Rico Gafford - Underdog

“Des Moines, Iowa is the underdog”

This episode is fast. Really fast. You might need to play it at .5 speed it’s so fast. I mean when you start talking about NFL caliber speed like this week’s Moonlighter has, it is hard to even compare. Rico Gafford’s wheels took him from a state title in high school to lining up in the same offense as some of the most talented players in the NFL.

“Iowa Western is like a DI among JUCOs”

Rico Gafford grew up in Des Moines and started his high school career at East. He was being recruited by DI schools but he needed an opportunity to get his academics in order. That took him to Dowling and then to Iowa Western. Unlike what a lot of us have in mind based on shows like Last Chance U, Gafford said it was pretty comfortable in Council Bluffs. He was competing with bounce-back guys who had dropped down from programs like Florida State and Alabama for playing time. He started a few games each of his freshman and sophomore years at IWCC but really used that time to focus on his grades and prepare for a Division 1 program. When he was finished in Council Bluffs, he had 10 offers to choose from. 

After getting himself on track over the three previous years, Gafford was ready for the challenge of major college football. As a defensive back at Wyoming, he was facing future Buffalo Bills star QB Josh Allen every day. Those reps certainly paid off in the form of 4 picks his senior year and a second-team All-Mountain West selection. There were two main factors for Gafford when he decided to go to Wyoming. The first he discussed on the pod was the coaching staff that he had a great relationship with and the second was looking at the schedule he would be able to play. When he saw the Iowa Hawkeyes, Oregon, and other big-name programs the Cowboys were matching up with, Gafford knew that those would be opportunities to get in front of scouts.

”I don’t know if anyone could get me”

His stats at Wyoming were pretty good but he felt that being in the Mountain West Conference was a knock. But the stopwatch can’t and Gafford burned up an unofficial 4.19 40-yard dash. That standout number coupled with his performance on the field was enough to get him an undrafted free agent shot with the Tennessee Titans. After a few months in Nashville, he headed West to join the Oakland Raiders. Head coach John Gruden saw something in Gafford that gave him the idea to move him to offense. Rico proved him right by catching a TD on his very first reception against the Tennessee Titans. Between 2018 and 2020 Gafford moved between the active and practice rosters with the Raiders. This January Gafford signed a futures contract with the Arizona Cardinals and is now teammates with DeAndre Hopkins, Kyler Murray, and JJ Watt.

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