Rashad Ahmad Ross (born February 2, 1990) 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 who is currently a free agent. 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 ...

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

, and was signed 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 ...

by 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 ...

following 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 ...

Early years

Ross attended and played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

at Vallejo High School.

College career

Ross played college football for

Butte College Butte College is a public community college in the Butte-Glenn Community College District in Chico and Orland, California. History After the passage of the 1960 Donahoe Act, the voters of Butte County created a local community college d ...

in 2010, and later transferred to

to play for the Sun Devils from 2011 to 2012 under head coaches

Dennis Erickson Dennis Brian Erickson (born March 24, 1947) is an American football coach who most recently served as the head coach for the Salt Lake Stallions of the Alliance of American Football league. He was also the head coach at the University of Idaho ( ...

and

Todd Graham Michael Todd Graham (born December 5, 1964) is an American football coach and former player. He was most recently the head football coach at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa (2020–2021). Graham has served as the head football coach at Rice ...

. In the 2011 season, he handled kick return duties and had 18 receptions for 254 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown. The one touchdown was part of a five-reception, 108-yard performance in a 47–38 loss to

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. In the 2012 season, his role in the offense expanded and he had 37 receptions for 610 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns to go along with 100-yard kickoff return touchdown in a 51–17 victory over

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

. Two of his memorable games in 2012 were a 79-yard, two-touchdown performance in a 46–7 victory over

Washington State Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first U.S. president—the state was formed from the western part of the Washington ...

and a 139-yard, three-touchdown performance in a 62–28 victory over

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

in the

2012 Fight Hunger Bowl The 2012 Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl was a postseason American college football bowl game held on December 29, 2012, at AT&T Park in San Francisco, California, United States. The 11th edition of the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl began at 1:00 p.m. ...

Collegiate statistics

Professional career

Tennessee Titans

After going unselected in the

, Ross was signed by the

on April 30, 2013. After being released for final roster cuts, the Titans signed him to their

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

Kansas City Chiefs

On November 12, 2013, Ross was signed to the

of 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 ...

. The Chiefs released him on May 12, 2014.

Washington Redskins

Ross signed with 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 ...

on May 23, 2014. The Redskins waived Ross on August 26, 2014.

Chicago Bears

Ross signed with the

of 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 ...

on September 1, 2014. He was released by the team on September 30.

Washington Redskins (second stint)

Ross was signed to the

on October 15, 2014. Ross was released from the practice squad on November 17, 2014, but was re-signed on December 8. He 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 ...

on December 29. After working out with fellow wide receiver,

DeSean Jackson DeSean William Jackson (born December 1, 1986) is an American football wide receiver for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the California Golden Bears, where he was recognized as a con ...

, during the 2015 offseason, Ross had an outstanding preseason performance. After all four preseason games, Ross recorded 25 receptions for 266 receiving yards and four touchdowns, leading the league in all three categories. After final roster cuts, Ross remained on the active 53-man roster as a reserve receiver. He became the team's

kickoff returner A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another position ...

in 2015. Quickly into action against 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. ...

on ''

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 20 ...

'', Ross recorded his first two career receptions, as well as his first touchdown off of a 101-yard kick return. In Week 4 against the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

, he had a 43-yard reception in the third quarter. He recovered a punt blocked by safety Jeron Johnson in the endzone against the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

in Week 6, scoring his second career touchdown. In the last game of the regular season against 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 ...

, Ross recorded a 71-yard touchdown reception from backup quarterback

Colt McCoy Daniel "Colt" McCoy (born September 5, 1986) is an American football quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Texas Longhorns football, Texas, where he won several awards and honor ...

, the first receiving touchdown of his career. In the 2016 season, Ross was active for five games recording one catch for 8 yards. He was released by the Redskins on December 22, 2016.

Detroit Lions

On December 24, 2016, Ross was signed to 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 ...

' practice squad.

San Francisco 49ers

On January 19, 2017, Ross signed a reserve/future contract with the San Francisco 49ers. He was released on June 1, 2017.

