Arizona’s 2012-13 consensus All-American running back Ka’Deem Carey was released by the Chicago Bears after three nonproductive seasons (443 total yards rushing) mostly because he wasn’t explosive enough to be an every-down back and he wasn’t viewed as one who could help on special teams.
Now, eight years later, at 32, the former Canyon del Oro state champion has gained more than 1,000 yards in consecutive seasons with the CFL’s Calgary Stampeders and Toronto Argonauts, who he helped win the Grey Cup championship last week.
Toronto Argonauts’ Ka’Deem Carey (25) runs the ball during the second half of a CFL game at the 111th Grey Cup in Vancouver, British Columbia, Nov. 17, 2024.
Here’s a telling statistic of a running back’s life-span in football: Carey was the 11th running back drafted in 2014, and is the only one still active. No one else made it past eight seasons. The average career of those 11 backs was 4.6 years. Kudos to Ka’Deem.
One thing about the CFL: it’s not a place to make millions. Carey was paid $125,000 this year by Toronto, according to 3Down Nation. And his share from the Argonauts’ championship bonus pool was just $23,000.
