Position: Tackle / Guard Name Oliver Ross Height 1.96 m Education Iowa State University | College: Iowa State Role American football player Weight 148 kg | |
Date of birth: (1974-09-27) September 27, 1974 (age 41) Place of birth: Culver City, California High school: Los Angeles (CA) Washington NFL draft: 1998 / Round: 5 / Pick: 138 | ||
Oliver ross documentary
Oliver Calvin Ross (born September 27, 1974) is a former American football offensive lineman. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the fifth round of the 1998 NFL Draft. He played college football at Iowa State. He also was a member of the Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots and the Arizona Cardinals.
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Early years
At Washington Preparatory High School he earned All-Conference honors as a two-way tackle. He went on to play defensive tackle at Southwestern Community College, where he earned All-Southern California Western States Conference honors. He later transferred to Iowa State University where as a junior started at defensive tackle, before being converted to and offensive tackle. He earned the starter position at left tackle as a senior.
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys traded their sixth and seventh-round picks (162nd and 197th) to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for a fifth-round pick 1998 NFL Draft they use to select Ross. Because he had only one year of previous experience at that position, he needed more development and played in just 2 games as a rookie, as an extra tight end in short yardage situations. The next year he was released before the 1999 season started.
Philadelphia Eagles
Ross was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles to their practice squad, he was promoted to the active roster, but was kept inactive during the last 15 games of the 1999 season. In 2000 the team assigned him to the Amsterdam Admirals of the NFL Europe. He was released before the 2000 season started.
Pittsburgh Steelers
He was signed to the Pittsburgh Steelers practice squad and eventually promoted to the active roster on December 13, 2000. In 2001, he played in all 16 games and had the first 8 career starts of his professional career. Ross was signed to a restricted free agent offer sheet by the Cleveland Browns in 2002, but the Steelers matched it, signing him through the 2004 season. In 2003 he was expected to be the starter at right tackle, but lost the position to Todd Fordham in a close competition, before regaining it for the final 9 games of the season. In 2004 he started every game at right tackle.
From 2001 to 2004, he played in all 64 games, totaling 35 starts, playing both the guard and tackle positions.
Arizona Cardinals (first stint)
In 2005 he was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an unrestricted free agent, starting 11 games at right tackle, 1 at left tackle and missing 4 games with a broken bone in his hand. In 2006 he had surgery to fix a preseason right knee injury, playing in 11 games with five starts. He missed the entire 2007 season with a torn left triceps. He was released on February 21, 2008.
New England Patriots
In 2008 he was signed by the New England Patriots as an unrestricted free agent, but never played any games for the team. He began training camp on the PUP list with a shoulder injury, before being placed on the injured reserve list and eventually released on October 28.
Arizona Cardinals (second stint)
In 2009 he was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an unrestricted free agent, reuniting him with Ken Whisenhunt and Russ Grimm, who were his coaches with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was released before the season started on September 4.