A two-time Patrick Mannelly Award finalist at UCF, long snapper Alex Ward built a steady three-year run with the Rams before landing with the Raiders on a futures deal.
Alex Ward has quietly handled one of football's most thankless specialist jobs since going undrafted out of UCF in 2023. After three seasons snapping for the Los Angeles Rams, a midseason release in 2025 sent him searching for a new home, and he found one in Las Vegas.
Path to the league
Ward played six seasons at UCF (2017-2022) using COVID-era eligibility, appearing in 47 games and earning back-to-back finalist recognition for the Patrick Mannelly Award, given annually to the nation's top long snapper. He also earned second-team All-America honors as a long snapper in 2022. Undrafted in 2023, he signed with the Los Angeles Rams as a free agent and made the 53-man roster.
Career highlights
Ward appeared in 13 games as a rookie in 2023, then played all 17 regular-season games plus two playoff contests in 2024 for the Rams. He was part of a UCF team that won the Colley Matrix national championship in 2017.
2025 season recap
Ward handled long-snapping duties for the Rams through Week 8 of the 2025 season before becoming inactive in Week 10 amid the team's broader kicking-game shakeup. Los Angeles released him on November 10, 2025. He signed a reserve/futures contract with the Las Vegas Raiders on January 21, 2026.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Alex Ward (American football)
- ESPN: Alex Ward
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Long Snapper
- Group
- specialTeam
- College
- UCF
- Hometown
- Fort Walton Beach, FL, USA
- Age
- 27
- Status
- active
Team
