Ryan Spadola (born February 15, 1991) 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 ...
wide receiver. He was signed by the
New York Jets 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 is a ...
in 2013. He played
college football at
Lehigh.
Early years
Spadola was a member of the Super 100 Athletes in New Jersey.
Spadola grew up in
Howell Township, New Jersey
Howell Township is a township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The township is the largest municipality in the county by total area, comprised of about . It is located in the New York metropolitan area and has been a steadily gro ...
and attended
Freehold Township High School
Freehold Township High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school located in Freehold Township, in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, and is part of the Freehold Regional High School District. The school serves students ...
, graduating from the school in 2009. He was among the players in the Top 170 in the country and was a member of the All-Shore Team while at high school.
College career
Spadola played
college football at Lehigh. He caught his first collegiate reception for 16 yards against
Holy Cross.
Professional career
New York Jets
Spadola was signed by the
New York Jets on April 27, 2013 following the conclusion of the
2013 NFL Draft
The 2013 NFL Draft was the 78th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall ...
. In a preseason game on August 24, 2013, Spadola had three catches for 110 yards and one touchdown. He also had a seventy-yard reception which led to the Jets' game-winning field goal. Spadola was released on October 5, 2013.
Miami Dolphins
The Jets wanted to re-sign Spadola however, he opted to sign 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 p ...
' practice squad on October 8, 2013. He was promoted to the active roster on October 31, 2013. The Dolphins released Spadola on August 26, 2014.
Atlanta Falcons
He was signed to the Atlanta Falcons' practice squad on October 9, 2014. On November 25, 2014, Spadola was waived and replaced on the practice squad by
Freddie Martino.
Arizona Cardinals
On December 2, 2014, he was signed by the
Arizona Cardinals to their practice squad. On August 31, 2015, he was waived by the Cardinals.
Detroit Lions
On October 20, 2015, he was signed by the
Detroit Lions to their practice squad.
On January 4, 2016, Spadola signed a
futures contract
In finance, a futures contract (sometimes called a futures) is a standardized legal contract to buy or sell something at a predetermined price for delivery at a specified time in the future, between parties not yet known to each other. The asset ...
with the
Detroit Lions.
On August 8, 2017, Spadola was waived/injured by the Lions and placed on injured reserve.
He was released on August 15, 2017.
References
External links
Lehigh Mountain Hawks bioNew York Jets bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spadola, Ryan
1991 births
Living people
Freehold Township High School alumni
People from Howell Township, New Jersey
Players of American football from Monmouth County, New Jersey
American football wide receivers
Lehigh Mountain Hawks football players
New York Jets players
Miami Dolphins players
Atlanta Falcons players
Arizona Cardinals players
Detroit Lions players