Deji Olatoye

Ayodeji Olatoye (born July 20, 1991) is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He played college football at North Carolina A&T. He was originally signed by the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2014.

Deji Olatoye
Free agent
Position:Cornerback
Personal information
Born: (1991-07-20) July 20, 1991
Cleveland, Ohio
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High school:Dublin Scioto (Dublin, Ohio)
College:North Carolina A&T
Undrafted:2014
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles:17
Forced fumbles:0
Fumble recoveries:0
Pass deflections:4
Interceptions:1
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Early years

Olatoye attended Dublin Scioto High School in Dublin, Ohio.[1] While there he was a three-year letterman. He also earned All-Central District Division II honors. As a senior, he played in seven games and recorded 49 tackles and one interception which was returned for a touchdown.

In addition to football, Olatoye lettered in basketball three times and was the team's starting power forward as a senior. He also lettered in soccer and track and field. In track, he set the school record in the high jump with a mark of 6-foot, 4-inches and also ran the third leg in the 4 × 400 metres relay.

College career

Olatoye accepted a football scholarship from the University of Colorado, where he graduated from with a degree in mass communications. He redshirted his first season in 2009.

As a freshman in 2010, he recorded six special teams tackles and one forced fumble.[2] As a sophomore in 2011, he posted 10 tackles and one pass defensed in four games.

As a junior in 2012, Olatoye transferred to North Carolina A&T.He started 10 games, tallying 30 tackles, seven passes defensed, three interceptions, and two fumble recoveries.

As a senior in 2013, he played in 11 games making 39 tackles, two interceptions and 11 passes defensed.[3] He was a member of a defense that allowed 277.9 total yards-per-game, including 187.6 passing, and just 16.8 points-per-game.

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 1 in
(1.85 m)		 198 lb
(90 kg)		 4.46 s 1.57 s 2.59 s 4.32 s 7.12 s 35 1⁄2 in
(0.90 m)		 10 ft 9 in
(3.28 m)		 13 reps
All values from Oklahoma pro day.[4]

Baltimore Ravens

Olatoye was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Baltimore Ravens after the 2014 NFL Draft on May 12.[5][3] He was waived on August 25 and signed to the practice squad.[3] He was released on September 3.[6]

Kansas City Chiefs

On October 8, 2014, the Kansas City Chiefs signed him to the practice squad after Phillip Gaines and Chris Owens suffered injuries.[3] On December 30, he was re-signed by the Chiefs to a reserve/futures contract. On September 5, 2015, he was waived by the Chiefs and was re-signed to the practice squad.[7] He was cut from the practice squad on September 8, 2015.

Dallas Cowboys

On September 9, 2015, Olatoye was signed to the Dallas Cowboys' practice squad.[8] After releasing defensive back Corey White, the Cowboys promoted him to the active roster on November 18.[9][10] His first start came in the fifteenth game of the season against the Buffalo Bills in place of an injured Morris Claiborne. He registered five tackles, one pass defensed and an interception.[11]

In 2016, Olatoye was used at cornerback and safety during training camp. He was having a solid preseason until the last game against the Houston Texans, when he struggled after being targeted by the opposing quarterbacks. On September 3, he was released after being passed on the depth chart by Dax Swanson.[12]

Atlanta Falcons

On September 5, 2016, the Atlanta Falcons signed Olatoye to their practice squad.[13] He was promoted to the active roster on November 23, 2016.[14] Olatoye and the Falcons reached Super Bowl LI, where they faced the New England Patriots. In the final, he had two total tackles as the Falcons fell in a 34–28 overtime defeat.[15]

On September 21, 2017, Olatoye was waived by the Falcons.[16]

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On October 25, 2017, Olatoye signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.[17] He was waived on November 7.[18] He was re-signed on November 29.[19] He was waived again on December 12, 2017.[20]

Atlanta Falcons (second stint)

On December 14, 2017, he was signed by the Atlanta Falcons to replace cornerback C. J. Goodwin and provide depth.[21] He was waived on December 29.[22]

Orlando Apollos

In 2019, Olatoye joined the Orlando Apollos of the Alliance of American Football.[23] He was placed on the injured reserve list before the start of the season and later was activated on March 5. The league ceased operations in April 2019.[24]

Houston Roughnecks

Olatoye was drafted in the 1st round during phase four in the 2020 XFL Draft by the Houston Roughnecks.[25] In March, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the league announced that it would be cancelling the rest of the season.[26] Playing in all 5 games, he registered 4 tackles and no interceptions.[27] He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.[28]

Personal life

Olatoye was born to Nigerian immigrants.[29] His younger sister, Oyesade, was a three-time state champion thrower at Dublin Coffman High School.[30] She is also the Ohio State University record holder in the indoor weight throw and represented the United States at the Junior World Championships in 2016 in Poland.

