Reche Caldwell

Donald Reche Caldwell Jr. ( or ; March 28, 1979 – June 6, 2020) was an American professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons in the 2000s with the San Diego Chargers, New England Patriots and Washington Redskins. Caldwell played college football for the Florida Gators.

Early life

Caldwell was born in Tampa, Florida, in 1979. He attended Jefferson High School in Tampa, where he was a three-sport standout in high school football, basketball and baseball for the Jefferson Dragons. In football, Caldwell started at tailback as a freshman; as a sophomore, he converted to quarterback—a position he had never played—and threw for 6,936 yards and 77 touchdowns as a three-year starter. He was a first-team all-state selection in 1996 and a second-team selection in 1997. As a junior in 2001, he was a third-team All-American selection by The National Sports Bureau, an honorable mention All-American selection by the Football News, a semi-finalist for the Fred Biletnikoff Award (annually given to nation's top receiver), and a second-team All-Southeastern Conference selection.

San Diego Chargers

Caldwell was selected by the San Diego Chargers in the second round of the 2002 NFL draft with the 48th overall pick. He played for the Chargers for four seasons from to . In his rookie season, he had twenty-two catches for 208 yards and three touchdowns and returned nine kickoffs for a 24.4-yard average. He returned to play a full season in 2005.

New England Patriots

Caldwell subsequently signed with the New England Patriots prior to the season. He went on to total over 60 catches and 700 yards on the season. During a playoff game against the Chargers, Caldwell had seven receptions for 80 yards, including a four-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Tom Brady in the fourth quarter. A week later in the AFC Championship game, he dropped two passes during the Patriots' 38–34 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. Caldwell was released by the Patriots four days before the first game of the 2007 season.

Washington Redskins

Caldwell signed a one-year contract with the Washington Redskins in September 2007. During the season, he appeared in eight games for the Redskins with fifteen receptions for 141 yards. However, he was released during the final preseason roster cuts.

In his six-season NFL career, Caldwell appeared in seventy-one games, starting in twenty-nine of them, while making 152 receptions for 1,851 yards and eleven touchdowns.

On May 14, 2014, Caldwell was arrested for drug possession and intent to distribute. On January 30, 2015, he was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison and three years probation for possession of MDMA with intent to distribute. In addition, he pleaded guilty to drug charges involving marijuana and ecstasy, along with charges involving gambling.

On December 12, 2019, Caldwell was accused by the Justice Department of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. He pleaded guilty to one charge of conspiracy to commit health fraud on January 23, 2020, and was set to be sentenced in June 2020.

Death Caldwell was shot and killed on June 6, 2020. According to his mother, the shooting occurred during an attempted robbery. Police reported that the killing did not appear to be random, and that the apparent robbery may have been planned.