 Fales after the2012 Military Bowl | |||||||||||||||
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| Position: | Quarterback | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born: | (1990-10-04)October 4, 1990 (age 34) Salinas, California, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 213 lb (97 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school: | Palma (Salinas, California) | ||||||||||||||
| College: |
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| NFL draft: | 2014: 6th round, 183rd pick | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
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| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||||||
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David Daniel Fales (born October 4, 1990) is an American former professionalfootballquarterback. He was selected by theChicago Bears in the sixth round of the2014 NFL draft. He playedcollege football atSan Jose State.
Fales playedhigh school football atPalma School inSalinas, California. Afterredshirting freshman year for theNevada Wolfpack of theUniversity of Nevada, Reno, Fales attendedMonterey Peninsula College for two years and transferred toSan Jose State University for his junior year in 2012. With Fales, theSan Jose State Spartans went 11–2 in 2012 with the school's first-everBCS ranking, firstAP Poll ranking since 1975, and firstbowl game berth since 2006. With 31 touchdown passes in his first year with San Jose State, Fales was the most accurate FBS quarterback for the 2012 season and wasMVP of the2012 Military Bowl.
Fales was born and raised inSalinas, California.[1] A 2009 graduate ofPalma High School in Salinas, Fales was twice selected as all-league as quarterback.[2] As a junior, Fales was named as the starting quarterback after the fourth game of 2007 after the regular starter suffered a severeconcussion.[3] In his first game as starter on October 5, a 35–3 win over rivalSalinas, Fales completed 5 of 10 passes for 57 yards, including one 26-yard touchdown pass. Palma also had over 200 rushing yards.[4] With an 8–2 record for the 2007 regular season, Palma lost the first roundCentral Coast Section playoff game 20–14 toLos Gatos on November 16 after Fales lost a fumble with 1:33 left.[5]
As a senior, Fales was Tri-County League offensiveMVP.[2] In Palma'shomecoming game on October 10, 2008, Fales completed 15 of 19 passes for 164 yards and ran for two touchdowns in a 21–14 victory overSeaside.[6] In his junior and senior years, Fales threw 31 touchdowns and nine interceptions on 220-for-319 passing over 3,267 yards.[2] Having attracted little attention from college recruiters, Fales accepted a scholarship from theUniversity of Nevada, Reno, the first school to offer him one.[1] Other colleges that expressed interest in Fales includedBoise State,Colorado,Colorado State,Kansas State,Oregon State, andUtah, but none of them offered scholarships.[7]Scout.com ranked Fales #115 among quarterbacks in the United States.[7]
A two-star recruit, Fales attracted only one offer fromNevada. On July 28, 2008, Fales signed withNevada. Fales also attended a summer camp forOregon State.[8]
At the University of Nevada, Falesredshirted his freshman year in 2009, behind starter and future NFL quarterbackColin Kaepernick.[9][10] Fales later explained why he left Nevada: "I realized that what they wanted to do wasn't a good fit for me. They wanted me to be more of a runner."[1]
In 2010, Fales returned home toMonterey County and transferred toMonterey Peninsula College. According to Fales, he "had a previous relationship with the head coach (Mike Rasmussen)" at the college.[11]
Fales was a two-time all-conference selection and completed 61.8 percent of passes for 4,635 yards and 37 touchdowns.[2]
AfterWyoming offered Fales a non-scholarship position, Fales took a summer class at Wyoming in 2011 but returned to Monterey Peninsula for the fall.[1] For the 2011 season with Fales, Monterey Peninsula was 2011 Coast Conference co-champion and qualified for the Sierra Central Credit Union Bowl. Fales was among the top tenjunior college quarterbacks in number of completions, completion rate, passing yards, touchdown passes, and passer efficiency.[2]
As a two-star recruit, Fales attracted one offer fromSan Jose State. On December 21, 2011, he signed with San Jose State.[12]
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Fales QB | Salinas, CA | Monterey Peninsula CC | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 223 lb (101 kg) | Jan 3, 2012 | |
