Cory Raymer
Encyclopedia
Cory Gene Raymer is a former American football
center
who played for the Washington Redskins
and the San Diego Chargers
of the National Football League
.
All-America
honorable mention selection and earned first-team All-State honors as a defensive tackle at Goodrich High School in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin
.
at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
from 1991–94 and earned a degree in letters and sciences. As a senior he was a unanimous first-team All-America selection at center. Also Raymer was one of 12 nominees for the 1994 Lombardi Award
, which goes to college football's top lineman.
by the Washington Redskins
in the second round (37th pick) of the 1995 NFL Draft
. In 1996 while returning home from a fishing trip, a car crossed his path. In an attempt to avoid the car, Raymer turned over his vehicle and suffered a bruised kidney
, fractured vertebra and badly sprained left shoulder
. This would cause him to miss the rest of the season and put his NFL career in jeopardy. However, Raymer played six games the following season and started three after Jeff Uhlenhake
was sidelined.
The 1998 season marked the first time Raymer started all 16 games in an NFL season. He took the snap in all but one of the 1,029 offensive plays. Again in 1999 Raymer started all 16 games and also playoff games. He was a fixture on the Redskins' offensive line, composed of Keith Sims
and Tre Johnson at guard, Andy Heck
and Jon Jansen
at tackle, the NFL's second-ranked offense that season with 443 points (27.7 points/game), with Brad Johnson
at quarterback
. In a wild card game of the 1999-00 NFL playoffs, Washington defeated the Detroit Lions
, rushing for a massive 223 yards, as the interior line bowled over defensive tackles James Jones (defensive lineman)
and Luther Elliss with middle linebacker Stephen Boyd
. But the Redskins lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
in the divisional round. The 2000 season was a setback for Raymer, suffering a torn ACL
in practice and reinjuring his knee
a month later, again in practice. This led to Raymer being placed on the injured reserve
and missing the entire season, not playing in a single game, replaced at starting center by Mark Fischer
. But Raymer bounced back again in 2001 by starting in all 16 games in an 8-8 won-lost season.
Raymer then went on to play for the San Diego Chargers
in 2002, while Larry Moore
became the starting center for Washington. But Raymer but suffered a season-ending Achilles injury just three games into the season. The following year, Raymer again bounced back and played in 15 games, starting eight.
On March 11, 2004, Raymer returned to the Redskins by signing as a free agent
, when he appeared in 15 games and started 14 in a 6-10 season. In 2005, he lost his starting job to free agent Casey Rabach
, though seeing action in 2 regular games and also against the Seattle Seahawks
in the divisional playoff game, and then retired.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
center
Center (American football)
Center is a position in American football and Canadian football . The center is the innermost lineman of the offensive line on a football team's offense...
who played for the Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
and the San Diego Chargers
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
of the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
.
High school career
Raymer was a USA TodayUSA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
All-America
All-America
An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
honorable mention selection and earned first-team All-State honors as a defensive tackle at Goodrich High School in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin
Fond du Lac, Wisconsin
Fond du Lac is a city in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, United States. The name is French for bottom of the lake, for it is located at the bottom of Lake Winnebago. The population was 42,203 at the 2000 census...
.
College career
Raymer played college footballCollege football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
from 1991–94 and earned a degree in letters and sciences. As a senior he was a unanimous first-team All-America selection at center. Also Raymer was one of 12 nominees for the 1994 Lombardi Award
Lombardi Award
The Rotary Lombardi Award is awarded annually to the best college football lineman or linebacker. The Lombardi Award program was approved by the Rotary Club in Houston in 1970 shortly after the death of Vince Lombardi. The committee outlined the criteria for eligibility for the award, which...
, which goes to college football's top lineman.
Professional career
Raymer was draftedNFL Draft
The National Football League Draft is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players and it is their most common source of player recruitment. The basic design of the draft is each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order...
by the Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
in the second round (37th pick) of the 1995 NFL Draft
1995 NFL Draft
The 1995 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 22–23, 1995 at the Paramount Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City...
. In 1996 while returning home from a fishing trip, a car crossed his path. In an attempt to avoid the car, Raymer turned over his vehicle and suffered a bruised kidney
Kidney
The kidneys, organs with several functions, serve essential regulatory roles in most animals, including vertebrates and some invertebrates. They are essential in the urinary system and also serve homeostatic functions such as the regulation of electrolytes, maintenance of acid–base balance, and...
, fractured vertebra and badly sprained left shoulder
Shoulder
The human shoulder is made up of three bones: the clavicle , the scapula , and the humerus as well as associated muscles, ligaments and tendons. The articulations between the bones of the shoulder make up the shoulder joints. The major joint of the shoulder is the glenohumeral joint, which...
