Joe Mays (American football)

Joseph Lamont Mays (born July 6, 1985) is a former American football linebacker.[1] He played college football at North Dakota State and was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL draft. Mays also played for the Denver Broncos, Houston Texans, Kansas City Chiefs and San Diego Chargers.

Joe Mays
refer to caption
Mays with the San Diego Chargers in 2015
No. 51, 53, 57
Position:Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1985-07-06) July 6, 1985 (age 39)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Height:5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:244 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High school:Chicago (IL) Hyde Park
College:North Dakota State
NFL draft:2008 / round: 6 / pick: 200
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles:246
Sacks:1.5
Forced fumbles:1
Fumble recoveries:1
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

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Mays attended Hyde Park High School in Chicago, Illinois. He did not play football until his junior year of high school. He earned first-team all-conference honors in both his junior and senior years. He was named a first-team all-city selection as a senior in football after he made 115 tackles, 16 sacks, and two interceptions.

College career

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As a senior at North Dakota State, Mays led the team on defense with 90 tackles, nine tackles-for-loss and 2.5 sacks. He earned All-American honors and was named the Great West Conference Defensive Player of the Year.

Mays was a three-time first-team All-Great West Conference selection in his career. He made 285 total tackles, a school-record 159 solo tackles, 29.5 tackles-for-loss, three interceptions, and eleven sacks in his 31 games started and 43 games played in his career.

Professional career

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Philadelphia Eagles

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Mays was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the sixth round with the 200th overall pick of the 2008 NFL draft.[2] He spent most of the 2008 season inactive, but played in the last two games of the season on special teams.

On August 2, 2009, the starting linebacker for the Eagles, Stewart Bradley, suffered a season-ending torn ACL during training camp.[3] At subsequent Eagles practices, Mays was promoted to Bradley's position, middle linebacker, although Omar Gaither beat him out for the job.

Denver Broncos

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Mays (51) looks on as teammates tackle Steven Jackson on November 28, 2010.

Mays was traded to the Denver Broncos in exchange for running back J. J. Arrington on July 30, 2010.[4]

On September 25, 2012, Mays was suspended for one game and fined $50,000 by the NFL for his hit on the Houston Texans quarterback Matt Schaub that lacerated Schaub's earlobe.[5] During the Week 8 game against the New Orleans Saints, Mays fractured his fibula and was placed on injured reserve.

On July 23, 2013, Mays was released by the Broncos.[6]

Houston Texans

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On July 29, 2013, Mays signed with the Houston Texans to a one-year contract.[7]

Kansas City Chiefs

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Mays signed with the Kansas City Chiefs on March 12, 2014.[8] Due to an injury suffered in the Chiefs final preseason game, Mays was placed on injured reserve with a designated for return tag,[9] and was activated on November 8, 2014. He was released by the team on March 5, 2015.

New York Jets

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Mays was signed by the New York Jets on April 13, 2015.[10]

San Diego Chargers

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Mays signed a 1-year contract with the San Diego Chargers on October 20, 2015.[11]

NFL career statistics

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Legend
Bold Career high

Regular season

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Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds TD Lng PD FF FR Yds TD
2008 PHI 2 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2009 PHI 11 1 18 17 1 0.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
2010 DEN 12 5 40 35 5 0.0 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
2011 DEN 16 12 75 64 11 0.0 8 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
2012 DEN 6 4 20 7 13 0.5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2013 HOU 14 13 67 42 25 1.0 6 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0
2014 KAN 8 3 20 16 4 0.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
2015 SDG 9 0 6 3 3 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
78 38 246 184 62 1.5 19 0 0 0 0 6 1 1 0 0

Playoffs

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Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds TD Lng PD FF FR Yds TD
2009 PHI 1 0 2 2 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2011 DEN 2 2 15 9 6 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
3 2 17 11 6 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0

Personal life

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Mays earned a degree in physical education from North Dakota State. He and his wife, LaToyia, have one son, Jai, and one daughter, Joi.

References

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  1. ^ "Mays signs with San Diego, becomes second former Bison to be a Charger linebacker | INFORUM". Archived from the original on December 4, 2018. Retrieved October 28, 2015.
  2. ^ "2008 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 12, 2023.
  3. ^ "Report: Torn ACL could cost Bradley". espn.com. August 3, 2009. Retrieved August 5, 2009.
  4. ^ McPherson, Chris (July 30, 2010). "Eagles Acquire RB Arrington From Denver". philadelphiaeagles.com. Retrieved July 30, 2010. [permanent dead link]
  5. ^ "NFL Hands Mays $50,000 Fine, 1 Game Suspension". CBS News Denver. Archived from the original on September 27, 2012. Retrieved September 25, 2012.
  6. ^ "Broncos release Joe Mays". ESPN News. July 23, 2013. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
  7. ^ "Joe Mays, Houston Texans reportedly strike one-year contract". NFL.com. July 29, 2013. Retrieved August 3, 2013.
  8. ^ "Chiefs Ink Abdullah, Mays & Linkenbach". Archived from the original on March 13, 2014. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  9. ^ "Chiefs Sign S Kurt Coleman; LB Joe Mays to IR". KCChiefs.com. Archived from the original on September 4, 2014. Retrieved September 3, 2014.
  10. ^ Lange, Randy (April 13, 2015). "Jets Add Joe Mays to Their LB Corps". New York Jets. Archived from the original on April 14, 2015. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  11. ^ "Mays signs with San Diego, becomes second former Bison to be a Charger linebacker | INFORUM". Archived from the original on December 4, 2018. Retrieved October 28, 2015.
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