Star ratings:Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: | ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings:Scout:– (QB), 97 (school) Rivals:– (QB), 99 (school) 247Sports:170 (JUCO), 4 (pro-style QB), 63 (CA), 102 (school) | ||||||
Sources:
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During the 2011 season, San Jose State found itself without a viable future starting quarterback afterTate Forcier, who was redshirting a year after transferring fromMichigan, withdrew from San Jose State. Recruiting coordinator Terry Malley suggested recruiting Fales, and quarterbacks coachJohn DeFilippo met with Fales at Monterey Peninsula College. DeFilippo would later comment about Fales: "They did a great job with him at MPC. They ran a similar offense to what we had, a pro style. So I knew the learning curve wouldn't be as steep as with a guy coming from the spread offense."[1] In December 2011, Fales signed aletter of intent forSan Jose State University.[13] TheFCS schoolIndiana State University also offered Fales a scholarship.[1]
On August 23, 2012, following summer training camps, coachMike MacIntyre named Fales the starting quarterback.[14] Fales debuted for San Jose State on August 31 againstStanford. In San Jose State's 20–17 loss, Fales completed 24 for 35 passes for 216 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. After SJSU trailed Stanford 17–3 at halftime, Fales capped a third quarter rally with a 21-yard touchdown pass to Noel Grigsby. Following theextra point, the game was tied at 17. Fales's interception occurred with one minute and 10 seconds left in the fourth quarter, and Stanfordran out the clock to win the game.[15] Fales was also sacked three times for a loss of 17 yards but also had one 8-yard run.[16][17] For the next two games, both at home againstUC Davis on September 8 andColorado State on September 15, Fales had interception-free games with a total of four touchdowns: one on September 8 and three on September 15.[16]
On September 22, in a 38–34 road victory overSan Diego State, Fales completed 21 of 31 passes for 260 yards, four touchdowns, and an interception.[16] The lead changed four times in the fourth quarter after one tie. With 50 seconds left in the game, Fales capped a five-play, 65-yard drive with the winning 14-yard touchdown pass to Chandler Jones.[18] Fales had a season-high completion percentage of 85.3 percent (29-for-34, 276 yards) in San Jose State's 12–0 road victory overNavy on September 29 but threw no touchdowns and one interception.[16] After the Navy game, San Jose State was 4–1, the best start since its2006 New Mexico Bowl championship season.[19]
Despite this start, San Jose State would lose itshomecoming game 49–27 toUtah State on October 13. Although Fales completed 38 of 50 passes for three touchdowns and no interceptions, Fales wassacked 13 times for a total loss of 102 yards. Fales also lost a fumble late in the game, and Utah State scored its final touchdown off that turnover.[20][21] After this loss, Fales would lead SJSU to four straight wins and an 8–2 record by November 10. In those four games, three of which were away games, Fales threw 13 touchdowns and 4 interceptions.[16] By November, Fales was approaching school records for career passing yards and touchdowns.[22] On November 17, San Jose State won its ninth game of the year and reached its first nine-win season since 2006. In a game nationally televised onESPN2, Fales completed 25 of 34 passes for 305 yards for three touchdowns and one interception in San Jose State's 20–14 win overBYU. Those three touchdowns all came from San Jose State's first three offensive drives.[23] San Jose State's next game, the season finale victory on November 24 againstLouisiana Tech, again was nationally televised on ESPN2. For the sixth time this season, Fales passed for more than 300 yards, as he completed 25 of 37 passes for three touchdowns and an interception.[16][24]
For the regular 2012 season, Fales threw for 3,798 yards with 31touchdowns and nine interceptions.[25] With a completion rate of 72.1 percent, Fales was the most accurate passer and third in efficiency nationally among FBS starting quarterbacks.[26][27] In addition to second-team All-Western Athletic Conference honors, Fales made theSports Illustrated honorable mention All-American team.[28][2]
