Maurice Christopher Maurice Jones Drew (born March 23, 1985) is a professional American football player who currently plays running back for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted in the second round (60th overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft. Drew graduated from De La Salle High School in Concord and played three years of college football at UCLA before declaring himself eligible for the NFL draft after his junior year.

NFL career

2006 NFL Draft
Maurice Jones Drew was selected 60th overall in the 2nd round of the 2006 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars to perhaps eventually replace Fred Taylor. He was passed on by all 32 teams in the draft, most citing his height (which is 5-foot-7) as the reason why he would not succeed in the NFL.

Jacksonville Jaguars

2006 season
In the beginning he was used mostly for kick-off returns, but he eventually became the Jaguars primary third-down back, behind Fred Taylor. After a relatively slow start, Maurice Jones Drew suddenly exploded. Against the Colts on December 10, 2006, Maurice Jones Drew set a franchise record with 166 rushing yards and 303 All-Purpose Yards, which included a 93-yard kickoff return for touchdown. He already has broken Jaguars team records by scoring at least one rushing touchdown in eight consecutive games (the previous record was four straight games) and by gaining 2,250 all-purpose yards.
He finished 3rd in the NFL in both kickoff returns (27.7 yd avg) and touchdowns scored (16). He was also one of only two players in the NFL to score at least one TD rushing, receiving, and returning kicks (Reggie Bush was the other). He also led all AFC running backs in scrimmage yards per touch. Narrowly missing 1,000 yards for the season, Maurice Jones Drew rushing average of 5.7 yds per carry was 1st in the NFL for backs with 100 attempts and was the highest for an NFL running back since Barry Sanders averaged 6.1 yards per rush in 1997. In addition, he had the third-most all-purpose yards of any rookie in history. He was nominated five different times for NFL Rookie of the Week in 2006. One NFL scout said, Maurice Jones Drew should be rookie of the year.
Nevertheless, he finished tied for 2nd in the balloting for Offensive Rookie of the Year (Vince Young of the Tennessee Titans was the winner). Experts believe he could be another Joe Morris type running back with short stature but blazing speed. Maurice Jones Drew says he likes wearing #32 because it reminds him each and every time he steps on the football field just how many NFL teams bypassed him in the 1st round of the 2006 NFL Draft because of his height.

2007 season
In his second season in the NFL, Maurice Jones Drew had already proven to be one of the most versatile running backs in the league. At the beginning of the 2007 season, Maurice Jones Drew was considered arguably the best running back from the Class of 2006. Expectations were high, and although the preseason had its ups and downs, such as a dropped pass from Byron Leftwich in a 21""13 win against Green Bay, a high was provided by the 38-yard catch and run from Leftwich in a win against Tampa Bay. Overall Maurice Jones Drew averaged 4.6 yards per carry in the preseason.
In his 2007 season debut Maurice Jones Drew production was just average. During a 10-7 win to the Titans, Maurice Jones Drew had 32 yards on seven carries in a game that produced just 48 rushing yards between Maurice Jones Drew and Fred Taylor combined. Maurice Jones Drew fumble at the 8 yard line in the 4th quarter was the last scoring opportunity for the Jaguars in that game. Promises that the running game would get better as the season progressed were realized when Maurice Jones Drew celebrated his first touchdown of the year after the fourth game of the season, in a 17-7 win against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The following week against the Houston Texans Maurice Jones Drew recorded his first 100-yard rushing game of season, rushing for 125 and 2 touchdowns on 12 carries. He also recorded 4 catches for 59 yards. In week 7 he scored the Jaguars only points in a Monday Night loss against the Indianapolis Colts. In week 10 he reached the 100-yard mark for the second and final time in the season, rushing for 101 yards and a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans. He would score a touchdown in each of the following three weeks.
Although his role as a running back was diminished during the 2007 postseason, he still managed to impact the game with his capabilities as a receiver and a return man. In the Wildcard game against Pittsburgh he totaled 198 all-purpose yards and 2 touchdowns. His first touchdown was a 43-yard pass from David Garrard, his second was a 10-yard run which put the Jaguars up 28-10 in the third quarter. He also returned a kick-off 96 yards to set up the Jaguars first score of the night, a Fred Taylor 1-yard run. He was named co-MVP of the game together with QB David Garrard. One week later against New England, he rushed for just 19 yards on 6 attempts as the Jaguars lost 31. He did manage to catch 6 passes for an additional 49 yards.

2008 season
Three Jaguars offensive linemen were injured by week one of the 2008 NFL season and Maurice Jones Drew was not as explosive as he was in 2007. His first 100 yard rushing game of the season came against the Indianapolis Colts, where the Jaguars won by a score of 23-21 on a last second field goal by kicker Josh Scobee. Teammate Fred Taylor also compiled over 100 yards in the game. Another good performance came in week 10 against the struggling Lions, where Drew posted three touchdowns, all in the first half. On Thursday Night Football in week 16, Maurice Jones Drew was given the opportunity to carry the load with Fred Taylor on injured reserve. The ball was handed to Drew 20 times and with that he gained 91 yards for a 4.6 yards per carry average. He also caught the ball 7 times for 71 yards.
In total, Maurice Jones Drew gained 824 yards on 197 attempts, posting a 4.2 yard per carry average. He also gained 12 touchdowns on the ground. Drew was used more in the passing game than his previous seasons and he managed 525 yards on 62 receptions.

2009 season
Maurice Jones Drew had a record-breaking season for the Jaguars. In a 13-30 loss in Tennessee during Week 8, Maurice Jones Drew rushed for 177 yards and two touchdowns on only 8 carries, one for 80 yards and another for 79 yards. This performance tied Hall of Famer Barry Sanders record of rushing for two touchdowns in a single game of 75 yards or more, which was set by Sanders in a Week 7 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on October 12th, 1997. Maurice Jones Drew became the third player to share the record, as San Francisco 49ers running back Frank Gore, also tied Sanders record in a Week 2 game against the Seattle Seahawks during the same season.
At seasons end Maurice Jones Drew compiled some nice statistics. He rushed for 1,391 yards on 312 attempts for a 4.5 per carry average and 15 TD"s. He was also being one of the big components in the Jaguars passing attack, as he had 53 receptions for 374 yards and a TD. In a recent article by Thomas George, Maurice Jones Drew had been recognized as the most versatile offensive player in the NFL.
Maurice Jones Drew was selected as a backup in the Pro Bowl behind Chris Johnson. During the game he rushed for 30 yards and a touchdown on 5 attempts.

2010 season
Maurice Jones Drew played the entire 2010 season with a torn meniscus in his left knee. He became aware of the extent of the injury in training camp, but tried to keep it a secret to prevent opponents from intentionally taking shots at his knee. After the 2010 season, he was named Running Back of the Year by the NFL Alumni Association.
Although the Jaguars did not make the playoffs, Maurice Jones Drew drew attention in the postseason with comments he made questioning the severity of an in-game injury to Jay Cutler in the NFC Championship Game.