Russell Gage

American football player (born 1996)

American football player
Russell Gage
refer to caption
Gage with the Falcons in 2021
No. 3 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Position:Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1996-01-22) January 22, 1996 (age 28)
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S.
Height:6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:184 lb (83 kg)
Career information
High school:Redemptorist
(Baton Rouge, Louisiana)
College:LSU (2014–2017)
NFL draft:2018 / Round: 6 / Pick: 194
Career history
  • Atlanta Falcons (2018–2021)
  • Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2022–present)
Roster status:Active
Career NFL statistics as of 2023
Receptions:244
Receiving yards:2,491
Receiving touchdowns:14
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Russell Gage Jr. (born January 22, 1996) is an American football wide receiver for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU, and was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the sixth round of the 2018 NFL Draft.[1]

Early years

Gage attended and played high school football at Redemptorist High School.[2]

College career

Gage attended and played college football at LSU from 2014 to 2017.[3] He played defensive back for his first two seasons, but was brought onto the offense in Week 7 of his junior year for a key victory over #22 Texas A&M, where he led the run-heavy Tigers with five catches for 62 yards and a touchdown, his only receptions of the season.[4] He was used as both a running back and receiver in his senior year, generating four touchdowns on just 49 touches. He also recorded 11 tackles as a special teams gunner.[5]

College statistics

LSU Tigers
Season Team Conf Class GP Receiving Rushing
Rec Yds Avg TD Att Yds Avg TD
2014 LSU SEC FR 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0
2015 LSU SEC SO 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0
2016 LSU SEC JR 7 5 62 12.4 1 0 0 0.0 0
2017 LSU SEC SR 13 21 285 13.6 3 28 232 8.3 1
Career 21 26 347 13.3 4 28 232 8.3 1

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
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
6 ft 0 in
(1.83 m) 		186 lb
(84 kg) 		33 in
(0.84 m) 		9+1⁄8 in
(0.23 m)		 4.50 s 1.54 s 2.54 s 4.25 s 7.03 s 39.0 in
(0.99 m)		 10 ft 2 in
(3.10 m)		 15 reps
All values from Pro Day[6]

Atlanta Falcons

Gage with the Falcons in 2018

With modest college stats, Gage was not invited to the combine of any of the major award games, but attracted attention after an exceptional Pro Day and strong endorsement of his work ethic by coaches.[5] Gage was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the sixth round with the 194th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, four rounds behind fellow LSU wide receiver D. J. Chark.[7] In Week 6, against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Gage recorded his first professional reception, which went for six yards.[8] As a rookie, he totaled six receptions for 63 yards in 15 games on a team with deep talent at receiver.[9]

In Week 13 of the 2019 season, Gage recorded his first professional receiving touchdown against the New Orleans Saints.[10] Overall, Gage finished the 2019 season with 49 receptions for 446 receiving yards (fourth on the team behind Calvin Ridley, and pro-bowl-bound Julio Jones and Austin Hooper) and one receiving touchdown.[11]

With Jones injured for seven games and the departure of Hooper, in 2020 Gage became the second leading receiver for the 4–12 Falcons.[12] Gage's breakthrough game came in the home opener of September 13, a loss to the Seattle Seahawks where he had 114 receiving yards on nine receptions.[13] In the following week's game against the Dallas Cowboys, Gage caught six passes for 46 yards and another touchdown during the 40–39 loss.[14] In Week 14, against the Los Angeles Chargers, he threw a 39-yard touchdown reception to Calvin Ridley in the 20–17 loss.[15] Gage finished the 2020 season with 72 receptions for 786 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns.[16]

The 2021 season was highlighted by 11 receptions for 130 yards in a 30–17 loss to the Buccaneers in Week 13, and catching 9 of 13 targets for 126 yards and a touchdown in a Week 18 loss to the Saints.[17][18] The touchdown was both Gage's and quarterback Matt Ryan's last touchdowns as Atlanta Falcons. Gage missed two games due to injuries, but still was the Falcons' second leading receiver, behind rookie pro-bowler Kyle Pitts.[19] Gage finished the 2021 season with 66 receptions for 770 receiving yards and seven receiving touchdowns in 14 games.[20]

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On March 18, 2022, Gage signed a three-year, $30 million contract with the Buccaneers.[21] Gage spent five weeks on injured reserve. He had a career-best 12 receptions (for 87 yards and a touchdown) in a Week 3 loss to the Green Bay Packers.[22] He had his first career multi-touchdown game in a Week 14 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.[23] Gage finished the 2022 season with 51 receptions for 426 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns in 13 games.[24]