On November 25, San Jose State made the 24th spot in theBowl Championship Series (BCS) Top 25 rankings. This was San Jose State's first-ever BCS ranking and first national ranking since 1990.[29] The following week, both theAP Poll andUSA Today Coaches' Poll ranked San Jose State 24th in the top 25. This ranking marked San Jose State's first top-25 AP ranking since 1975.[30] San Jose State also played its firstbowl game since the2006 New Mexico Bowl.[31][32] On December 27, San Jose State defeatedBowling Green in the2012 Military Bowl by a score of 29–20. With 33 of 43 passes completed for 395 yards and 2 touchdowns, Fales was named the game'smost valuable player.[33][34]
Prior to the 2013 season, Fales was being projected as a first round pick in the2014 NFL draft.[35][36]
San Jose State started off 2013 with a 24–0 win overSacramento State on August 29. Fales completed 16-of-32 passes for 225 yards and 2 touchdowns.[37] The next game on September 7, in a 34–13 loss toStanford, Fales completed 29 of 43 passes for 216 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception and was sacked 4 times for 39 lost yards.[38] Fales again played well on September 24 with 29 of 43 passes completed for 216 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception, but San Jose State lost toMinnesota 43–24.[39] On September 27 in a 40–12 loss toUtah State, Fales completed 25 of 48 passes for 314 yards and 2 interceptions.[40] In contrast to last year's game against Utah State where he was sacked 13 times, Fales was sacked only once in this game.[41]
San Jose State won on October 5, 37–27 overHawaii. Fales completed 16 of 35 passes for 318 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions.[41] In a 31–0 run that followed a 14–3 first quarter deficit, Fales threw touchdowns of 61, 35, and 27 yards.[42] On October 12, inColorado State's homecoming game, San Jose State won 34–27. Completing 28 of 35 passes for 431 yards, Fales threw 3 touchdowns of 83, 77, and 62 yards.[43] According toThe Coloradoan, Fales completed several of his passes after eluding backfield defenders. Excluding two sacks for a loss of 13 yards, Fales had a career-high 33 rushing yards on 7 scrambles.[44] Following the game, the NCAA ranked Colorado State next-to-last in pass defense efficiency among all FBS teams.[45] With 5:36 left in the game, Fales threw the winning touchdown 62 yards to true freshman wide receiver Tyler Winston.[46] Following a bye week, San Jose State won its homecoming game on October 26, 51–44 overWyoming. Fales reached new career highs in passing yardage and touchdowns as he completed 27 of 37 passes for 482 yards and 5 touchdowns; Fales also scored the winning touchdown on a 1-yardsneak with 8 seconds left.[47] This was also Fales's fifth consecutive game with over 300 passing yards, aMountain West Conference record.[48]
After starting the season 5–3, San Jose State then lost three games in a row.[49] On November 9, San Jose State lost 34–30 toSan Diego State after leading for most of the game. On fourth down with 2:35 left, Fales threw an interception, and San Diego State won after running out the clock.[50] Fales had three touchdown passes.[51] One of the touchdowns came after a trick play in which Fales pitched the ball to wide receiver Tim Crawley, who pitched the ball back. Fales then passed deep to Chandler Jones for a 40-yard touchdown.[50] In San Jose State's loss toNevada the following week, Fales completed 28 of 43 passes for 326 yards and a touchdown.[51] On November 2, in a home game againstNavy nationally televised onESPN2'sCollege Football Friday Primetime, Fales completed 42 of 56 passes for 440 yards and again had 5 passing touchdowns.[51] However, San Jose State lost 58–52 in triple overtime after Fales threw an interception during the third overtime, and Navy quarterbackKeenan Reynolds then scored the winning touchdown.[52] San Jose State finished 6–6 after beatingAP 16th-ranked and 11–0Fresno State 62–52 in San Jose on November 29. Fales threw a career-high six touchdown passes and single-game school record 547 yards.[53]
Despite a bowl-eligible 6–6 record, San Jose State did not receive a bowl game invitation.[54] Fales finished his San Jose State career breakingAdam Tafralis's San Jose State records for career pass completions (639) and career total offense (8,250 yards) and Fales's own record for single-season total offense (4,196 yards).[55] Fales surpassedSteve Clarkson's previous record with 66 career touchdown passes and Tafralis's previous record with 8,382 passing yards.[56][57]
| Season | Team | Passing | Rushing | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | ||
| 2012 | San Jose State | 327 | 451 | 72.5 | 4,193 | 9.3 | 33 | 9 | 170.8 | 42 | −139 | −3.3 | 0 |
| 2013 | San Jose State | 312 | 487 | 64.1 | 4,189 | 8.6 | 33 | 13 | 153.3 | 48 | 7 | 0.1 | 2 |
| Career | 639 | 938 | 68.1 | 8,382 | 8.9 | 66 | 22 | 161.7 | 90 | −132 | −1.5 | 2 | |