References
  1. "Dublin Scioto Football - Irish in the NFL". sciotofootball.com. December 29, 2017.
  2. "Deji Olatoye 2010 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  3. Paylor, Terez A. (October 9, 2014). "Chiefs sign cornerback Deji Olatoye to practice squad". KansasCity.com. The Kansas City Star. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
  4. "Deji Olatoye, DS #88 CB, Nebraska". NFLDraftScout.com. September 6, 2016.
  5. "Ravens Sign 17 Undrafted Free Agents". BaltimoreRavens.com. May 12, 2014. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  6. Zrebiec, Jeff. "Former Ravens players currently in the playoffs". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  7. "Chiefs Roster down to NFL-Mandated 53". Chiefs.com. September 5, 2015. Retrieved April 19, 2017.
  8. Kahn, Jeffrey (September 9, 2015). "Dallas Cowboys add CB Deji Olatoye, complete practice squad". 247sports.com. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
  9. Phillips, Rob (November 18, 2015). "Cornerback Signed; Rookie LB Nzeocha Activated; Practice Squad Moves". DallasCowboys.com. Dallas Cowboys. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
  10. Crispt, Scott (November 18, 2015). "Cowboys Promote CB Deji Olatoye to Active Roster". NBCDFW.com. KXAS-TV. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
  11. "Dallas Cowboys at Buffalo Bills - December 27th, 2015". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  12. Helman, David (September 3, 2016). "Three Former Draft Picks Among Cowboys' Cuts; McFadden Moved To NFI". DallasCowboys.com. Archived from the original on February 22, 2018.
  13. "Falcons Sign Johnson, Olatoye to Practice Squad". AtlantaFalcons.com. September 5, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  14. Jackson, Curtis (November 23, 2016). "Falcons Promote CB Olatoye, Release RB Ridley". AtlantaFalcons.com.
  15. "Super Bowl LI - New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons - February 5th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  16. Conway, Kelsey (September 21, 2017). "Falcons Waive Cornerback Deji Olatoye". AtlantaFalcons.com.
  17. Smith, Scott (October 25, 2017). "With Spence Headed to IR, Bucs Sign DE Tapp". Buccaneers.com.
  18. Smith, Scott (November 7, 2017). "Buccaneers Activate Ryan Griffin". Buccaneers.com.
  19. Smith, Scott (November 29, 2017). "Dotson, Marpet to IR Among Multiple Moves". Buccaneers.com. Archived from the original on January 3, 2018.
  20. Smith, Scott (December 12, 2017). "Riley Bullough Promoted to Active Roster". Buccaneers.com.
  21. McFadden, Will (December 14, 2017). "Falcons waive CB C.J. Goodwin, sign ex-Buc CB Deji Olatoye". AtlantaFalcons.com.
  22. Conway, Kelsey (December 29, 2017). "Falcons sign guard Jamil Douglas to active roster, waive cornerback Deji Olatoye". AtlantaFalcons.com.
  23. "Orlando Apollos Set Final Roster". Our Sports Central. January 30, 2019. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  24. Michael Rothstein, Seth Wickersham (June 13, 2019). "Inside the short, unhappy life of the Alliance of American Football". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
  25. "DEFENSIVE BACKFIELD DRAFT TRACKER". XFL.com. October 14, 2019.
  26. "XFL Injured Reserve". XFL.com. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
  27. "XFL Deji Olatoye stats". XFL.com. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  28. Condotta, Bob (April 10, 2020). "XFL suspends operations, terminates all employees, but Jim Zorn says he has hopes league will continue". SeattleTimes.com. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
  29. Jerod Smalley (February 3, 2017). "Olatoye family set for Super Sunday". nbc4i.com. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  30. "Sade Olatoye - Stats". Ohio MileSplit. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
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