He went undrafted and was released, not making the 53-man roster.
That could have been the end of the NFL career for this young unknown who played his college football at South Alabama. No, not Alabama, but South Alabama. He has been released numerous times and placed on practice squads several times.
Yet on Monday, Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn named safety Jeremy Reaves as one of the team’s defensive captains. His journey should leave us all shaking our heads in amazement. Amazement at his perseverance, his hard work, striving to make it in the NFL, to becoming an elite special teams player, to a starter, and now a 2026 Washington Commanders defensive captain.
2018: Undrafted and signed by the Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles signed Reaves as an undrafted free agent; however, they released
him when the roster was trimmed to 53 players in early September.
2018: Signed by the Washington Redskins
Ten days later, Reaves was signed by the Redskins to their practice squad, but the Redskins released Reaves only six days later. One month later, the Redskins brought back Reaves to their practice squad. In December, the Redskins signed Reaves to their active roster.
2019
On August 31, the Redskins trimmed their roster to 53 and released Reaves. Two days later, Reaves was signed to the Redskins ' practice squad. Five weeks later, the Redskins signed Reaves up to their active roster for a second time.
2020
You guessed it, the Redskins, in trimming their roster to 53 players, released Reaves. Two days later, the Redskins brought back Reaves, signing him to the practice squad. Seven weeks later, they signed him to the active roster (this third time).
2021
Yes, again, when trimming their roster to 53, Washington released Jeremy Reaves on August 31. The next day, he was returned and signed to the practice squad. During that 2021 season, Reaves went up to the active roster and back down to the practice squad.
2022
For the first time in his career, Jeremy Reaves made the final roster cuts, being named to the 53-man roster. Having a spectacular year on special teams, Reaves was named to the Pro Bowl and also 1st Team All-Pro (Special Teams).
2023
Reaves season was cut short to only five games when he suffered a bad knee injury requiring surgery.
2024
Reaves had become an unrestricted free agent. New GM Adam Peters signed Reaves to a two-year contract worth $6M, providing Reaves a huge pay raise.
2025
Reaves elevated himself from primarily a special teams player to a starting safety, starting eight games. Reaves achieved career highs in passes defended (7), solo tackles (57), assisted tackles (34), tackles for a loss (5), and QB hits (2).
Prepping for the show today and wanted to throw this clip out there of why I'm a Jeremy Reaves fan.
— Nick Akridge (@nick_akridge) September 3, 2026
He's so good at understanding run fits and beating crack blocks. You can see him take a quick peek at the receiver trying to crack him and knows he can go all out to stop the run pic.twitter.com/Mcktr6dXZh
2026
Through offseason workouts and training camp, coaches express that Reaves is a starting safety. Reaves was offered and signed another extension through 2027, paying Reaves a new career high of $3.5M per year. On September 7, head coach Dan Quinn named Reaves as one of the 2026 season defensive captains, along with LB Frankie Luvu.
What a journey it has been for Jeremy Reaves. Commanders Wire wishes Jeremy Reaves the best in 2026.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Commanders' veteran is one of the NFL's best stories