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft1+5⁄8 in (1.87 m) | 212 lb (96 kg) | 31+3⁄4 in (0.81 m) | 9+1⁄4 in (0.23 m) | 4.99 s | 4.50 s | 7.55 s | 28 in (0.71 m) | 8 ft 7 in (2.62 m) | ||||
| All values from theNFL Combine[58] | ||||||||||||
Fales was selected by theChicago Bears in the sixth round of the2014 NFL draft with the 183rd overall pick.[59] Fales is the first San Jose State quarterback to be drafted sinceMike Perez in1988, and the fourth in school history since theAFL-NFL merger.[60] On May 12, 2014, Fales signed a four-year contract with the Bears.[61] Fales ended a 26-year drought for San Jose State quarterbacks being drafting in the NFL when he was selected by the Bears. "It’s an honor," Fales said. "I’m excited to be representing San Jose State." Fales is the school’s record holder in every significant passing category including career and single season marks in passing-yards and touchdowns. Fales would be San Jose State’s first quarterback since Jeff Garcia to play in the NFL.[62]
Fales played sparingly throughout the 2014 preseason, where he saw most of his action in the finale. With Fales still fighting for a spot on the final roster with the other backup quarterbacks, he was given the start and saw significant playing time in the final preseason game of 2014. In that game, Fales made a good case for himself to make the team, by finishing the game going 13-of-24 for 146 yards and a touchdown. However, Fales was waived on September 12.[63] After he cleared waivers, he was signed to the Bears' practice squad on September 14.[64] On December 13, 2014, Fales was elevated from the Bears' practice squad to the team's 53-man roster. The move came right after theNew England Patriots attempted to sign Fales.[65] On November 23, 2015, Fales was promoted once again to the active roster afterJimmy Clausen was waived.[66]
On September 3, 2016, Fales was released by the Bears as part of final roster cuts.[67]
On September 6, 2016, Fales was signed to theBaltimore Ravens' practice squad.[68] He was released by the Ravens on November 8, 2016, but he was re-signed two days later, only to be released again on November 15.[69][70] He was re-signed again to the practice squad on November 19.[71]
On November 23, 2016, Fales was signed by the Bears from the Ravens' practice squad.[72] In Week 17, he made his NFL debut in the regular season finale, entering the game in the fourth quarter and completing 2-of-5 passes for 22 yards as the Bears lost to theMinnesota Vikings by a score of 38–10.[73][74][75]
On April 5, 2017, Fales signed with theMiami Dolphins.[76] He was waived by the team on September 2, 2017.[77] On October 24, 2017, the Dolphins brought back Fales to back upMatt Moore after an injury to starterJay Cutler.[78] On December 3, 2017, Fales made his first regular season appearance as a Miami Dolphin, as the Dolphins were up 35–9 with three minutes left in the game, he made two handoffs toSenorise Perry, and went 0-of-1 passing.[79] In the regular season finale, on December 31, Fales replaced Cutler after the first series. Fales then completed 29 of 42 passes for 265 yards, one touchdown, and one interception while also rushing for a one-yard touchdown as the Dolphins lost to theBuffalo Bills by a score of 22–16. His first career passing touchdown was a one-yard pass toJarvis Landry.[80][81]
On March 15, 2018, Fales re-signed with the Dolphins.[82] He was named the third string quarterback behindRyan Tannehill andBrock Osweiler, but did not appear in a game all season.
On June 10, 2019, Fales was signed by theDetroit Lions.[83] He was waived on August 27, 2019.[84]
On September 18, 2019, Fales was signed by theNew York Jets.[85] On September 23, 2019, Fales was released.[86] On October 4, 2019, Fales was re-signed by the Jets.[87]
On April 23, 2020, Fales re-signed with the Jets.[88] On September 5, 2020, Fales was released by the Jets and re-signed to the practice squad the next day.[89][90] He was released on October 28.[91]
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | ||||||
| 2016 | CHI | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 40.0 | 22 | 4.4 | 0 | 0 | 53.8 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||
| 2017 | MIA | 2 | 0 | 29 | 43 | 67.4 | 265 | 6.2 | 1 | 1 | 82.0 | 4 | 8 | 2.0 | 1 | ||||
| 2018 | MIA | 0 | 0 | DNP | |||||||||||||||
| 2019 | NYJ | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||
| Career | 5 | 0 | 31 | 48 | 64.6 | 287 | 6.0 | 1 | 1 | 79.1 | 5 | 8 | 2.0 | 1 | |||||
Media related toDavid Fales at Wikimedia Commons