. This would cause him to miss the rest of the season and put his NFL career in jeopardy. However, Raymer played six games the following season and started three after Jeff Uhlenhake
Jeff Uhlenhake
Jeffrey Alan Uhlenhake is a former American football center in the National Football League for the Miami Dolphins, New Orleans Saints, and the Washington Redskins, and started 112 out of 119 games....
was sidelined.
The 1998 season marked the first time Raymer started all 16 games in an NFL season. He took the snap in all but one of the 1,029 offensive plays. Again in 1999 Raymer started all 16 games and also playoff games. He was a fixture on the Redskins' offensive line, composed of Keith Sims
Keith Sims
Keith Alexander Sims is a former American football player in the National Football League who played offensive line for eleven seasons between 1990 and 2000 for the Miami Dolphins and the Washington Redskins. Sims and Richmond Webb were leaders on a dominant Miami offensive line in the mid-1990s...
and Tre Johnson at guard, Andy Heck
Andy Heck
Andrew Robert Heck is a former American football offensive lineman in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins, Chicago Bears, and Seattle Seahawks. He is the current offensive line coach for the NFL's Jacksonville Jaguars. He attended W.T. Woodson High School...
and Jon Jansen
Jon Jansen
Jonathan Ward Jansen is an American football offensive tackle who is currently a free agent. He previously played for the Detroit Lions and Washington Redskins of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the second round of the 1999 NFL Draft...
at tackle, the NFL's second-ranked offense that season with 443 points (27.7 points/game), with Brad Johnson
Brad Johnson
Brad Johnson may refer to:* Brad Johnson , American actor, former Marlboro Man* Brad Johnson , American actor* Brad Johnson , former quarterback* Brad Johnson...
at quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
. In a wild card game of the 1999-00 NFL playoffs, Washington defeated the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
, rushing for a massive 223 yards, as the interior line bowled over defensive tackles James Jones (defensive lineman)
James Jones (defensive lineman)
James Alfie Jones is a former American football defensive lineman in the National Football League . He played college football at Northern Iowa, then he played ten professional seasons as a defensive tackle for four teams from 1991-2000. Jones never missed a game in his 10-year career.-References:...
and Luther Elliss with middle linebacker Stephen Boyd
Stephen Boyd
Stephen Boyd was an Irish actor, from Glengormley, Northern Ireland, who appeared in around 60 films, most notably in the role of Messala in Ben-Hur.-Biography:...
. But the Redskins lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West...
in the divisional round. The 2000 season was a setback for Raymer, suffering a torn ACL
Anterior cruciate ligament injury
An injury to the anterior cruciate ligament can be a debilitating musculoskeletal injury to the knee, seen most often in athletes. Non-contact tears and ruptures are the most common causes of ACL injury....
in practice and reinjuring his knee
Knee
The knee joint joins the thigh with the leg and consists of two articulations: one between the fibula and tibia, and one between the femur and patella. It is the largest joint in the human body and is very complicated. The knee is a mobile trocho-ginglymus , which permits flexion and extension as...
a month later, again in practice. This led to Raymer being placed on the injured reserve
Injured reserve
The injured reserve list is a list of reserved players who are injured and unable to play for a period of time, used most prominently in the National Hockey League and National Football League . It is used because these leagues have a maximum number of players on the team roster, so placing a...
and missing the entire season, not playing in a single game, replaced at starting center by Mark Fischer
Mark Fischer
Mark Raymond Fischer is a former American football center who played in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins. He played college football at Purdue University and was drafted in the fifth round of the 1998 NFL Draft...
. But Raymer bounced back again in 2001 by starting in all 16 games in an 8-8 won-lost season.
Raymer then went on to play for the San Diego Chargers
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
in 2002, while Larry Moore
Larry Moore
Larry Maceo Moore is an American football player in the National Football League who currently is a free agent. Moore was a two-year starter at Brigham Young University earning first team All-WAC honors as a junior and senior. In 1997, he spent time with the Washington Redskins and the Seattle...
became the starting center for Washington. But Raymer but suffered a season-ending Achilles injury just three games into the season. The following year, Raymer again bounced back and played in 15 games, starting eight.
On March 11, 2004, Raymer returned to the Redskins by signing as a free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
, when he appeared in 15 games and started 14 in a 6-10 season. In 2005, he lost his starting job to free agent Casey Rabach
Casey Rabach
Casey Edward Rabach is an American football center who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the third round of the 2001 NFL Draft...
, though seeing action in 2 regular games and also against the Seattle Seahawks
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
in the divisional playoff game, and then retired.