Joshua Dobbs facts for kids
Dobbs with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2018
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| No. 11 – New England Patriots | |||||||||||||||||
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| Position: | Quarterback | ||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
| Born: | January 26, 1995 Alpharetta, Georgia, U.S. |
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| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 220 lb (100 kg) | ||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||
| High school: | Alpharetta | ||||||||||||||||
| College: | Tennessee (2013–2016) | ||||||||||||||||
| NFL Draft: | 2017 / Round: 4 / Pick: 135 | ||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of Week 18, 2024 | |||||||||||||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||||||||||
Joshua Dobbs (born January 26, 1995) is an American professional football quarterback. He plays for the New England Patriots in the National Football League (NFL). Dobbs is known by his cool nickname, "the Passtronaut", because he studied aerospace engineering.
He played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers. The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted him in 2017. Dobbs has played for many NFL teams during his career. He has even been a starting quarterback for teams like the Tennessee Titans, Arizona Cardinals, Minnesota Vikings, and San Francisco 49ers.
Contents
Early Life and Football Beginnings
Joshua Dobbs was born and grew up in Alpharetta, Georgia. He started playing football when he was just five years old. Dobbs went to Alpharetta High School. In his senior year, he was a star quarterback for the Alpharetta Raiders football team. He threw for over 3,600 yards and scored 29 touchdowns.
Dobbs has a condition called alopecia areata. This is an autoimmune disease that causes hair loss. It started when he was moving from elementary to junior high school.
After high school, Dobbs first planned to play college football at Arizona State University. But in 2013, he decided to go to the University of Tennessee instead.
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joshua Dobbs QB |
Alpharetta, Georgia | Alpharetta High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Feb 7, 2013 | |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A |
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| Overall recruiting rankings: | ||||||
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College Football Career
Joshua Dobbs played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers from 2013 to 2016. He was a very important player for their team.
Freshman Year (2013)
As a new student in 2013, Dobbs played in five games. He started four of them after the main quarterback got hurt. He showed his skills by throwing for 695 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for 189 yards and one touchdown.
Sophomore Year (2014)
In 2014, Dobbs became the starting quarterback in November. He had an amazing game against South Carolina, throwing for 301 yards and running for 166 yards. He scored five touchdowns in that game! Dobbs helped Tennessee reach their first bowl game since 2010. He was even named the MVP of the 2015 TaxSlayer Bowl. Overall, he threw for 1,206 yards and nine touchdowns, and rushed for 469 yards and eight touchdowns.
Junior Year (2015)
Dobbs was the main starting quarterback for the 2015 season. He led Tennessee to a 9–4 record, which was their best record since 2007. He had a great game against the Georgia Bulldogs, throwing for 312 yards and three touchdowns, and running for 118 yards and two touchdowns. He even caught a touchdown pass himself, which was very rare for a quarterback! Tennessee won the 2016 Outback Bowl that year.
Senior Year (2016)
In his final college season in 2016, Dobbs continued to shine. He led the Volunteers to a big comeback win against the Florida Gators, throwing for four touchdowns. He also made a famous "Hail Mary" throw to win the game against the Georgia Bulldogs as time ran out. This play is often called the "Dobbs-Nail Boot."
Dobbs finished his college career by leading Tennessee to another 9–4 record. He was named the MVP of the 2016 Music City Bowl.
Dobbs was also a very smart student. He studied aerospace engineering at the University of Tennessee. He even received the 2017 Torchbearer Award, which is the highest honor for a student at the university. This award recognizes students who do great things in their community and in school.
College Statistics
| Season | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | TD | Int | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | |||||
| 2013 | Tennessee | 5 | 1–4 | 72 | 121 | 59.5 | 695 | 5.7 | 2 | 6 | 38 | 189 | 5.0 | 1 | |||
| 2014 | Tennessee | 6 | 3–3 | 112 | 177 | 63.3 | 1,206 | 6.8 | 9 | 6 | 104 | 469 | 4.5 | 8 | |||
| 2015 | Tennessee | 13 | 9–4 | 205 | 344 | 59.6 | 2,291 | 6.7 | 15 | 5 | 146 | 671 | 4.6 | 12 | |||
| 2016 | Tennessee | 13 | 9–4 | 225 | 357 | 63.0 | 2,946 | 8.3 | 27 | 12 | 150 | 831 | 5.5 | 13 | |||
| Career | 37 | 22–15 | 614 | 999 | 61.5 | 7,138 | 7.1 | 53 | 29 | 438 | 2,160 | 4.9 | 34 | ||||
Professional Football Career
Before the NFL Draft, experts thought Dobbs would be picked in the middle rounds. He showed off his skills at the NFL Scouting Combine.
