Leon Washington

About Leon Washington

Leon Washington (born August 29, 1983) is an American football running back who currently plays for the National Football League's New York Jets. He was drafted in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL Draft (pick 117). After being heavily recruited during his high school career at Andrew Jackson Senior High School, Washington elected to play college football for Florida State. The pick used to select Washington was obtained by the Jets from the Kansas City Chiefs, as compensation for former Jets head coach Herman Edwards.

Washington gained some attention in his second preseason game, returning a kickoff 87 yards for a touchdown against the Washington Redskins. Nonetheless, he didn't immediately get many touches in the first few weeks of the regular season. However, as the Jets running game struggled in the first few weeks, Washington's role in the offense increased. He first showcased his agility and running ability on a 47 yard reception Week 3 in Buffalo. Two weeks later in Jacksonville, he recorded his first 100-yard rushing game, running for 101 yards in a Jets 41-0 loss.

His breakout performance came on October 22 at home against Detroit in a game in which Leon ran for 129 yards for 2 touchdowns and led the Jets' to a 31-24 win. In a vital game in Miami on Christmas night, Washington had 108 receiving yards including an exciting 64-yard reception to set up the game winning field goal in a 13-10 win. He helped the New York Jets clinch the fifth playoff spot in the AFC on New Years Eve, 2006 with a touchdown run that put that helped to seal a win against the Oakland Raiders in the final game of the 2006 regular season. He finished the regular season with 650 yards rushing and four touchdowns on 151 attempts. Washington averaged 4.3 yards per rush. After a lengthy run on the IR, Washington ran a 92-yard return in for a touchdown against the New England Patriots in 2008.