Jihad Ward

Jihad Ward ( ; born May 11, 1994) is an American professional football linebacker. He played college football for the Illinois Fighting Illini and selected by the Oakland Raiders in the second round of the 2016 NFL draft. Ward has also played for the Indianapolis Colts, Baltimore Ravens, Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Giants, and Minnesota Vikings.

Early life Ward attended Edward W. Bok Technical High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He didn't play football until his sophomore year. He began as a wide receiver and safety, before being converted into a stand up defensive end as a junior.

He received second-team All-City (2010) and first-team All-City (2011) honors. He also practiced basketball.

College career Ward attended Globe Institute of Technology for two years to improve his grades. In 2013, he played in 7 games, making 26 tackles (3 for loss) and 2 sacks.

In 2014, he transferred to the University of Illinois. He was named a starter at defensive end in the fourth game of the season. He posted 51 tackles, 3 sacks, 4 fumble recoveries (led the conference), 2 forced fumbles, and one pass defended.

As a senior, he started all 12 games, playing both at defensive end and defensive tackle. He registered 53 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 2 passes defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. Against the University of Iowa, he had a career-high 11 tackles, including nine solo.

In his last two years, he had 104 tackles, 5.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, and three passes defensed.

Professional career Pre-draft Coming out of college, most analysts projected Ward to be a second or third round selection. Although analysts had said he has above average athletic ability for a man his size, can play both end spots in a 3–4 or 4–3, is large enough to play defensive tackle in 4–3, and could become a quality pass rusher in the NFL, he was also seen as a developmental project who needs improvement in his power, and has inconsistent balance in contact.

Oakland Raiders Ward was selected by the Oakland Raiders in the second round (44th overall) of the 2016 NFL draft, after dropping because he had a knee injury that was expected to require arthroscopic surgery. Ward didn't participate much in organized team activities during the offseason. Ward finished his rookie season with 30 tackles in 16 games, 13 of which were starts.

On July 6, 2017, it was revealed that he had surgery on his left foot after injuring it during a workout, putting him out of action until mid-August. The injury limited him during the season, playing in only five games and was declared inactive in ten contests.

Dallas Cowboys On April 28, 2018, the Raiders traded Ward to the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for wide receiver Ryan Switzer. Cowboys defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli coached Ward in the 2016 Senior Bowl.

On September 1, 2018, the Cowboys waived Ward during final roster cuts.

Indianapolis Colts

On September 3, 2018, the Indianapolis Colts signed Ward to their practice squad. The team promoted him to the active roster on September 13, 2018. He was placed on injured reserve on October 26, 2018, with an ankle injury. Despite only playing in six games in the 2018 season, he recorded three sacks.

On October 1, 2019, Ward was released by the Colts.

Baltimore Ravens On October 7, 2019, Ward was signed by the Baltimore Ravens. In the 2019 season, he appeared in 14 games and had one sack.

On March 21, 2020, Ward re-signed with the Ravens. He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the team on November 26, 2020, and activated on December 5, 2020. He appeared in ten games in the 2020 season. He had three sacks, 16 total tackles, and two passes defended.

Jacksonville Jaguars On March 17, 2021, Ward signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Ward appeared in all 17 games and started one. He recorded two sacks and 32 total tackles (ten solo).

New York Giants On March 21, 2022, Ward signed with the New York Giants on a one-year contract. He played in 17 games with 11 starts, recording a career-high 43 tackles and three sacks.

Ward re-signed with the Giants on March 29, 2023. He played in all 17 games with nine starts. recording a career-high five sacks.

Minnesota Vikings On March 20, 2024, Ward signed with the Minnesota Vikings. He finished the 2024 season with one sack, ten tackles, one pass defended, and one fumble recovery.

Tennessee Titans On July 24, 2025, Ward signed with the Tennessee Titans. He finished the 2025 season with five sacks, 31 total tackles (15 solo), and four passes defended.

NFL career statistics Legend Bold Career high

Regular season Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD FF Fum FR Yds TD 2016 OAK 16 13 30 16 14 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2017 OAK 5 1 2 1 1 1.0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2018 IND 6 0 4 4 0 3.0 3 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2019 IND 3 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 BAL 11 0 7 3 4 1.0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 2020 BAL 10 0 16 7 9 3.0 4 0 0 0.0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 2021 JAX 17 1 32 10 22 2.0 3 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2022 NYG 17 11 43 28 15 3.0 7 0 0 0.0 0 0 4 2 0 0 0 0 2023 NYG 17 9 24 16 8 5.0 5 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1 0 1 7 0 2024 MIN 17 2 10 5 5 1.0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 0 0 1 2 0 2025 TEN 17 12 31 15 16 5.0 4 0 0 0.0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0Career 136 49 199 105 94 24.0 29 0 0 0.0 0 0 12 3 0 5 11 0

Postseason Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD FF Fum FR Yds TD 2019 BAL 1 0 2 2 0 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2020 BAL 2 0 3 3 0 0.0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2022 NYG 2 1 3 3 0 0.0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2024 MIN 1 1 2 0 2 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Career 6 2 10 8 2 0.0 2 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Personal life Ward is Muslim. He has said that his name, Jihad, which is popular where he was raised in Philadelphia, has been misunderstood due to the negative connotations associated with the term, which has been used to describe Islamic violence against non-Muslims.