Justin March
Justin March-Lillard (born July 5, 1993) is an American football linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Akron.
| No. 59 – Dallas Cowboys | |||||||||||||||
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| Position: | Linebacker | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born: | July 5, 1993 Danville, Illinois | ||||||||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 228 lb (103 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school: | Danville (Danville, Illinois) | ||||||||||||||
| College: | Akron | ||||||||||||||
| Undrafted: | 2015 | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of Week 14, 2019 | |||||||||||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||||||||
Early years
March-Lillard attended Danville High School, where he played as a linebacker. As a junior, he had 203 tackles, 6 sacks and helped his team win the conference championship.
As a senior, he made 153 tackles, 2 sacks, contributing to his team winning back-to-back conference championships. He received All-Conference, All-Area and All-Area Player of the Year honors. He also practiced basketball and baseball.
College career
March-Lillard accepted a football scholarship from the University of Akron. As a freshman, he appeared in 12 games (2 starts), tallying 36 tackles. He had 9 tackles against the University of Cincinnati.
As a sophomore, he started in 11 games, collecting 62 tackles (third on the team), 2 tackles for loss, one interception and 3 passes defensed. He made 11 tackles against the University of Massachusetts and 10 tackles against Northern Illinois University.
As a junior, he started 12 games at strongside linebacker, registering 80 tackles (second on the team), 4.5 tackles for loss, 3 interceptions (tied for the team lead), 2 passes defensed, one sack and one defensive touchdown. Against the University of Michigan, he had 4 tackles (1 for loss) and 2 interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown. He made 10 tackles against Ball State University.
As a senior, he started 10 games at strongside linebacker, posting 72 tackles (second on the team), 6 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 8 passes defensed and 2 forced fumbles. He did not play against Marshall University because of injury. He had 8 tackles and 2 sacks against Miami University.
Professional career
Kansas City Chiefs
March-Lillard was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Kansas City Chiefs after the 2015 NFL Draft.[1] On September 1, he was placed on the injured reserve list with a knee injury.[2]
On October 18, 2016, he was placed on the injured reserve list with a broken hand that he suffered in Week 5 against the Oakland Raiders.[3] He was activated off injured reserve to the active roster on December 30.[4] He started 5 games, registering 22 tackles (one for loss) and 2 passes defensed.
On September 2, 2017, March-Lillard was waived by the Chiefs.[5]
Miami Dolphins
On September 3, 2017, March-Lillard was claimed off waivers by the Miami Dolphins.[6] He appeared in two games before being waived by the Dolphins on September 26, 2017.[7]
Seattle Seahawks
On September 27, 2017, March-Lillard was claimed off waivers by the Seattle Seahawks.[8] He appeared in one game and was waived by the Seahawks on October 7, 2017.[9]
Dallas Cowboys
On October 11, 2017, March-Lillard signed with the Dallas Cowboys as a free agent, his fourth team in nearly a month.[10] He was a backup linebacker that appeared in 7 games and was declared inactive in 4 contests.
In 2018, he appeared in all 16 games, while registering 7 special teams tackles and one defensive tackle.
On March 7, 2019, he was re-signed to a one-year contract.[11]
On March 21, 2020, March re-signed with the Cowboys.[12] He was released during final roster cuts on September 5, 2020,[13] but was re-signed two days later.[14] He was placed on injured reserve on December 19, 2020.[15]
References
- "2015 undrafted free-agent deals for all 32 NFL teams". NFL.com.
- "E.J. Gaines placed on Injured Reserve by Rams, waive ten more. Chiefs make four moves as both teams get down to 75 players". Missourinet.com.
- "Chiefs Announce Roster Moves". Chiefs.com. October 18, 2016. Archived from the original on December 8, 2017.
- "NFL report: Chiefs' Justin Houston is out Sunday and might miss the playoffs". LATimes.com.
- "Chiefs Roster Down to NFL Mandated 53". Chiefs.com. September 2, 2017. Archived from the original on June 3, 2018.
- "Dolphins Make Roster Moves". MiamiDolphins.com. September 3, 2017. Archived from the original on September 7, 2017.
- "Dolphins Reinstate Timmons". MiamiDolphins.com. September 26, 2017. Archived from the original on June 8, 2018.
- Boyle, John (September 27, 2017). "Seahawks Make Roster Moves". Seahawks.com. Archived from the original on March 20, 2018.
- Boyle, John (October 7, 2017). "Seahawks Sign DE Branden Jackson; Waive LB Justin March-Lillard". Seahawks.com.
- Helman, David (October 11, 2017). "Cowboys Release Veteran Cornerback Nolan Carroll; Sign Linebacker". DallasCowboys.com.
- Helman, David (March 7, 2019). "Justin March-Lillard Re-Signs On 1-Year Deal". DallasCowboys.com.
- Eatman, Nick (March 19, 2020). "Cowboys Agree to Terms With 2 Veteran LBs". DallasCowboys.com.
- Helman, David (September 5, 2020). "Two LBs Among Notable Cowboys Roster Cuts". DallasCowboys.com. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
- Eatman, Nick (September 7, 2020). "Collins, Lee, Bryant to IR; Cowboys Re-Sign 3 Vets". DallasCowboys.com. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
- Henry, Asa (December 19, 2020). "Cowboys roster shuffle: Trevon Diggs activated, two others added to IR". USAToday.com. Retrieved February 3, 2021.