Hakeem Butler

Hakeem Butler
refer to caption
Butler with the St. Louis Battlehawks in 2023
Personal information
Born: (1996-05-16) May 16, 1996 (age 28)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:227 lb (103 kg)
Career information
High school:Travis (TX)
College:Iowa State (2015–2018)
Position:Wide receiver
NFL draft:2019 / round: 4 / pick: 103
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
  • UFL Offensive Player of the Year (2024)
  • All-UFL Team (2024)
  • All-XFL Team (2023)
  • UFL receiving yards leader (2024)
  • Second-Team All-American (2018)
  • Second-team All-Big 12 (2018)
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Hakeem Butler (born May 16, 1996) is an American professional football wide receiver who is a free agent. He played college football at Iowa State, and was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL draft. He has also been a member of the Carolina Panthers, Philadelphia Eagles, BC Lions, Edmonton Elks, Pittsburgh Steelers, and St. Louis Battlehawks.

Early life

Butler was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on May 16, 1996. His mother, Sherryl, died from breast cancer when Butler was 16. He has 1 sister and a younger brother. He then moved to Houston, Texas, to live with his aunt and uncle, and his cousins Aaron and Andrew Harrison, former Kentucky basketball stars. Butler attended Travis High School in Fort Bend, Texas.[1] He committed to Iowa State University to play college football, choosing it over schools such as New Mexico and Houston.

College career

After redshirting his first year at Iowa State in 2015, Butler played in 11 games in 2016 and had nine receptions for 134 yards and two touchdowns. As a sophomore in 2017, he had 41 receptions for 697 yards and seven touchdowns.[2][3] As a junior in 2018, he had 60 receptions for 1,318 yards and nine touchdowns, breaking a school record for single season receiving yards.[4][5] After the season, Butler decided to forgo his senior year and enter the 2019 NFL draft.

College statistics

Year Team GP Receiving
Rec Yards Avg TDs
2016 Iowa State 8 9 134 14.9 2
2017 Iowa State 13 41 697 17.0 7
2018 Iowa State 13 60 1,318 22.0 9
Totals 34 110 2,149 19.5 18
Reference:[6]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 5+3⁄8 in
(1.97 m) 		227 lb
(103 kg) 		35+1⁄4 in
(0.90 m) 		10+3⁄4 in
(0.27 m)		 4.48 s 1.51 s 2.62 s 4.16 s 7.09 s 36 in
(0.91 m)		 10 ft 8 in
(3.25 m)		 18 reps
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[7][8][9]

Arizona Cardinals

Butler was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the fourth round (103rd overall) in the 2019 NFL Draft.[10] He was placed on injured reserve on August 25, 2019, after suffering a broken hand, causing him to miss his entire rookie season.[11]

On September 4, 2020, Butler was waived by the Cardinals.[11]

Carolina Panthers

On September 18, 2020, Butler was signed to the practice squad of the Carolina Panthers.[12]

Philadelphia Eagles

On September 29, 2020, Butler was signed to the Philadelphia Eagles active roster off the Panthers practice squad and converted to tight end.[13] He was waived on October 31, 2020,[14] and re-signed to the practice squad two days later.[15] He signed a reserve/future contract with the Eagles on January 4, 2021.[16] He was waived on August 23, 2021.

BC Lions

On February 22, 2022, Butler signed with the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League (CFL).[17] He was released in early round of cuts at training camp on May 23, 2022.[18]

Edmonton Elks

Butler was signed by the Edmonton Elks of the CFL on July 5, 2022, and placed on the team's practice roster.[19] He was released on August 16, 2022.[20]

St. Louis Battlehawks (first stint)

On January 1, 2023, Butler was selected by the St. Louis BattleHawks of the XFL in the fifth round of the 2023 XFL Supplemental Draft.[21] At the completion of the season for the BattleHawks, Butler made 51 receptions for 599 yards and eight touchdowns.[22] He was released from his contract on May 15, 2023.[23]

Pittsburgh Steelers

On May 16, 2023, Butler signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers.[24] He was waived/injured on August 21, and then reverted to injured reserve. Butler was released on August 25.