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand size | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Wonderlic | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 3+3⁄8 in (1.91 m) |
216 lb (98 kg) |
32+5⁄8 in (0.83 m) |
9+1⁄4 in (0.23 m) |
4.64 s | 1.56 s | 2.69 s | 4.31 s | 6.75 s | 33 in (0.84 m) |
10 ft 2 in (3.10 m) |
29 | |
| All values from 2017 NFL Combine. | ||||||||||||
Pittsburgh Steelers (First Time)
The Pittsburgh Steelers picked Dobbs in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL draft. He signed a four-year contract with them. Dobbs spent his first season learning behind the main quarterback. He made his NFL debut in 2018. He even completed a 22-yard pass in a game against the Baltimore Ravens.
Jacksonville Jaguars
In 2019, Dobbs was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars. While he was in Jacksonville, Dobbs did something really cool: he had an internship at NASA's Kennedy Space Center! This is where his "Passtronaut" nickname comes from.
Pittsburgh Steelers (Second Time)
Dobbs returned to the Steelers in 2020. He played in one game that season. He re-signed with them in 2021 but was placed on injured reserve.
Cleveland Browns (First Time)
In 2022, Dobbs signed with the Cleveland Browns. He was later waived by the team.
Detroit Lions and Tennessee Titans
Dobbs then joined the Detroit Lions' practice squad in December 2022. Later that month, the Tennessee Titans signed him. He got his first NFL start for the Titans in Week 17 of the 2022 season. He threw his first career touchdown pass in that game. He also started the final game of the season for the Titans.
Cleveland Browns (Second Time)
Dobbs re-signed with the Browns in March 2023.
Arizona Cardinals
In August 2023, Dobbs was traded to the Arizona Cardinals. He became the starting quarterback for the Cardinals because their main quarterback was injured. Dobbs led the Cardinals to an upset win over the undefeated Dallas Cowboys. He played in eight games for the Cardinals, throwing for 1,569 yards and eight touchdowns.
Minnesota Vikings
In October 2023, Dobbs was traded to the Minnesota Vikings after their starting quarterback got a season-ending injury. He entered a game against the Falcons without having practiced with the team. Dobbs led the Vikings to an amazing comeback victory, scoring three total touchdowns. He became the first quarterback in NFL history to score three touchdowns in back-to-back games for different teams! This is when his "Passtronaut" nickname became very popular.
After a few more games, Dobbs was later moved to a backup role for the Vikings.
San Francisco 49ers
In March 2024, Dobbs signed a one-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers. He mostly served as a third-string quarterback. He played in two games for the 49ers, including starting the final game of the 2024 season.
New England Patriots
In March 2025, Dobbs signed a two-year contract with the New England Patriots. This is his ninth NFL team! He is currently serving as the backup quarterback for the Patriots.
NFL Career Statistics
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | Lng | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | |||
| 2017 | PIT | DNP | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | PIT | 5 | 0 | — | 6 | 12 | 50.0 | 43 | 3.6 | 22 | 0 | 1 | 24.0 | 4 | 11 | 2.8 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2019 | JAX | DNP | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2020 | PIT | 1 | 0 | — | 4 | 5 | 80.0 | 2 | 0.4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 79.2 | 2 | 20 | 10.0 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2021 | PIT | DNP | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2022 | CLE | DNP | |||||||||||||||||||
| TEN | 2 | 2 | 0–2 | 40 | 68 | 58.8 | 411 | 6.0 | 39 | 2 | 2 | 73.8 | 8 | 44 | 5.5 | 11 | 0 | 4 | 2 | ||
| 2023 | ARI | 8 | 8 | 1–7 | 167 | 266 | 62.8 | 1,569 | 5.9 | 69 | 8 | 5 | 81.2 | 47 | 258 | 5.5 | 44 | 3 | 8 | 4 | |
| MIN | 5 | 4 | 2–2 | 95 | 151 | 62.9 | 895 | 5.9 | 29 | 5 | 5 | 76.4 | 30 | 163 | 5.4 | 22 | 3 | 6 | 3 | ||
| 2024 | SF | 2 | 1 | 0–1 | 32 | 47 | 68.1 | 361 | 7.7 | 36 | 2 | 2 | 87.3 | 9 | 24 | 2.7 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 1 | |
| Career | 23 | 15 | 3–12 | 344 | 549 | 62.7 | 3,281 | 6.0 | 69 | 17 | 15 | 78.1 | 100 | 520 | 5.2 | 44 | 8 | 20 | 10 | ||
Personal Life
Joshua Dobbs is a Christian. He has talked about how important his faith is to him.
He also started a group called the ASTROrdinary Dobbs Foundation. Dobbs is a strong supporter of raising awareness about alopecia, the hair loss condition he has.
His cousin, Parker Washington, is also a professional football player. He is a wide receiver for the Jaguars. Another cousin, Tyler Tolbert, plays professional baseball for the Kansas City Royals.
