 Taliaferro with the Ravens in 2014 | |||||||||||||
| No. 34 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Running back | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born: | December 23, 1991 Yorktown, Virginia, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Died: | December 16, 2020 (aged 28) Williamsburg, Virginia, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight: | 225 lb (102 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school: | Williamsburg (VA) Bruton (Williamsburg, Virginia) | ||||||||||||
| College: |
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| NFL Draft: | 2014 / Round: 4 / Pick: 138 | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Player stats at NFL.com · PFR | |||||||||||||
Lorenzo Taliaferro (December 23, 1991 – December 16, 2020) was an American professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Lackawanna College and Coastal Carolina and was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft.
College career
Taliaferro attended Lackawanna College and played for Coach Mark Duda on a scholarship until he received a football scholarship to Coastal Carolina. Taliaferro finished 11th in the 2013 Walter Payton Award voting.[1] In May 2014, he shared the SAAC Male Athlete of the Year award for 2014 with Pedro Ribeiro.[2] In July 2014, he was voted Big South Male Athlete of the Year.[2]
Professional career
| 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+1⁄4 in (1.84 m) |
229 lb (104 kg) |
32 in (0.81 m) |
8+3⁄8 in (0.21 m) | 4.58 s | 1.60 s | 2.68 s | 4.22 s | 6.88 s | 34.0 in (0.86 m) | 10 ft 0 in (3.05 m) | 22 reps | |
| Sources:[3][4] | ||||||||||||
Taliaferro was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens with the 138th pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.[5] On September 21, 2014, Taliaferro had the first touches of his NFL career rushing 18 times for 91 yards and a touchdown in a week 3 victory over the Cleveland Browns.[6] Taliaferro had his first multi-rushing touchdown game against the Cincinnati Bengals with 2 touchdowns. He was placed on injured reserve on December 16, 2014, ending his rookie season. He finished his rookie season with 68 carries for 282 yards (4.3 yards per attempt) and 4 rushing touchdowns in 13 games. He also had 8 receptions for 114 yards, and returned one kickoff for 15 yards.
Taliaferro returned in 2015 and would begin the season as the third-string running back behind veteran Justin Forsett and rookie Javorius Allen. On October 14, 2015, Taliaferro was added to season-ending injury/reserve after a nagging foot injury plagued him all season. After playing Week 4 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, he finished his season with 13 carries for 47 yards and a touchdown in 3 games.[7] He also caught 5 passes for 29 yards
On August 30, 2016, Taliaferro was placed on the PUP list to start the 2016 season.[8] He was activated from the PUP list on October 22, 2016.[9] He was placed on injured reserve on December 13, 2016.[10] He had just four touches: a rush for no yards and three catches for 10 yards.
On September 1, 2017, Taliaferro was waived by the Ravens during final roster cuts.[11]
On February 14, 2018, it was reported that Taliaferro would be participating in The Spring League in 2018.[12]
Taliaferro signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League for the 2018 season.[13] After making several tackles as a defensive player, and receiving no offensive touches during the preseason, Taliaferro was released by Hamilton on June 6.[14]
Death
Taliaferro died at age 28 on December 16, 2020, in Williamsburg, Virginia, a week shy of his 29th birthday.[15] His death was reported to have been caused by a heart attack induced by cocaine and fentanyl, according to the Virginia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.[16]
References
- ↑ "The Sports Network - Football Championship Subdivision". www.sportsnetwork.com. Archived from the original on November 18, 2014.
- 1 2 "Coastal Carolina Chanticleers bio". Archived from the original on May 13, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
- ↑ "Lorenzo Taliaferro Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved February 17, 2020.
- ↑ "2014 NFL Draft Scout Lorenzo Taliaferro College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
- ↑ "Round 4: Ravens Draft RB Lorenzo Taliaferro". baltimoreravens.com. May 10, 2014. Archived from the original on October 13, 2017. Retrieved August 16, 2014.
- ↑ "Physical Rookie Running Back Lorenzo Taliaferro Rumbles In Win". Archived from the original on October 13, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
- ↑ "Ravens place Lorenzo Taliaferro on season-ending IR". NFL.com. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
- ↑ Mink, Ryan (August 30, 2016). "Ravens Make Final Four Roster Moves To Get To 75". BaltimoreRavens.com. Archived from the original on October 13, 2017.
- ↑ Downing, Garrett (October 22, 2016). "Ravens Activate Lorenzo Taliaferro, Promote Robertson Daniel to 53-man Roster". BaltimoreRavens.com. Archived from the original on October 21, 2017. Retrieved October 22, 2016.
- ↑ Mink, Ryan (December 13, 2016). "Ravens Release Veteran Returner Devin Hester". BaltimoreRavens.com.
- ↑ Mink, Ryan (September 1, 2017). "Ravens Announce 24 Roster Moves, Have 13 More To Make". BaltimoreRavens.com. Archived from the original on January 18, 2018.
- ↑ Durkee, Travis (February 14, 2018). "Johnny Manziel commits to The Spring League showcase". Sporting News. Omnisport. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
- ↑ "Hamilton Tiger-Cats".
- ↑ "CFL Transactions - Football Player Trades and Signings".
- ↑ O’Brien, Marty (December 16, 2020). "Former Brutom, Baltimore Ravens football player Lorenzo Taliaferro dies at 28". pilotonline.com. The Virginian-Pilot.
- ↑ "Former NFL player dies at 28 from heart attack". Bleacher Report. December 16, 2020.