On January 16, 2023, Gage suffered a neck injury during a Wild Card Round playoff game against the Cowboys and was carted off the field.[25] It was confirmed after the game by Todd Bowles that Gage had suffered a concussion from the contact and was being evaluated in a local hospital.[26][27][28] The following morning, it was confirmed by the team that Gage "had movement in all extremities"[29] and would remain hospitalized with more testing planned.[30] By Tuesday afternoon, it was reported by Bowles that Gage was planned to be released from the hospital by the end of the day.[31]

In 2023 during training camp, Gage suffered a torn patellar tendon and was placed on injured reserve on August 21, 2023.[32]

NFL career statistics

Year Team Games Receiving
GP GS Tgt Rec Yds Avg Lng TD
2018 ATL 15 0 10 6 63 10.5 22 0
2019 ATL 16 4 74 49 446 9.1 19 1
2020 ATL 16 8 110 72 786 10.9 35 4
2021 ATL 14 9 94 66 770 11.7 49 4
2022 TB 13 13 70 51 426 8.4 23 5
Total 74 34 357 244 2,491 10.1 49 14

References

  1. ^ Dellenger, Ross (October 12, 2017). "A big hurdle: LSU's Gage helped family overcome flood, now leading Tigers on field as jet sweep man". The Advocate. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
  2. ^ "Russell Gage, Redemptorist , Athlete". 247Sports. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  3. ^ "Russell Gage College Stats". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
  4. ^ "Derrius Guice runs for LSU-record 285 yards as Tigers roll". ESPN.com. Associated Press. November 27, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
  5. ^ a b Miller, Matt (April 28, 2018). "Russell Gage NFL Draft 2018: Scouting Report for Atlanta Falcons' Pick". Bleacher Report. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
  6. ^ "Russell Gage, LSU, WR, 2018 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
  7. ^ "Falcons Select Russell Gage in Sixth Round". AtlantaFalcons.com. April 28, 2018. Archived from the original on May 1, 2018. Retrieved May 13, 2018.
  8. ^ "Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Atlanta Falcons – October 14th, 2018". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
  9. ^ "Russell Gage 2018 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  10. ^ "New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons – November 28th, 2019". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  11. ^ "Russell Gage 2019 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  12. ^ "2020 Atlanta Falcons Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees, Injury Reports". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  13. ^ "Seattle Seahawks at Atlanta Falcons – September 13th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  14. ^ "Cowboys' rally stuns Falcons 40–39 in McCarthy's home debut". ESPN.com. Associated Press. September 20, 2020. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
  15. ^ "Atlanta Falcons at Los Angeles Chargers – December 13th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
  16. ^ "Russell Gage 2020 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  17. ^ "Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Atlanta Falcons – December 5th, 2021". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  18. ^ "New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons – January 9th, 2022". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  19. ^ "2021 Atlanta Falcons Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees, Injury Reports". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  20. ^ "Russell Gage 2021 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  21. ^ Smith, Scott (March 18, 2022). "Bucs Land Former Falcons WR Russell Gage Jr". Buccaneers.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  22. ^ "Green Bay Packers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers – September 25th, 2022". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
  23. ^ "Cincinnati Bengals at Tampa Bay Buccaneers – December 18th, 2022". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
  24. ^ "Russell Gage 2022 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  25. ^ Easterling, Luke (January 16, 2023). "Bucs WR Russell Gage carted off after scary injury". USA Today. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  26. ^ Gordon, Grant (January 16, 2023). "Buccaneers WR Russell Gage set to be released from hospital; 'neck is fine' coach says". NFL.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  27. ^ Laine, Jenna (January 17, 2023). "Bucs' Gage in hospital for concussion after hit". ESPN.com. Associated Press. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  28. ^ "Buccaneers' Russell Gage: Suffers concussion Monday". CBSSports.com. January 17, 2023. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  29. ^ Owens, Jason (January 17, 2023). "Bucs' Russell Gage hospitalized overnight after sustaining concussion and neck injury". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  30. ^ Maaddi, Rob (January 17, 2023). "Bucs: Gage in hospital with neck injury, to have more tests". AP NEWS. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  31. ^ Benjamin, Cody (January 17, 2023). "Buccaneers' Russell Gage to be released from hospital after suffering concussion in loss to Cowboys". CBSSports.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  32. ^ Smith, Scott (August 21, 2023). "Bucs Claim CB Rodarius Williams, Place Russell Gage on IR". Buccaneers.com.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Russell Gage.
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