Michael Deshown Ford (born May 27, 1990) is an American former professional football running back. Ford was signed by the Chicago Bears after going undrafted in the 2013 NFL draft, and played college football at LSU. Ford was considered one of the better running back prospects of his class.[1]
 Ford at Bears training camp in 2014. | |||||
| No. 32, 27 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Running back | ||||
| Personal information | |||||
| Born: | May 27, 1990 Leesville, Louisiana, U.S. | ||||
| Height: | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||
| Weight: | 216 lb (98 kg) | ||||
| Career information | |||||
| High school: | Leesville (LA) | ||||
| College: | Louisiana State | ||||
| Undrafted: | 2013 | ||||
| Career history | |||||
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||
| |||||
Early life
editA native of Leesville, Louisiana, Ford was an All-American running back at Leesville High School. Regarded as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Ford was listed as the #7 running back prospect in the class of 2009.[2]
College career
editIn 2012, Ford ranked second in the Southeastern Conference in kickoff returns, averaging 27.5 yards on 20 returns, along with four kickoff returns of 40 yards or more;[3] one of those returns was for 86 yards against Arkansas, which set up a touchdown. Ford concluded his college career with 37 appearances, and 5 games started, scoring 14 touchdowns (13 rushing and 1 receiving).[4]
Professional career
edit2013 NFL draft
editFord put up impressive combine results measuring in at 5-9.5 210 pounds, running an unofficial 4.38 40 yard dash and bench pressing 225 pounds 25 times. He was ranked number one at his prospective position in the broad jump with a distance of 10 feet 10 inches, third in the vertical jump with a height of 39.5 inches, fourth in the 60 yard shuttle with a time of 11.43 seconds, and fifth in the 3-cone drill with a time of 6.87 seconds (Combine results from nfl.com). His bench press is listed as 7th best, however, 3 of the prospects he is ranked behind more than likely will be fullback candidates in the NFL not a true running back.
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 9+1⁄2 in (1.77 m) |
210 lb (95 kg) |
30+3⁄8 in (0.77 m) |
9 in (0.23 m) |
4.40 s | 1.48 s | 2.56 s | 4.25 s | 6.87 s | 39.5 in (1.00 m) |
10 ft 10 in (3.30 m) |
25 reps | |
| All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[5][6] | ||||||||||||
Chicago Bears
editAfter going undrafted in the 2013 NFL draft, Ford was signed by the Chicago Bears on April 28.[7] The Bears released Ford on August 23, 2014.[8]
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
editFord signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on June 10, 2015.[9]
Atlanta Falcons
editOn August 7, 2015, Ford was signed by the Atlanta Falcons.[10] On August 30, 2015, he was waived by the Falcons.[11]
Second stint with the Tiger-Cats
editOn September 27, 2015, Ford was added to the Tiger-Cats' non-active roster. He was added to the active roster on October 1, 2015.
References
edit- ^ "NFL Draft - 2014 RB Draft Prospects". CBSSports.com. Retrieved November 28, 2010.
- ^ "Running backs 2009". Rivals.com. January 16, 2009.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (May 11, 2013). "Ford adds depth, competition to return game". Chicago Bears. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (August 14, 2013). "Ford could get expanded playing time". Chicago Bears. Archived from the original on August 18, 2013. Retrieved August 14, 2013.
- ^ "NFL Events: Combine Player Profiles - Michael Ford". NFL.com. Archived from the original on March 1, 2013. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
- ^ "Michael Ford College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved August 2, 2024.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (April 28, 2013). "Bears add 10 undrafted free agents". Chicago Bears. Archived from the original on May 1, 2013. Retrieved April 28, 2013.
- ^ Bears begin cuts, release veteran safety Wilson
- ^ "Michael Ford". ticats.ca. Archived from the original on July 13, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
- ^ McClure, Vaughn (August 7, 2015). "With Devonta Freeman, Tevin Coleman ailing, Falcons sign a running back". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 9, 2015.
- ^ Choate, Dave (August 30, 2015). "Falcons roster cuts: Atlanta trims down to 76 players, place Lamar Holmes on PUP". The Falcoholic. Retrieved October 9, 2015.