Luke McCaffrey is an American football wide receiver for the Washington Commaders in the 2024 NFL season. The Commanders selected McCaffrey as the 100th overall pick in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft. The pick was obtained through a trade that saw Chase Young traded to the San Francisco 49ers in the season prior. Born on April 2, 2001, in Colorado, McCaffrey’s life was surrounded by all things football, given that his father played 13 seasons in the NFL as a wide receiver playing for the Denver Broncos at the time of Luke’s birth. By the end of the 2024 regular season, Luke tallied 168 receiving yards on 18 receptions, as per Pro Football Reference.
McCaffrey’s football career started when he played as a wide receiver and a defensive back in his first two years for Valor Christian High School in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. He got the chance to play under his father as Ed McCaffrey was offered the head coach job at the school. His older brother Dylan was the quarterback on the same team. As a receiver, McCaffrey caught 47 passes for 717 receiving yards and had nine touchdowns in his sophomore year. Luke McCaffrey played partially as the quarterback in his junior season, where he threw for 878 yards with six touchdowns but also had 3 picks. In his senior year, he played quarterback, guided the team to a perfect 14-0 season, and won the Colorado State championship. He finished his senior year with 2,202 passing yards and had a touchdown-interception ratio of 21-4. He also added 526 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on the ground, as per Rice University's official website.
Luke McCaffrey's colleges
Luke McCaffrey attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (2019-2020) and Rice University (2021-2023). He played for the Nebraska Cornhuskers for three years.
In his first year, he appeared in four games. In 2020, McCaffrey featured in seven games. He finished the year with 466 passing yards, one touchdown, and 364 yards and three touchdowns along the ground (via Sports Reference).
Before the start of the 2021 season, McCaffrey transferred to Rice University in Houston, Texas. According to Sports Reference, he finished the year throwing for 313 yards and two touchdowns in nine games. In 2022, McCaffrey transitioned to a wide receiver.
Surprisingly, the former Cornhusker led his team with the most receptions (58) that year and finished with 723 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns, as per Rice University's official website.
The following year, McCaffrey had the best season of his collegiate career. He played 13 games and recorded 15 attempts for 117 rushing yards, 71 receptions for 992 receiving yards, and 13 touchdowns (via Sports Reference).
Luke McCaffrey’s college stats, as per Sports Reference:
Season | School | Games | Passing | Rushing | Receiving | |||||||||||
GP | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | TD | Int | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | ||
2019 | Nebraska | 4 | 9 | 12 | 75 | 142 | 2 | 0 | 24 | 166 | 6.9 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 12 | 0 |
2020 | 7 | 48 | 76 | 63.2 | 466 | 1 | 6 | 65 | 364 | 5.6 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | |
2021 | Rice | 9 | 31 | 62 | 50 | 313 | 2 | 4 | 41 | 132 | 3.2 | 2 | — | — | — | — |
2022 | 11 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 12 | 148 | 12.3 | 1 | 58 | 723 | 12.5 | 6 | |
2023 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 117 | 7.8 | 0 | 71 | 992 | 14 | 13 | |
Career | 44 | 88 | 152 | 57.9 | 921 | 5 | 10 | 157 | 927 | 5.9 | 7 | 131 | 1,732 | 13.2 | 19 |
FAQ's on Luke McCaffrey
A. Luke McCaffrey’s parents are Ed and Lisa McCaffrey.
A. Luke McCaffrey is 23 years old, as of January 2025.
A. Luke McCaffrey plays for the Washington Commanders, as of January 2025.
A. Luke McCaffrey, the youngest sibling, has three older brothers named Max, Christian, and Dylan