D'Wayne "Dee" Eskridge (born March 23, 1997) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

and

kick 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 positio ...

for the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Western Michigan Broncos The Western Michigan Broncos are a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I program representing Western Michigan University (WMU) in college athletics. They compete in the Mid-American Conference in men's coll ...

Early life

Eskridge was born and initially grew up in

Winona, Mississippi Winona is a city in and the county seat of Montgomery County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 4,505 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 5,043 in 2010 United States census, 2010. Winona is known in the local ar ...

, before his family moved to

Bluffton, Indiana Bluffton is a city in and the county seat of Wells County, Indiana, United States. It sits on the banks of the Wabash River in the northeastern part of the state. The population was 10,308 at the 2020 census, up from 9,897 at the 2010 census ...

, while he was in grade school. He attended Bluffton High School, where he played football and was a sprinter on the track team. He was named Indiana's Mr. Track and Field as a senior. He committed to play

at Western Michigan over Ball State, which was the only other FBS program to offer him a scholarship.

College career

Eskridge saw playing time as a reserve receiver as a freshman. Eskridge became a starter going into his sophomore season and finished the year with 30 receptions for 506 yards and three

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

. As a junior, he caught 38 passes for 776 yards and three touchdowns. Eskridge spent the offseason at cornerback and entered his senior year as a starter on both offense and defense. He broke his collarbone four games into the season and used a medical

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Sports * Redshirt (college sports) Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically ...

. As a redshirt senior, Eskridge returned to playing receiver while also taking on the Broncos' kickoff return duties. At the end of the season he was named first-team All-

Mid American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a collegiate athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Its members compete in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divi ...

(MAC) as a receiver after leading the conference with 784 yards and eight touchdowns on 34 receptions and the MAC

Special Teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

Player of the Year after returning 16 kickoffs for 467 yards and one touchdown. Following the end of the season Eskridge participated in the 2021 Senior Bowl.

Professional career

Seattle Seahawks

Eskridge was selected by the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

in the second round (56th overall) of the

2021 NFL draft The 2021 NFL draft was the 86th National Football League draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland, Ohio from April 29 to May ...

. On May 14, 2021, Eskridge signed his four-year rookie contract with Seattle, which was for $5.9 million in total in addition to a signing bonus of $1.6 million. On October 7, 2021, Eskridge 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 ...

with a concussion. He was activated on November 12. On December 5, Eskridge scored his first NFL touchdown on a 7-yard pass from

Russell Wilson Russell Carrington Wilson (born November 29, 1988) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He has primarily played for the Seattle Seahawks. With the Sea ...

in a 30–23 victory over the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

. As a rookie, he recorded ten receptions for 64 yards and one touchdown in ten games. On November 26, 2022, Eskridge was placed on injured reserve with a broken hand. He appeared in ten games in the 2022 season. He had seven receptions for 58 yards. Eskridge was suspended the first six games of the 2023 season for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. The league penalty followed an inquiry into a February 2023 arrest on misdemeanor charges after a confrontation with the mother of his child. He appeared in four games in the 2023 season. Eskridge was waived by the Seahawks on August 27, 2024.

Miami Dolphins

On August 29, 2024, Eskridge was signed to the

practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on October 25. On May 12, 2025, Eskridge re-signed with the Dolphins.

References

External links

Miami Dolphins bioWestern Michigan Broncos bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eskridge, D'Wayne 1997 births Living people People from Winona, Mississippi People from Bluffton, Indiana Players of American football from Mississippi Players of American football from Indiana American football wide receivers Western Michigan Broncos football players Seattle Seahawks players Miami Dolphins players