T. J. Green (born March 15, 1995) 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 wi ...

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

for the

Memphis Showboats The Memphis Showboats were an American football franchise in the United States Football League. They entered the league in its expansion in 1984 and made the 1985 playoffs, losing in the semifinal round to the Oakland Invaders. Perhaps the mo ...

of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football at Clemson, and was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the second round 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 NFL Draft, 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park (Chicago), ...

Early years

Green attended Sylacauga High School in

Sylacauga, Alabama Sylacauga is a city in Talladega County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 12,578. Sylacauga is known for its fine white marble bedrock. This was discovered shortly after settlers moved into the area and has been q ...

. He played wide receiver and as a senior had nine receiving

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Amer ...

. He committed to

Clemson University Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university in Clemson, South Carolina. Founded in 1889, Clemson is the second-largest university in the student population in South Carolina. For the fall 2019 semester, the university enr ...

to play college football.

College career

Green played wide receiver his freshman year at Clemson in 2013, recording two receptions over 12 games. Prior to his sophomore year in 2014, he switched to

. He played in 11 games with one start and had 18

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position), a position in American football and Canadian football ** Dump tackle, a forceful move in rugby of picking u ...

and an

interception In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team ...

. As a junior, he became a starter, recording 95 tackles with a sack. After the season, Green entered the

Professional career

Indianapolis Colts

2016

The Indianapolis Colts selected Green in the second round (57th overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft. He was the third safety selected in 2016. On May 23, 2016, the Colts signed Green to a four-year, $4.16 million contract that includes $1.87 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $1.23 million. Throughout

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events, ...

, Green competed against Clayton Geathers and

Winston Guy Winston Guy Jr. (born April 23, 1990) is a former American football safety. He played college football at Kentucky. Guy was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL Draft. He has also played for the Jacksonville Jaguars ...

for the job as the starting free safety. Head coach Chuck Pagano named Green the backup free safety behind Clayton Geathers to begin the regular season. He made his professional regular season debut and first career start in the Colts' season-opener against the Detroit Lions and recorded three combined tackles in their 39–35 loss before leaving in the fourth quarter with a sprained ankle. Green earned the start in place of Geathers who was inactive due to a broken bone in his foot he sustained in training camp. The sprained ankle sidelined Green for the Colts' Week 2 loss at the

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 headquar ...

. In Week 9, Green started at free safety after Mike Adams was inactive due to a

groin In human anatomy, the groin (the adjective is ''inguinal'', as in inguinal canal) is the junctional area (also known as the inguinal region) between the abdomen and the thigh on either side of the pubic bone. This is also known as the medial comp ...

injury he sustained. He finished the Colts' 31–26 victory at the Green Bay Packers with a season-high six combined tackles. He finished his rookie season with 42 combined tackles (32 solo) and two pass deflections in 15 games and four starts. He finished 91st out of 91 qualifying safeties in Pro Football Focus' overall grade and coverage grade in 2016.

2017

Green entered training camp competing for a job as a backup safety against Clayton Geathers, Matthias Farley, Andrew Williamson, Tyvis Powell, Earl Wolff, Ronald Martin, Lee Hightower, and Tyson Graham. Defensive coordinator Ted Monachino held a competition between Green and Farley for the job as starting strong safety after rookie

Malik Hooker Malik Hooker (born April 2, 1996) is an American football safety for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ohio State and was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts with the 15th overall pick in the ...

sustained numerous injuries during

organized team activities In the National Football League, training camp refers to the time before the season commences. During this time, teams sometimes congregate at an outside location, usually a university, to conduct training camp for at least the first few weeks ...

and camp. Head coach Chuck Pagano named him the backup strong safety behind Farley to start the regular season. Prior to Week 8, Green was named the starting free safety after Hooker tore his ACL and MCL the previous week and was placed on injured reserve for the remainder of the season. In his first start of the season, Green recorded four solo tackle during the Colts' 34–23 loss at the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 8. On December 14, 2017, Green collected a season-high nine combined tackles during a 25–13 loss to the Broncos. Green finished the season with 45 combined tackles (31 solo) and a pass deflection in 16 games and seven starts.

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 ...

gave Green an overall grade of 73.9, ranking 60th among all qualifying safeties in 2017.

2018

On September 1, 2018, Green was

waived/injured The following terms are used in American football, both conventional and indoor. Some of these terms are also in use in Canadian football; for a list of terms unique to that code, see ''Glossary of Canadian football''. 0–9 ...

by the Colts and was placed on injured reserve. He was released on September 6, 2018.

Seattle Seahawks

On October 3, 2018, Green signed with the Seattle Seahawks. On October 22, 2018, Green left the team, citing his lack of desire to play football any more, and planned to retire.

New Orleans Saints

On July 25, 2019, Green signed with the

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 ...

. He was waived on August 31, 2019, and was signed to the practice squad the next day. He was promoted to the active roster on December 16, 2019. Three days later Green was waived after the Saints signed safety D. J. Swearinger.

Carolina Panthers

Green was claimed off waivers by 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. ...

on December 19, 2019. He was released on September 5, 2020, and re-signed to the practice squad on September 11. He was released on September 19.

Atlanta Falcons

On September 30, 2020, Green was signed to the Atlanta Falcons practice squad. He was elevated to the active roster on December 12 for the team's week 14 game against the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...

, and reverted to the practice squad after the game. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 4, 2021. On October 25, 2021, Green was released by the Falcons.

Houston Texans

On November 2, 2021, Green was signed to the Houston Texans practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Texans on January 11, 2022. The Texans released Green on March 22, 2022.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

On September 27, 2022, Green was signed to the practice squad of the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

. He was released on October 26, 2022.

Birmingham Stallions

Green was selected by the

Arlington Renegades The Arlington Renegades are a professional American football team based in Arlington, Texas. The team was founded as the Dallas Renegades by Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment and is an owned-and-operated member of the new XFL owned by Dwayne ...

of the XFL in the 10th round of the defensive backs portion of the

2023 XFL Draft The 2023 XFL Draft, is the player selection process to fill the rosters of the eight teams of the 2020 reboot of the XFL, and the second draft in that league's history following the 2020 draft. The draft was held on November 15–17, 2022, wit ...

, but instead signed with the

Birmingham Stallions The Birmingham Stallions were a franchise in the United States Football League, an attempt to establish a second professional league of American football in the United States in competition with the National Football League. They played their ...

of the

United States Football League The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

(USFL) on December 16, 2022. He was released by the Stallions on May 3, 2023.

Memphis Showboats

Green signed with the

of the USFL on May 11, 2023.

NFL career statistics

References

External links

Indianapolis Colts bio

Clemson Tigers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Green, T. J. 1995 births Living people People from Sylacauga, Alabama Players of American football from Alabama American football safeties Clemson Tigers football players Indianapolis Colts players Seattle Seahawks players New Orleans Saints players Carolina Panthers players Atlanta Falcons players Houston Texans players Birmingham Stallions (2022) players Memphis Showboats (2022) players Saskatchewan Roughriders players Canadian football defensive backs Players of Canadian football from Alabama