Nigerian-born American Football (NFL) star, Jay Ajayi is again in the hunt for a new club in the high-profile USA league, following his shock release by Philadelphia Eagles, megasportsarena.com reports.
Although the lad with British and American citizenship rejoined the team in another deal in November, the running back was released early this week in preparation for Jordan Howard’s return from a six game spell out of action with a shoulder injury.
A report by ESPN’s Adam Schefter noted that it is another term in free agency for the 26-year-old re-signed with the Eagles in November after the team placed veteran running back Darren Spoles on injured reserve.
Ajayi, who has played a limited role in his second stint in Philadelphia, managing 30 yards off 11 carries across three games, made his second Eagles debut against Seattle Seahawks in what was his first outing since tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in Week Four of the 2018 season.
Ajayi was traded by Miami Dolphins to the Eagles during the 2017 season before rushing for 408 yards off 70 carries on his way towards a Super Bowl title, but his surge has been blocked by Howard’s recovery, which arrives as a timely boost for the Eagles as they look to clinch the NFC East title with a win over the New York Giants in the final game of the regular season.
The presence of Howard could also boost the open field production of Miles Sanders, who has also made 47 catches for 510 yards and three touchdowns so far this year, as he is second on the team with 525 rushing yards off 119 carries for six touchdowns, with the impressive rookie top of the way on 766 yards off 170 carries for three scores.
Ajayi, who was born in London, England, on June 15, 1993, moved to Maryland in United States when he was seven years old in 2000, then on to Texas, where he attended Frisco Liberty High School and, as a senior on the football team, he rushed for 2,240 yards and had 35 touchdowns.
He also earned one varsity letter in track & field as a member of the 4×400-meter (3:21.75), 4 × 200 m (1:29.44), and 4 × 100 m (42.86) district championship teams, then to Boise State and was drafted by Miami Dolphins in the fifth round of the 2015 NFL draft, but was traded to the Eagles in 2017 and won Super Bowl LII that year.
Ajayi attended and played college football for Boise State from 2011 to 2014, then redshirted as a true freshman in 2011 and, in October of same year, he was arrested for shoplifting a pair of sweat pants at a local Walmart store and was later sentenced to five days in jail.
As a redshirt freshman in 2012, he played in 11 games. He had 82 rushes for 548 yards and four touchdowns, including 118 yards and a touchdown on just six carries against New Mexico in his second career game.
As a sophomore in 2013, he started 12 of 13 games and rushed for 100+ yards in six, including 24 carries for 222 yards and three touchdowns in game seven against Nevada but, on December 21, 2014, Ajayi announced that he would forgo his senior season and enter the 2015 NFL Draft.
He finished his collegiate career with 678 rushes for 3,796 yards and 50 rushing touchdowns, which ranked third, third, and tied for second on Boise State career lists, in which he remains the only player in their history with three games of 200+ yards rushing.
There was a time when Ajayi was considered one of the top up-and-coming running backs in the NFL, but he first found himself unsigned in late August after suffering a torn ACL last October, limiting him to just four games with Philadelphia Eagles.
