 Leake with the Edmonton Elks in 2024 | |
| No. 22 –Edmonton Elks | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Running back |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | (1998-08-01)August 1, 1998 (age 26) Greensboro, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Weight: | 205 lb (93 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Walter H. Page (Greensboro, North Carolina) |
| College: | Maryland |
| Undrafted: | 2020 |
| Career history | |
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
| Roster status: | Active |
| CFL status: | American |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Stats atPro Football Reference | |
| Stats at CFL.ca | |
Javon Leake (born August 1, 1998) is an American professionalfootballrunning back andreturn specialist for theEdmonton Elks of theCanadian Football League (CFL). He has also been a member of theNew York Giants,Washington Commanders andDetroit Lions of theNational Football League (NFL), and theToronto Argonauts of the CFL. He playedcollege football for theMaryland Terrapins.
Leake was born inThe Bronx, New York and moved toGreensboro, North Carolina while in middle school and attendedWalter Hines Page Senior High School.[1] He became the Pirates' starting running back as a sophomore and rushed for 456 yards and five touchdowns. He was named first-team All-Area by theGreensboro News & Record after rushing 277 times for 2,048 yards and 30 touchdowns while gaining 356 yards and scoring four touchdowns on 21 receptions as a junior.[2] As a senior, Leake gained 1,679 yards and scored 29 touchdowns on 216 carries despite missing time due to an ankle injury and was again named first-team All-Area and first-team All-State byUSA Today.[3] Rated a three-star recruit, Leake committed to play college football atMaryland over offers fromLouisville,Nebraska,North Carolina,South Carolina,Tennessee andVirginia Tech.[4]
Leake served as a kick returner and backup running back as a true freshman, rushing nine times for 99 yards and two touchdowns and returning 13 kicks for 274 yards.[5][6] He rushed 34 times for 309 yards and a team-leading seven rushing touchdowns and lead the team with 409 kickoff return yards and one kick returned for a touchdown during his sophomore year.[7][8][9] Leake became the first player inBig Ten Conference history to be named the Offensive and Special Teams Player of the Week for the same game after he rushed for 140 yards and three touchdowns and returned a kick 97 yards for a fourth score againstIllinois.[10][11]
Leake had an expanded role on offense as a junior, sharing primary running back duties withAnthony McFarland Jr., and rushed 102 times for 736 yards and eight touchdowns while also leading the Big Ten and finishing third in the nation with 804 kickoff return yards on 30 returns with two touchdowns and was named first-team All-Big Ten as a return specialist and the Rodgers-Dwight Return Specialist of the Year.[12] He was named the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week two times after returning a kick 100 yards for a touchdown against Rutgers on October 4, 2019 and for a 97-yard return touchdown against Michigan on November 4, 2019.[13][14] Following the end of the season Leake announced that he would be forgoing his final year of eligibility to enter the2020 NFL draft.[15]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | Vertical jump | Broad jump | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft0+1⁄8 in (1.83 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | 31+1⁄2 in (0.80 m) | 9+5⁄8 in (0.24 m) | 4.65 s | 1.62 s | 2.75 s | 34.0 in (0.86 m) | 10 ft 5 in (3.18 m) | ||||
| All values fromNFL Combine[16][17] | ||||||||||||
Leake signed with theNew York Giants as anundrafted free agent on April 25, 2020,[18] but was waived on August 29, 2020.[19]
Leake signed with thepractice squad of theWashington Football Team on November 19, 2020.[20] He was placed on the practice squad/COVID-19 list by the team on November 23,[21] and restored to the practice squad on December 2.[22] He was elevated to the active roster on December 12 for the team's week 14 game against theSan Francisco 49ers, and reverted to the practice squad after the game.[23] He was released on December 31, 2020,[24] but rejoined their practice squad on January 7, 2021.[25] Leake signed a reserve/futures contract with Washington on January 11, 2021,[26] and was waived on April 9, 2021.[27]
On August 11, 2021, Leake signed with theDetroit Lions.[28] He was waived on August 23, 2021.[citation needed]
On April 26, 2022, it was announced that Leake had signed with theToronto Argonauts.[29] He played in his first CFL game in the team's season opener on June 16, 2022, against theMontreal Alouettes where he was used primarily as a kick returner.[30] In2023, Leake had a dominant season as he finished with 1,216 punt return yards, thethird-most in CFL history and themost in Toronto franchise history. He also had four punt return touchdowns, which was one shy of the league record, but set a new Argonauts franchise record. He was named both a Divisional and CFL All-Star at the end of the year.[31]
On February 13, 2024, Leake signed with theEdmonton Elks.[32] On December 16, he signed a two-year extension with the Elks.[33]
