The Washington Redskins added to their linebacker corps with the signing of DeMarquis Gates, the team announced Thursday.
Gates most recently played for the Memphis Express of the Alliance of American Football, which suspended all of its operations on April 2. The 23-year-old is the Redskins' third AAF signing, joining linebacker Andrew Ankrah and guard Salesi Uhatafe.
"I've put enough out there to warrant the attention of somebody," Gates told 247Sports shortly after the AAF folded. "I'm going to be praying for it, and hopefully everything works out in my favor."
Through eight weeks, Gates led the AAF with 52 tackles and five forced fumbles -- statistics that helped him garner NFL interest in the wake of the league folding.
A former four-star prospect, Gates played at Ole Miss from 2014 to 2017 and led the team in tackles his final three seasons. As a senior, he became the first Rebels player to record more than 100 tackles since five-time NFL All-Pro Patrick Willis accomplished the feat in 2006. Meanwhile, Gates' 70 solo tackles were tops in the SEC and 13th-most in the country.
Gates briefly found his way into the NFL after going undrafted in 2018, signing with the Cleveland Browns in May. The franchise released him during OTAs less than a month later.
But after an productive stint in the AAF, Gates seems to have shown the Redskins enough to give him a second chance at making the NFL.
