Cade McDonald

Cade McDonald
No. 85 – Ottawa Redblacks
PositionWide receiver
Roster statusActive
CFL statusAmerican
Personal information
Born (2001-05-07) May 7, 2001
Naperville, Illinois, U.S.
Listed height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Listed weight196 lb (89 kg)
Career information
High schoolNaperville Central
CollegeMichigan State (2019–2022)
Miami (OH) (2023–2024)
NFL draft2025: undrafted
Career history
* Offseason or practice squad member only
Awards and highlights
Stats at Pro Football Reference
Stats at CFL.ca

Cade McDonald (born May 7, 2001) is an American professional football wide receiver for the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football for the Michigan State Spartans and the Miami Redhawks.

College career

McDonald played college football for the Michigan State Spartans from 2019 to 2022 and the Miami Redhawks from 2023 to 2024.[1][2] He walked-on to the team at Michigan State and played in three snaps against Rutgers in his redshirt year.[3] McDonald saw limited action the following two years before his junior year where he played in 11 games as punt returner and wide receiver.[1][4] On May 8, 2023, he transferred to Miami University.[5]

In McDonald's first season at Miami, he recorded 28 catches for 353 yards and three touchdowns.[2] He also returned punts for the RedHawks, leading the conference in average yards per return (12.7), garnering second-team All-MAC honors.[6] In his final year, McDonald had a career season, registering 52 catches for 631 yards and three touchdowns.[4]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand spanWingspan40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
5 ft 10 in
(1.78 m)		196 lb
(89 kg)		29+1⁄8 in
(0.74 m)		9+1⁄4 in
(0.23 m)		5 ft 10+5⁄8 in
(1.79 m)		4.58 s1.64 s2.62 s4.13 s6.75 s33 in
(0.84 m)		10 ft 0 in
(3.05 m)		22 reps
All values from Pro Day[7]

Cleveland Browns

After going undrafted in the 2025 NFL draft, McDonald signed with the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL) as an undrafted free agent.[8] He was waived by the team on August 26 before reverting to the injured reserve the following day.[9][10] On October 21, 2025, McDonald was released from the injured reserve.[11]

Ottawa Redblacks

On February 5, 2026, McDonald signed with the Ottawa Redblacks.[12]

Career statistics

Legend
Bold Career high

College

Year Team Games Receiving Rushing Punt returns
GP GS Rec Yds Avg TD Att Yds Avg TD Att Yds Avg TD
2019 Michigan State 1 0 0 0 — 0 0 0 — 0 0 0 — 0
2020 Michigan State 3 0 2 15 7.5 0 0 0 — 0 0 0 — 0
2021 Michigan State 5 0 0 0 — 0 0 0 — 0 1 -1 -1.0 0
2022 Michigan State 11 0 3 31 10.3 0 0 0 — 0 4 44 11.0 0
2023 Miami (OH) 13 5 28 355 12.7 3 2 8 4.0 0 18 229 12.7 0
2024 Miami (OH) 12 11 52 631 12.1 3 1 7 7.0 0 14 82 5.9 0
Career 45 16 85 1,032 12.1 6 3 15 5.0 0 37 354 9.6 0

References

  1. 1 2 "Cade McDonald - Football". Michigan State University Athletics. Archived from the original on July 4, 2026. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  2. 1 2 "Cade McDonald - Football". Miami University RedHawks. Archived from the original on July 4, 2026. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  3. ↑ Brennan, Don (May 25, 2026). "How WR Cade McDonald has distinguished himself, and what added value he could give the Ottawa Redblacks". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved July 3, 2026.
  4. 1 2 "Cade McDonald College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  5. ↑ Brooks, Stephen (May 8, 2023). "Michigan State WR Cade McDonald transferring to Miami (Ohio)". 247Sports. Archived from the original on May 16, 2023. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  6. ↑ "MAC Announces 2023 Postseason Football Awards & All-Conference Teams". getsomemaction.com. November 29, 2023. Archived from the original on January 13, 2026. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  7. ↑ "Cade McDonald College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved July 3, 2026.
  8. ↑ Hussong, Justin (May 12, 2025). "Browns Sign Intriguing WR After Tryout". Browns Nation. Archived from the original on July 4, 2026. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  9. ↑ Jackson, Zac (August 28, 2025). "Browns' initial 53-man roster features 3 QBs, 2 RBs and a new kicker". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on September 5, 2025. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Browns' Cade McDonald: Shifts to IR". CBS Sports. August 27, 2025. Archived from the original on July 4, 2026. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Cade McDonald: Gets waived from IR". CBS Sports. October 21, 2025. Archived from the original on July 4, 2026. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
  12. ↑ Heilman, Michael (February 6, 2026). "Ottawa Redblacks sign wide receiver Cade McDonald". BGMSportsTrax. Archived from the original on February 6, 2026. Retrieved July 4, 2026.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.