St. Louis Battlehawks (second stint)

On December 4, 2023, Butler re-signed with the Battlehawks.[25] He was named to the 2024 All-UFL team on June 5, 2024.[26]

Cincinnati Bengals

On July 26, 2024, Butler signed with the Cincinnati Bengals.[27] On August 23, 2024, Butler was released.[28]

References

  1. ^ Sun, Baltimore (November 7, 2018). "Baltimore native Hakeem Butler grows into star at Iowa State, one highlight-reel catch at a time". baltimoresun.com.
  2. ^ Tribune, Dylan Montz Ames (May 29, 2018). "Cyclones' Butler ready to build off breakout season". The Quad-City Times.
  3. ^ "'I want to be the best': Iowa State WR Hakeem Butler ready to be the No. 1 target". Des Moines Register.
  4. ^ "College football: Butler on pace for historic Iowa State career". TelegraphHerald.com. Associated Press.
  5. ^ Lee, Edward (December 27, 2018). "Bowl game, NFL loom for Baltimore native, Iowa State wide receiver Hakeem Butler". baltimoresun.com.
  6. ^ "Hakeem Butler College Stats - College Football at Sports-Reference.com". College Football at Sports-Reference.com.
  7. ^ "Hakeem Butler Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. April 28, 2019. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  8. ^ "2019 NFL Draft Scout Hakeem Butler College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved August 13, 2023.
  9. ^ "Hakeem Butler 2019 NFL Draft Profile". insider.espn.com. Retrieved August 13, 2023.
  10. ^ Patra, Kevin (April 27, 2019). "Cardinals add Iowa State WR Hakeem Butler at No. 103". NFL.com. Archived from the original on April 29, 2019.
  11. ^ a b Urban, Darren (September 4, 2020). "Cardinals Begin Cuts; Hakeem Butler Among Released". AZCardinals.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  12. ^ "Panthers sign WR Hakeem Butler to practice squad, release undrafted DT". Panthers Wire. USA Today. September 18, 2020.
  13. ^ McPherson, Chris (September 29, 2020). "Eagles agree to sign TE Hakeem Butler; place TE Dallas Goedert on Injured Reserve". PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
  14. ^ McPherson, Chris (October 31, 2020). "Roster Moves: Eagles activate LB T.J. Edwards, S Rudy Ford, TE Dallas Goedert, T Jason Peters, and WR Jalen Reagor from Injured Reserve". PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
  15. ^ McPherson, Chris (November 2, 2020). "Eagles sign TE Hakeem Butler and LB Rashad Smith to the practice squad". PhiladelphiaEagles.com. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  16. ^ McPherson, Chris (January 4, 2021). "Eagles agree to terms with DT T.Y. McGill; sign nine players to reserve/futures deals". PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
  17. ^ "Lions Sign Former Arizona Cardinals Draft Pick Hakeem Butler". BC Lions. February 22, 2022. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  18. ^ "B.C. Lions release eight players, including recently signed Canadian defensive back Jordan Hoover and former NFL player Hakeem Butler". May 23, 2022.
  19. ^ 3Down Staff (July 5, 2022). "Edmonton Elks sign former fourth-round NFL draft pick Hakeem Butler". 3DownNation. Retrieved July 6, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  20. ^ "TRANSACTIONS | Elks sign McLaurin (DB)". August 16, 2022.
  21. ^ "Supplemental Draft Picks". www.xfl.com. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
  22. ^ "XFL Football Scores - XFL Scoreboard". ESPN. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  23. ^ "XFL Transactions". Retrieved May 18, 2023.
  24. ^ Strackbein, Noah (May 16, 2023). "Steelers Sign XFL WR Hakeem Butler". Sports Illustrated Pittsburgh Steelers News, Analysis and More. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  25. ^ "XFL Transactions". www.xfl.com. Retrieved December 5, 2023.
  26. ^ "UFL Announces Inaugural All-UFL Team". www.theufl.com. June 5, 2024. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  27. ^ "Bengals Sign Three Free Agents". Bengals.com. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
  28. ^ "Hakeem Butler: Sent packing". CBSSports.com. August 23, 2024. Retrieved August 23, 2024.