Patrick Allen Ramsey (born February 14, 1979) 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 ...

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

. 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 ...

for the

Tulane Green Wave The Tulane Green Wave are the athletic teams that represent Tulane University, located in New Orleans, Louisiana. Tulane competes in NCAA Division I as a member of the American Athletic Conference (The American). There are 14 Green Wave interco ...

and was drafted by 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 ...

in the first round of the

2002 NFL Draft The 2002 NFL draft was the 67th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually sinc ...

. Ramsey has also been a member of 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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...

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 ...

, and

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

Early life

Ramsey was born on February 14, 1979, in

Ruston, Louisiana Ruston is a small city and the parish seat of Lincoln Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is the largest city in the Eastern Ark-La-Tex region. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 21,859, reflecting an increase of 6.4 percent ...

. He attended

Ruston High School Ruston High School is a four-year public high school located in the Lincoln Parish School District of Ruston, Louisiana, United States. The school has an enrollment of approximately 1300 students with 85 faculty members; the mascot is the Bea ...

, where he was a two-year starter quarterback, and was also state champion in the

javelin throw The javelin throw is a track and field event where the javelin, a spear about in length, is thrown. The javelin thrower gains momentum by running within a predetermined area. Javelin throwing is an event of both the men's decathlon and the ...

. His best friend was the son of

Bert Jones Bertram Hays Jones (born September 7, 1951) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Baltimore Colts and Los Angeles Rams. At Ruston High School in Ruston, Louisiana, he was given the ...

, a Ruston native who had gone on to a distinguished career as an NFL quarterback, and the elder Jones became Ramsey's mentor.

College career

Ramsey attended

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

and had an outstanding collegiate career as a "scholar athlete", being named five times to the

Conference USA Conference USA (C-USA or CUSA) is an intercollegiate athletic conference whose current member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. C-USA's offices are l ...

Commissioner's honor roll, and was the National Football Foundation/

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vote ...

Scholar-Athlete of the Year, in 2001. During Ramsey's 1999 season, he set 20 Tulane passing records, including single season records for passing yards, attempts, and completions. In that season he threw for 25 touchdowns, the second-most ever for a Tulane player. In 2000, he led the third-best passing offense in the nation. He also made the All-Conference USA second-team, leading the conference in most meaningful passing statistics. In his senior season in 2001 he started 11 games and threw for 22 touchdowns. He set a school record, having at least one touchdown pass in 31 consecutive games. Upon graduating, he had the top five passing games in school history. His career totals at Tulane were surpassed only (in various individual statistics, none overall) by

Shaun King Jeffery Shaun King (born September 17, 1979) is an American writer, civil rights activist and co-founder of Real Justice PAC. King uses social media to promote social justice causes, including the Black Lives Matter movement. King was raised ...

, Mike McKay, Roch Hontas, and

Terrence Jones Terrence Alexander Jones (born January 9, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for the Kaohsiung Steelers of the Taiwanese P. League+. He played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats. High school career Jones was ranked t ...

. Ramsey graduated with degrees in

accounting Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "languag ...

and

finance Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of fina ...

Professional career

Washington Redskins

Ramsey was drafted 32nd overall in the

by the

, to replace Tony Banks as quarterback. On October 13, 2002 the Redskins hosted the team from Ramsey's home state, the New Orleans Saints. Ramsey threw four interceptions as the Saints won 43–27. The 2003 season, Ramsey's first full season as a starter was even more difficult. He was one of the most sacked quarterbacks in the NFL that year, which was also Spurrier's last season as head coach. In 2004,

Joe Gibbs Joe Jackson Gibbs (born November 25, 1940) is an American auto racing team owner and former professional football coach. In football, he was head coach for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) from 1981 to 1992, and a ...

returned to coach the team after a prolonged absence; he originally traded for

Mark Brunell Mark Allen Brunell (born September 17, 1970) is an American football coach and former quarterback who is the quarterbacks coach for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played in the NFL for nineteen seasons and is best ...

as the starting quarterback (and then quickly signed him to a long term extension) but replaced him with Ramsey in November. A month later, Gibbs named Ramsey as the starting quarterback for the 2005 season. In the Redskins' first game 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 ...

, Ramsey suffered a minor neck injury after a clothesline hit by

linebacker

Lance Briggs Lance Marell Briggs (born November 12, 1980) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Arizona Wildcats and was select ...

