Marquise Brown

Lore & Background

Brown was born on June 4, 1997, in Hollywood, Florida. He played Pop Warner football in the same Florida league with Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, though the two were on different teams. Brown attended South Broward High School in Hollywood, where he also ran track. He transferred to Chaminade-Madonna College Preparatory School where in addition to playing football he also ran track, with his 100-meter time of 10.90 seconds and 21.94 seconds in the 200 meters at the Florida High Schools Athletic Association's 2A District 15 regional championship track meet. After not receiving any scholarships from Division 1 schools, Brown signed with the College of the Canyons for the 2016 season. Because California Junior colleges do not offer sports scholarships, Brown worked at Six Flags Magic Mountain to make ends meet. After a year at College of the Canyons, Brown received several Division 1 scholarship offers, committing to Oklahoma. During his first year at Oklahoma, Brown played all thirteen games, starting eight, and had a team high 1,095 receiving yards, becoming the 8th all time receiver in single season yards. He also posted 265 yards against Oklahoma State, an Oklahoma record for receiving yards in a single game. On January 2, 2019, Brown announced that he would forgo his final year of eligibility to declare for the 2019 NFL draft.

Reader's Guide

Brown was selected 25th overall by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round of the 2019 NFL draft. He was the first wide receiver selected. He signed his rookie contract on June 7, 2019. Brown made his regular season debut against the Miami Dolphins in Week 1, recording four receptions, 147 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Despite playing only 14 snaps, Brown became the first player in NFL history to score two touchdowns of 40 yards or more in his first game. Brown caught eight passes for 86 yards in a Week 2 win against the Arizona Cardinals. Brown missed Weeks 6 and 7 due to injury. In Week 12 against the Los Angeles Rams, Brown caught five passes for 42 yards and two touchdowns in a 45–6 win. In Week 15, Brown caught his seventh touchdown in a 42–21 win over the New York Jets, which tied the Ravens franchise record for most receiving touchdowns by a rookie. Brown finished 2019 as the Ravens' second leading receiver behind tight end Mark Andrews. In his playoff debut, Brown led both teams with seven catches for 126 receiving yards in a 12–28 Divisional Round loss to the Tennessee Titans. In 2020, Brown recorded five receptions for 101 receiving yards in the 38–6 victory over the Cleveland Browns in Week 1. In Week 8 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Brown recorded one catch for a three yard touchdown during the Ravens' 28–24 loss. After the game, Brown posted a later deleted tweet saying "What's the point of having souljas when you never use them (Never!!)" due to his lack of involvement in the Ravens' offense. In Week 12 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Brown recorded 4 catches for 85 yards, including a 70 yard touchdown reception from Trace McSorley, during the Ravens' 19–14 loss. In Week 14 against the Browns, he had three drops, but also had a game-saving 44-yard touchdown reception on 4th and 5 with 1:51 left in the game. He finished the game with two catches for 50 yards as the Ravens won 47–42. He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the team on December 16, 2020, and activated three days later. Brown finished the regular season with 58 receptions for 769 yards and eight touchdowns. In the AFC Wild Card Round against the Titans, Brown had seven receptions for 109 yards as the Ravens won 20–13. In 2021, Brown changed his jersey number from #15 to #5 following a change of the NFL's jersey number rules.

Did You Know?

• Brown is the cousin of former All-Pro wide receiver Antonio Brown.
• Brown received his nickname "Hollywood" from sportscaster Gus Johnson while at Oklahoma, due to his hometown of Hollywood, Florida.
• On August 3, 2022, Brown was arrested and charged with criminal speeding (going 126 mph) in north Phoenix and was booked into the Maricopa County Jail.