Jihad Ward ( ; born May 11, 1994) 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 ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

for 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. ...

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 ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

Early years

Ward attended Edward W. Bok Technical High School in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. He didn't play football until his sophomore year. He began as a wide receiver and

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are ...

, before being converted into a stand up

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

as a junior. He received second-team All-City (2010) and first-team All-City (2011) honors. He also practiced

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

College career

Ward attended

Globe Institute of Technology Globe Institute of Technology was a private for-profit college in New York City. It offered baccalaureate, associate, and certificate programs in business and information technology as well as a sports program. Globe Institute of Technology was ...

for two years to improve his grades. In 2013, he played in 7 games, making 26 tackles (3 for loss) and 2 sacks. In 2014, he transferred to the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...

. He was named a starter at

in the fourth game of the season. He posted 51 tackles, 3 sacks, 4

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful ...

recoveries (led the conference), 2 forced fumbles, and one

pass defended In American football, a pass deflected, also known as a pass deflection, a pass defended, a pass , a pass knockdown, or a pass breakup, is an incomplete pass that is caused by a defensive player. This is done by slapping or blocking the ball with ...

. As a senior, he started all 12 games, playing both at defensive end and

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

. He registered 53 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 2 passes defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. Against the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

, he had a career-high 11 tackles, including nine solo. In his last two years, he had 104 tackles, 5.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, and three passes defensed.

Professional career

Pre-draft

Coming out of college, most analysts projected Ward to be a second or third round selection. Although analysts had said he has above athletic ability for a man his size, can play both end spots in a 3-4 or 4–3, is large enough to play defensive tackle in 4–3, and could become a quality pass rusher in the NFL, he was also seen as a developmental project who needs improvement in his power, and has inconsistent balance in contact. Ward was invited to the

NFL scouting combine The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Footb ...

and also participated at Illinois'

Pro Day The National Football League Draft, also called the NFL Draft or (officially) the Player Selection Meeting, is an annual event which serves as the league's most common source of player recruitment. Each team is given a position in the drafting o ...

and even improved on the majority of his combine numbers. Representatives and scouts from all 32 teams showed up at Illinois' Pro Day, which was run by head coach

Lovie Smith Lovie Lee Smith (born May 8, 1958) is an American football coach who is the head coach of the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). From 2004 to 2016, he served as the head coach of the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a ...

. Defensive line coaches from the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

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 ...

, and the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...

came especially to watch Ward perform.

Oakland Raiders

Ward was selected by the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...

in the second round (44th overall) 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, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park in Chicago. The draft beg ...

, after dropping because he had a knee injury that was expected to require arthroscopic surgery. Ward didn't participate much in organized team activities during the offseason. Ward finished his rookie season with 30 tackles in 16 games, 13 of which were starts. On July 6, 2017, it was revealed that he had surgery on his left foot after injuring it during a workout, putting him out of action until mid-August. The injury limited him during the season, playing in only five games and was declared inactive in ten contests.

Dallas Cowboys

On April 28, 2018, the Raiders traded Ward 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 ...

in exchange for wide receiver

Ryan Switzer Ryan Switzer (born November 4, 1994) is a former American football wide receiver and punt returner. Switzer played college football at North Carolina Tar Heels football, North Carolina and was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the fourth round (1 ...

. Cowboys defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli coached Ward in the

2016 Senior Bowl The 2016 Senior Bowl was an all-star college football exhibition game featuring players from the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season, and prospects for the 2016 Draft of the professional National Football League (NFL). The game concluded the ...

. On September 1, 2018, the Cowboys waived Ward during final roster cuts.

Indianapolis Colts

On September 3, 2018, the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

signed Ward 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, ...

. The team promoted him to the active roster on September 13, 2018. He was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

on October 26, 2018, with an ankle injury. Despite only playing in six games in the 2018 season, he recorded three sacks. On October 1, 2019, Ward was released by the Colts.

Baltimore Ravens

On October 7, 2019, Ward was signed by 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 ...

. In the 2019 season, he appeared in 14 games and had one sack. On March 21, 2020, Ward re-signed with the Ravens. He was placed on the reserve/

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

list by the team on November 26, 2020, and activated on December 5, 2020. He appeared in ten games in the 2020 season. He had three sacks, 16 total tackles, and two passes defended.

Jacksonville Jaguars

On March 17, 2021, Ward signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Ward appeared in all 17 games and started one. He recorded two sacks and 32 total tackles (ten solo).

New York Giants

On March 21, 2022, Ward signed with the

on a one-year contract. He played in 17 games with 11 starts, recording a career-high 43 tackles and three sacks. Ward re-signed with the Giants on March 29, 2023.

Personal life

Ward is Muslim. He has said that his name, ''

Jihad Jihad (; ar, جهاد, jihād ) is an Arabic word which literally means "striving" or "struggling", especially with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it can refer to almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with Go ...

'', which is popular where he was raised in Philadelphia, has been misunderstood due to the negative connotations associated with the term, which has been used to describe Islamic violence against non-Muslims.

References

External links

New York Giants bioIllinois Fighting Illini bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Jihad 1994 births Living people African-American Muslims Players of American football from Philadelphia American football defensive ends American football defensive tackles Globe Tech Knights football players Illinois Fighting Illini football players Oakland Raiders players Dallas Cowboys players Indianapolis Colts players Baltimore Ravens players Jacksonville Jaguars players New York Giants players American football outside linebackers Muslims from Pennsylvania