. Gibbs demoted Ramsey to the role of Brunell's back-up for the second game versus 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 ...

. It was reported that Ramsey requested a trade from the Redskins, following announcement of his demotion. This report was later claimed to be false by Ramsey and the Redskins organization.

New York Jets

In March 2006, Ramsey was traded to the

for a 6th round pick in the

2006 NFL Draft The 2006 National Football League Draft, the 71st in league history, took place in New York City, New York, at Radio City Music Hall on April 29 and April 30, 2006. For the 27th consecutive year, the draft was telecast on ESPN and ESPN2, with ad ...

. After failing to earn the starting quarterback position from incumbent Chad Pennington, he was cut after the 2006 season. He only threw a single pass for the Jets.

Denver Broncos

Following the season, Ramsey signed with the

, serving as the backup to starter

Jay Cutler Jay Christopher Cutler (born April 29, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons, primarily with the Chicago Bears. He played college football for the Van ...

. He was released in the beginning of free agency in March 2009.

Tennessee Titans

Ramsey signed a one-year contract with the

on April 3, 2009, serving as the third quarterback on the depth chart after

Kerry Collins Kerry Michael Collins (born December 30, 1972) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. Collins was a member of six NFL teams, most notably the Carolina Panthers, New York Giants, ...

and

Vince Young Vincent Paul Young Jr. (born May 18, 1983) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons. Young was drafted by the Tennessee Titans as the third overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, and ...

. He was released on October 3 when

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

Cary Williams Cary Eric Williams (born December 23, 1984) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football at Washburn and was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the seventh round of the 2008 NFL Draft. Williams has also played for the Bal ...

was activated from the

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, ...

Detroit Lions

Ramsey was signed by the

on December 26, 2009 after

Matthew Stafford John Matthew Stafford (born February 7, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia, where he was a first-team All-American, and was selected f ...

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 ...

New Orleans Saints

Ramsey signed a one-year contract with the

on July 28, 2010; he was projected to serve as a veteran backup for the Saints' starting quarterback,

Drew Brees Drew Christopher Brees (; born January 15, 1979) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons. A member of the New Orleans Saints for most of his career, Brees is the NFL leader in ...

, filling the role vacated by

who was not re-signed after the 2009 season. On September 3, Ramsey was released as part of final cuts before the start of the 2010 NFL season, with

Chase Daniel William Chase Daniel (born October 7, 1986) is an American football quarterback for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Missouri and was signed by the Washington Redskins as an undrafted f ...

having won the backup spot.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Due to the

' quarterback injury problems in early 2010, Ramsey was brought on as a potential temporary backup for the team. He was released from the team shortly after on October 29, 2010.

Miami Dolphins

On November 15, 2010 it was reported that he was signed by the

following injuries to

Chad Pennington James Chadwick Pennington (born June 26, 1976) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. He played college football at Marshall, where he won the Sammy Baugh Trophy, and was selecte ...

and

Chad Henne Chad Steven Henne (; born July 2, 1985) is an American football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan. While there, Henne became only the second true freshman starti ...

.Ben Volin
"Dolphins sign QB Patrick Ramsey, place Chad Pennington on IR"
, ''

Palm Beach Post ''The Palm Beach Post'' is an American daily newspaper serving Palm Beach County in South Florida, and parts of the Treasure Coast. On March 18, 2018, in a deal worth US$42.35 million, ''The Palm Beach Post'' and ''The Palm Beach Daily News'' we ...

'', November 15, 2010. He was released on waivers November 30, 2010."Dolphins Make Roster Move"
.

website, November 30, 2010.

Minnesota Vikings

On December 15, 2010, Ramsey signed a contract with the

but did not play any games that year and was not on the Vikings' 2011 roster.

Personal life

Ramsey married his wife, Virginia, on April 13, 2002, the week before the

. The couple has two daughters, Virginia and Jane. He and his wife had their third child in the fall of 2011, Grey.Denver Broncos bio
/ref>

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramsey, Patrick 1979 births Living people Sportspeople from Ruston, Louisiana Players of American football from Louisiana American football quarterbacks Tulane Green Wave football players Washington Redskins players New York Jets players Denver Broncos players Tennessee Titans players Detroit Lions players New Orleans Saints players Jacksonville Jaguars players Miami Dolphins players Minnesota Vikings players