Buffalo Bills

On June 6, 2017, Ross signed with 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. ...

. On August 29, 2017, he was released by the Bills.

Arizona Cardinals

On December 19, 2017, Ross signed with 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 ...

' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Cardinals on January 2, 2018. On August 14, 2018, Ross was released by the Cardinals.

Arizona Hotshots

In late 2018, Ross signed with the

Arizona Hotshots The Arizona Hotshots were a professional American football franchise based in Tempe, Arizona, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF), which played one season from February 2019 to April 2019. They played their h ...

of the

Alliance of American Football The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan are ...

. In the season opener against the

Salt Lake Stallions The Salt Lake Stallions were a professional American football franchise based in Salt Lake City, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF), which began play in February 2019. The Stallions were the northernmost team in ...

, he caught 5 receptions for 103 yards and 2 touchdowns. When the AAF was suspended, Ross had 36 receptions for 583 yards and a league-leading seven touchdowns. In addition, he had AAF’s highest receiving grade from

Pro Football Focus Pro Football Focus (also written as ProFootballFocus, and often referred to by its initials, PFF) is a sports analytics company that focuses on thorough analysis of the National Football League (NFL) and NCAA Division-I football in the United Sta ...

Carolina Panthers

On April 4, 2019, Ross signed with the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...

. He was waived during final roster cuts on August 30, 2019.

Los Angeles Wildcats

In October 2019, Ross was selected by the

Los Angeles Wildcats Los Angeles Wildcats is a name shared by several American football teams from Los Angeles: *Los Angeles Wildcats (AFL) The Los Angeles Wildcats (also reported in various media as Pacific Coast Wildcats, Los Angeles Wilson Wildcats and Wilson's ...

in the

2020 XFL Draft The 2020 XFL Draft was the inaugural player selection process to fill the rosters of the eight teams of the 2020 reboot of the XFL. The draft was held on October 15–16, 2019, via conference call, with results released through the XFL's social m ...

DC Defenders

Ross was traded to the

DC Defenders The DC Defenders are a professional American football team based in Washington, D.C. The team was founded by Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment and is an owned-and-operated member of the new XFL owned by Dwayne Johnson’s Alpha Acquico. The ...

in exchange for wide receiver

Tre McBride Tre McBride (born December 1, 1992) is a former American football wide receiver. He played college football at William & Mary, and was selected by the Tennessee Titans in the seventh round of the 2015 NFL draft. Early years McBride attende ...

on January 12, 2020. In his XFL debut, Ross recorded two receptions for 52 yards and a touchdown against the

Seattle Dragons The Seattle Sea Dragons (formerly known as the Seattle Dragons) are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. The team is a franchise of the new XFL and plays its home games at Lumen Field in Seattle. Originally founded ...

. During the five games played during 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 identif ...

shortened 2020 season, Ross caught 12 passes for 193 yards and one touchdown. He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.

Montreal Alouettes

Ross signed with the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the Canadian F ...

of the CFL on June 9, 2021 but was released during the season on October 21, 2021.

San Diego Strike Force

On March 24, 2022, Ross signed with the

San Diego Strike Force The San Diego Strike Force is a professional indoor football team based in San Diego, California. It is a member of the Indoor Football League and began play in 2019 at Pechanga Arena in the city's Midway district. It is the second professional ...

of the

Indoor Football League The Indoor Football League (IFL) is a professional indoor American football league created in 2008 out of the merger between the Intense Football League and United Indoor Football. It has one of the largest number of currently active teams amon ...

(IFL). On December 8, 2022, Ross was released by the Strike Force.

References

External links

Arizona State Sun Devils bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, Rashad 1990 births Living people Sportspeople from Vallejo, California Players of American football from California Arizona State Sun Devils football players American football wide receivers Tennessee Titans players Kansas City Chiefs players Washington Redskins players Chicago Bears players Detroit Lions players San Francisco 49ers players Buffalo Bills players Arizona Cardinals players Arizona Hotshots players Carolina Panthers players Los Angeles Wildcats (XFL) players DC Defenders players Montreal Alouettes players