Brad Kaaya
Bradley Mathias Kaaya Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League. He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes from 2014 to 2016, and was selected by the Detroit Lions in sixth round of the 2017 NFL draft. Kaaya is the football statistical leaders|all time passing yards leader] at Miami.
Early life
Kaaya attended Chaminade [College Preparatory School (California)|Chaminade College Preparatory School] in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, where he played high school football for the Eagles. As a senior, he threw for a school-record 3,855 yards and 27 touchdowns. During his high school career, he threw for 5,730 yards and 40 touchdowns while leading his school to their first ever CIF and CA State Championship. He was ranked by the Rivals.com recruiting network as the eighth best pro-style quarterback recruit in his class and was also a member of Nike's Elite 11, showcasing the top 11 quarterback recruits in the nation.College career
Kaaya was named the Hurricanes starting quarterback as a true freshman over Jake Heaps by head coach Al Golden on August 24, 2014. Kaaya led the Hurricanes to a 6–7 overall record and a bowl appearance, losing to 2014 [South Carolina Gamecocks football team|South Carolina] in the 2014 Independence Bowl. Kaaya was named Atlantic Coast Conference Rookie of the year following a 2014 regular season in which he led the league in pass efficiency and touchdown passes. In his second year starting, the 2015 Hurricanes improved to 8–5, with a loss to 2015 [Washington State Cougars football team|Washington State] in the Sun Bowl. Kaaya had the 2016 Hurricanes off to their best start of his career, going 4–1 and reaching as high as #10 in the AP Poll. Miami finished the 2016 season with a 9–4 record and a win over 2016 [West Virginia Mountaineers football team|West Virginia] in the 2016 Russell Athletic Bowl. Kaaya was named bowl MVP and became Miami's all-time leader in nearly every passing statistic, including yards.On January 2, 2017, Kaaya announced that he would be entering the 2017 NFL draft rather than returning to Miami for his final season of eligibility.
Professional career
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions selected Kaaya in the sixth round of the 2017 NFL draft. He was the ninth quarterback selected in the draft. On May 12, 2017, the Lions signed Kaaya to a four-year, $2.52 million contract with a signing bonus of $123,352. He was waived by the Lions on September 2.Carolina Panthers
On September 3, 2017, Kaaya was claimed off waivers by the Carolina Panthers. He was waived by the Panthers on October 17.Detroit Lions (second stint)
On October 18, 2017, Kaaya was claimed off waivers by the Lions. On October 23, Kaaya was waived by the Lions and re-signed to the practice squad.Indianapolis Colts
On December 27, 2017, Kaaya was signed by the Indianapolis Colts off the Lions' practice squad.On August 24, 2018, Kaaya was waived/injured by the Colts and placed on injured reserve. He was waived from injured reserve on February 8, 2019.