Former Ole Miss QB Jordan Ta’amu cut less than week after signing with NFL team
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
On Wednesday, former Ole Miss quarterback Jordan Ta’amu inked a deal with the Detroit Lions, 3 months after being waived by the Kansas City Chiefs.
On Monday, though, with NFL teams needing to cut their training camp rosters to 80 players, Ta’amu found himself as one of the casualties as the Lions released him along with 4 others.
The native of Hawaii transferred to Ole Miss from the New Mexico Military Academy, throwing for 1,692 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2017 as he relieved an injured Shea Patterson. As the Rebels’ starter in 2018, he threw for 3,918 yards and 19 touchdowns against just 8 interceptions while adding 6 more touchdowns on the ground.
Ta’amu signed with the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent in August 2019 but was released weeks later. He then joined the St. Louis Battlehawks of the XFL and was the team’s starter until the season’s shutdown due to the effects of COVID-19.
In April 2020, he was signed by the Chiefs, eventually ending up on their practice squad before being waived that October following a bout with COVID. After briefly being a part of the Lions practice squad, Ta’amu rejoined the Chiefs, then re-signed with the Lions on Wednesday before his release.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
