 Escobar with the Cowboys | |||||||||||
| No. 89, 81 | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Tight end | ||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||
| Born: | (1991-02-03)February 3, 1991 New York City, New York, U.S. | ||||||||||
| Died: | September 28, 2022(2022-09-28) (aged 31) Idyllwild, California, U.S. | ||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | ||||||||||
| Weight: | 254 lb (115 kg) | ||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||
| High school: | Santa Margarita Catholic (Rancho Santa Margarita, California) | ||||||||||
| College: | San Diego State (2009–2012) | ||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2013: 2nd round, 47th pick | ||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||
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Gavin Louis Escobar (February 3, 1991 – September 28, 2022) was an American professionalfootballtight end who played for five seasons in theNational Football League (NFL) and a season in theAlliance of American Football (AAF). He played for theDallas Cowboys andBaltimore Ravens from 2013 to 2017, after having playedcollege football for theSan Diego State Aztecs.
Escobar was born inNew York City on February 3, 1991, to Erin and Harry Escobar.[1] He had two siblings; his brother Declan Escobar and his sister Morgan Escobar.
After moving to California in the early 2000's, he attendedSanta Margarita Catholic High School inRancho Santa Margarita, California,[1] where he played for the school's football and basketball teams.[2]
In football, he was a Trinity League second-team selection on offense in 2008 after making 37 receptions for 492 yards and six scores.[2] In a game againstSt. Bonaventure, the eventual state Division III champion, he had seven receptions for 130 yards.[2]
As a junior, he caught 11 passes for 163 yards (14.8 yards per catch). He was regarded as a two-star recruit byRivals.com.[3] Additionally, Escobar was a standout basketball player and key contributor alongside NBA starKlay Thompson, as Santa Margarita reached the California Division III State Championship in 2008.
Escobar accepted a football scholarship fromSan Diego State University, where he played from 2009 to 2012. He was redshirted after being diagnosed withtesticular cancer, which he was able to overcome after having thetumor removed.
As aredshirt freshman in 2010, he started 12 games, recording 29 receptions for 323 yards and 4touchdowns.[2]
Despite his decreased role the following year as a sophomore (6 starts in 13 games),[2] his production improved and he finished fifth in theMountain West Conference (MWC) in receptions (51), receiving yards (780), receivingtouchdowns (7), and sixth in receiving yards per reception (15.3).[4]
As ajunior in 2012, he posted 42 receptions for 543 yards and had the fourth-mosttouchdowns in the conference (6).[2][4] He declared for theNFL draft after the season, foregoing his final year of eligibility.
During the 2011 and 2012 seasons, Escobar was a first-team All-MWC selection. For his college career, he registered 122 receptions for 1,646 yards, 17touchdowns and did not miss a game.[2][4]
| 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 ft5+7⁄8 in (1.98 m) | 254 lb (115 kg) | 33+5⁄8 in (0.85 m) | 9+3⁄4 in (0.25 m) | 4.78 s | 1.68 s | 2.81 s | 4.31 s | 7.07 s | 32.0 in (0.81 m) | 9 ft 6 in (2.90 m) | 12 reps | |
| All values fromNFL Combine/Pro Day[5][6] | ||||||||||||
Escobar was selected by theDallas Cowboys in the second round (47th overall) of the2013 NFL draft.[7] After having mixed results from using previous second round draft choices intight endsAnthony Fasano andMartellus Bennett, the Cowboys surprised observers by selecting anothertight end, when there was a bigger need on theoffensive line.[8]
He made his NFL debut with the Cowboys on September 8, 2013, at the age of 22, in a 36–31 win against theNew York Giants.[9] During his rookie season, he was expected to be a pass catching option in the twotight end packages, but he was used sparingly, registering 9 receptions for 134 yards and 2touchdowns.[1][10] He became the fifth rookie tight end in franchise history to catch multiple touchdowns in a season.
Escobar remained in a backup role in his second season in the league, but was passed on the depth chart byJames Hanna, who was used to block at the point of attack in the running game. He was mostly used onspecial teams and as ared zone target, finishing with 105 receiving yards and 4touchdowns on 9 receptions.[11]
Escobar was unable to increase his role in the team's offense and remained as the third-stringtight end, despitewide receiverDez Bryant missing 7 games.[12] The 12 games thatquarterbackTony Romo missed also impacted his production, finishing with 8 receptions for 64 yards and one touchdown.
Escobar suffered a season-ending injury when he tore his rightAchilles tendon in the last drive of the fourteenth game of the season against theNew York Jets.[13] On December 25, he was placed on theinjured reserve list, in order to promotedefensive tackleCasey Walker to the 53-man roster.[14]
Escobar made a surprisingly quick recovery from his Achilles injury, allowing him to have a full participation intraining camp,[15] though he was passed on the depth chart byGeoff Swaim, who displayed better blocking ability. After being used primarily as a corespecial teams player and only participating in 29 offensive plays, Escobar became the backup tight end after Swaim suffered a season-ending injury in the week 10 win against thePittsburgh Steelers.[16] Because he struggled with his blocking, the Cowboys were forced to useoffensive linemanJoe Looney as the blocking tight end in short yardage situations.[17][18] Escobar finished with 4 receptions and one touchdown.[1]
Although Escobar had the size and continued improving his technique, he could never develop into a dependable in-line blocker. As with other Cowboys tight ends during theJason Witten era, the team's coaches could never find a complementary role for him in the passing game,[19] which limited Escobar to never starting more than 4 games and recording more than 9 receptions in a season.[1][20] He played in 62 games (7 starts), making 30 receptions for 333 yards and 8 touchdowns.[1]
Escobar signed a one-year contract as afree agent with theKansas City Chiefs on March 31, 2017.[21] However, Escobar was released on September 2 after not being able to passRoss Travis on the depth chart.[22]
On October 23, 2017, Escobar signed with theBaltimore Ravens, who were looking to improve their depth aftertight endMaxx Williams re-injured his ankle.[23] On November 18, he was released to make room forDanny Woodhead.[24] He appeared in 2 games as a backuptight end and he did not register any stats.
Escobar signed a reserve/future contract with theCleveland Browns on January 15, 2018.[25] He was released by the Browns on April 12.[26]
Escobar signed with theMiami Dolphins on April 16, 2018.[27] He was released on September 1, but was re-signed five days later.[28][29] Escobar was released by Miami on September 11.[30]
After getting released by the Dolphins, Escobar joined theSan Diego Fleet of the newly-formedAlliance of American Football.[31] He was placed oninjured reserve on April 1, 2019. The league ceased operations later that month.[32] Escobar caught 14 passes for 142 yards during the season.[33]
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Tgt | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 2013 | DAL | 16 | 1 | 15 | 9 | 134 | 14.9 | 25 | 2 |
| 2014 | DAL | 16 | 1 | 13 | 9 | 105 | 11.7 | 26 | 4 |
| 2015 | DAL | 14 | 4 | 13 | 8 | 64 | 8.0 | 22 | 1 |
| 2016 | DAL | 16 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 30 | 7.5 | 14 | 1 |
| Career[1] | 62 | 7 | 48 | 30 | 333 | 11.1 | 26 | 8 | |
Escobar was married and had two children. After retiring from football, he worked as a firefighter for theLong Beach Fire Department in California, starting in February 2022.[34][35]
Escobar died at around noon on September 28, 2022, whilerock climbing nearTahquitz Rock in theSan Bernardino National Forest. He was 31 years old.[34][35][36] He was climbing with a friend who also died during the climb.[37]