. He would later sign with the Packers as a undrafted free agent.

Early years

Heath grew up in

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the Capital city, capital of and the List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, Mississippi, ...

and attended Callaway High School. He caught 78 passes for 1,837 yards and 13 touchdowns over the course of his high school career. Heath is the son of former Jackson State University TE Harold Heath.

College career

Heath began his college career at

Copiah–Lincoln Community College Copiah–Lincoln Community College (Co–Lin) is a public community college with its main campus in Wesson, Mississippi. The Co–Lin District serves a seven-county area including Adams, Copiah, Franklin, Jefferson, Lawrence, Lincoln and Simp ...

. He caught 61 passes, 835 yards, and seven touchdowns in 17 games over two seasons. Heath transferred to Mississippi State following his sophomore year. On August 12, 2020, before playing for Mississippi State, Heath was charged with speeding, driving under the influence, and driving without a license, equipment, or insurance. Heath caught 37 passes for 307 yards and three touchdowns in his first season at Mississippi State. During the 2020 Armed Forces Bowl, he was involved in a brawl which included him kicking

Tulsa Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma and List of United States cities by population, 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

TieNeal Martin who was on the ground. Following the game, Heath had bragged about it on social media and received backlash for the incident. He had 34 receptions for 442 yards and five touchdowns in 2021. On December 2, 2021, Heath was involved in a car crash in Mississippi, suffered a double lung collapse, a ruptured liver, and broke his entire rib cage. Heath was airlifted to Memphis,

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

, and underwent emergency surgery to save his life. This ended his season, being unavailable to play in the

2021 Liberty Bowl The 2021 Liberty Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 28, 2021, with kickoff at 6:45 p.m. Eastern Time Zone, EST (5:45 p.m. local Central Time Zone, CST) and televised on ESPN College Football, ESPN. It was the 63rd e ...

. After the end of the season, Heath entered the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

transfer portal. Heath ultimately transferred to Ole Miss. In his only season with the Rebels, he led the team with 60 receptions, 971 receiving yards, and five touchdown receptions.

Professional career

After going undrafted at the

2023 NFL draft The 2023 NFL Draft will be the 88th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players. The draft is scheduled to be held in the plaza outside of Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri, on April 27–29, ...

, Heath was signed by the

on May 1, 2023. On August 29, 2023, the Packers announced that Heath had made the initial 53-man roster. He made his NFL debut on September 10, 2023, during a 38–20 win against 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 NF ...

, but recorded no statistics until November 19, when he made his first catch (a 7-yard pass from

Jordan Love Jordan Alexander Love (born November 2, 1998) is an American football quarterback for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Utah State and was drafted by the Packers in the first round of th ...

) during a 23–20 win against the Los Angeles Chargers. On December 11, Heath scored his first NFL touchdown on a 6-yard pass from Love during a 24–22 loss to 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. ...

NFL career statistics

Regular season

References

External links

Green Bay Packers bioCo–Lin Wolf Pack bioMississippi State Bulldogs bioOle Miss Rebels bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heath, Malik Living people 2000 births Players of American football from Mississippi American football wide receivers Ole Miss Rebels football players Mississippi State Bulldogs football players Green Bay Packers players 21st-century African-American sportspeople Copiah–Lincoln Wolves football players