A. J. Francis

Anthony Joseph Francis (born May 7, 1990) is an American professional wrestler and former American football nose tackle. He is currently signed to WWE. He was signed by the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent in 2013. Francis played college football at Maryland. Francis has been a member of the New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Redskins, and New York Giants.

A. J. Francis
Francis with the Washington Redskins in 2017
Free agent
Position:Nose tackle
Personal information
Born: (1990-05-07) May 7, 1990
Washington, D.C.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:330 lb (150 kg)
Career information
High school:Gonzaga College
(Washington, D.C.)
College:Maryland
Undrafted:2013
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career NFL statistics as of 2018
Total tackles:20
Sacks:0
Forced fumbles:0
Player stats at NFL.com

Football career

Miami Dolphins

After going un-drafted in the 2013 NFL Draft, Francis signed with the Miami Dolphins on April 30, 2013.[1]

New England Patriots

The New England Patriots claimed Francis off waivers on September 1, 2013.[2] He was released on September 7, only to be signed to the team's practice squad three days later.[3] Francis remained on the practice squad until being re-signed by the Dolphins in November.

Miami Dolphins (second stint)

On November 27, 2013, Francis was signed off the Patriots' practice squad.[4]

Francis was put on injured reserve on August 27, 2014.[5] On November 14, 2015, he was waived by the Dolphins.

Seattle Seahawks

On November 16, 2015, Francis was acquired off waivers by the Seattle Seahawks.[6] On November 24, he was released by the team,[7] but signed to the practice squad two days later. On November 30, 2015, he chose to be promoted to the active roster in Seattle over resigning with the Dolphins to their active roster. On March 8, 2016, Francis signed his one-year exclusive-rights tender deal to return to Seattle.[8]

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On May 17, 2016 Francis signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.[9] He was waived by the Buccaneers on September 3, 2016.

Francis signing autographs at 2017 training camp.

Washington Redskins

On October 12, 2016 Francis signed with the Washington Redskins.[10] He was promoted to the active roster on November 29, 2016.[11] He was waived on December 10, 2016, and was re-signed back to the practice squad.[12][13] Francis signed a futures contract with the Redskins on January 2, 2017.[14]

On September 2, 2017, Francis was waived by the Redskins.[15] He was re-signed to their practice squad on October 18, 2017, and was promoted to the active roster the next day.[16][17] He was waived on October 25, 2017.[18] He was re-signed on November 21, 2017.[19]

Francis was waived on April 30, 2018.[20] After his release, Francis publicly stated he was grateful that he was no longer a part of team due to the organization's lack of appreciation for him and adding his view that the team's mascot was racist.[21][22]

New York Giants

On May 2, 2018, Francis signed with the New York Giants.[23] He was released on September 1, 2018 and not signed by any other teams in the 2018-2019 season.[24]

Professional Wrestling Career

WWE 2020–present

After he was released by the New York Giants, Francis began training to become a professional wrestler.[25] Francis signed with WWE in January 2020.[26][27]

Personal life
Francis speaking at an Uber event in 2015

In April 2015, Francis signed up to be an Uber driver.[28]

References
  1. Prewitt, Alex (April 30, 2013). "A.J. Francis signs with Miami Dolphins, gets engaged on same day". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
  2. AJ Francis claimed on waivers by New England Patriots
  3. REPORT: PATS SIGN A.J. FRANCIS BACK TO PRACTICE SQUAD
  4. Beasley, Adam (November 27, 2013). "Miami Dolphins sign defensive tackle A.J. Francis". MiamiHerald.com. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
  5. Dolphins place three young players on IR, opening up roster spots
  6. "Seahawks Make Roster Moves". Seahawks.com. November 16, 2015. Archived from the original on November 20, 2015. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
  7. Boyle, John (November 24, 2015). "Seahawks Re-Sign RB Bryce Brown and Promote WR B.J. Daniels from Practice Squad; Waive DT A.J. Francis and Place LB Nick Moody on IR". Seahawks.com. Archived from the original on November 28, 2015. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
  8. Henderson, Brady. "Seahawks waive Jesse Williams; A.J. Francis signs ERFA tender". 710Sports.com. Retrieved March 10, 2016.
  9. Smith, Scott (May 17, 2016). "Bucs Add A.J. Francis to DT Corps". Buccaneers.com. Archived from the original on September 10, 2016. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  10. "10/12: Redskins Make Roster Move". Redskins.com. October 12, 2016. Archived from the original on October 13, 2016. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
  11. Czarda, Stephen (November 29, 2016). "Redskins Sign Defensive Lineman A.J. Francis To Active Roster". Redskins.com. Archived from the original on September 3, 2017. Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  12. "12/10: Redskins Make Roster Moves". Redskins.com. December 10, 2016. Archived from the original on December 11, 2016. Retrieved December 14, 2016.
  13. Czarda, Stephen (December 13, 2016). "Redskins Sign Linebacker Nick Moody, Place Anthony Lanier On Injured Reserve". Redskins.com. Archived from the original on September 3, 2017.
  14. "Redskins Sign Nine To Reserve/Future Contracts". Redskins.com. January 2, 2017. Archived from the original on September 3, 2017. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
  15. "9/2: Redskins Make Roster Moves". Redskins.com. September 2, 2017. Archived from the original on September 5, 2017.
  16. "10/18: Redskins Make Roster Move". Redskins.com. October 18, 2017. Archived from the original on October 19, 2017. Retrieved October 18, 2017.
  17. Czarda, Stephen (October 19, 2017). "Redskins Place Jonathan Allen On Injured Reserve, Sign A.J. Francis To Active Roster". Redskins.com. Archived from the original on October 22, 2017. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
  18. Czarda, Stephen (October 25, 2017). "Redskins Sign Offensive Lineman Tony Bergstrom". Redskins.com. Archived from the original on October 28, 2017. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  19. Czarda, Stephen (November 21, 2017). "Redskins Place Four On Injured Reserve, Sign Four To Active Roster". Redskins.com. Archived from the original on December 29, 2017. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
  20. Williams, Charean. "Washington cuts six players, including A.J. Francis, Montori Hughes". Pro Football Talk. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
  21. Allen, Scott (May 3, 2018). "'So grateful that I'm out of there': Former Redskin rips team and 'racist' logo". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved May 5, 2018.
  22. "A.J. Francis says Redskins' logo 'racist' after he joins Giants". ESPN.com. May 3, 2018. Retrieved May 5, 2018.
  23. Eisen, Michael (May 2, 2018). "Giants sign veteran QB Alex Tanney, DT A.J. Francis". Giants.com. Archived from the original on May 3, 2018.
  24. Eisen, Michael (September 1, 2018). "New York Giants announce 53-man roster". Giants.com.
  25. "NFL Veteran A.J. Francis Pursuing Dream in Pro Wrestling". www.mynews13.com. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
  26. Kelly, Omar. "Former Uber-driving Dolphins player A.J. Francis signs with WWE to become pro wrestler". sun-sentinel.com. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
  27. "Mercedes Martinez, Jake Atlas and more report to WWE Performance Center". WWE. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
  28. "A.J. Francis, Dolphins defensive tackle, moonlights as an Uber driver". ESPN.com. June 9, 2015. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
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