Jacory Croskey-Merritt will enter the national spotlight on Monday Night Football coming off the best game of his rookie season for the Washington Commanders.
In a convincing 27-10 win over the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 5, Croskey-Merritt had 14 carries for 111 yards and two touchdowns, along with two catches for 39 yards.
It was his career-high in carries, rushing yards, TDs, and receiving yards.
Now, 'Bill' Croskey-Merritt and the Commanders play the Chicago Bears in Week 6 on MNF, and it's worth revisiting his fast rise.
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Why is Jacory Croskey-Merritt called Bill?
Jacory Croskey-Merritt got his nickname when he was growing up.
He had a short haircut, and so some people called him Bill - as in Little Bill, the animated TV character in the series created by Bill Cosby.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported at the start of the preseason that JCM wants to be known as Bill on TV broadcasts.
This is how Croskey-Merritt explained the origin during his college career.
"I got the nickname Bill from having a bald head when I was little," Croskey-Merritt has said. "I used to have a low haircut, so people joked on me and said I looked like the character Little Bill. So it just stuck with me."
There are no players named Bill in the current NFL. Well, besides Bill being short for Jacory.
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Why did Jacory 'Bill' Croskey-Merritt fall to the 7th round of NFL Draft?
There's actually a wild NCAA reason that JCM ended up in the seventh round.
Croskey-Merritt looked to transfer away from New Mexico to a bigger program for his final college season in 2024.
He originally chose Arizona, changed his mind to Ole Miss, and changed it back to Arizona, but then he encountered an eligibility problem.
The NCAA issue stemmed from his 2019 redshirt season at Alabama State. That year, a different player appeared in a game in JCM's No. 21, which caused the NCAA to rule he didn't have full eligibility for the 2024 season because it had already been "used" in 2019, even though it wasn't actually him out on the field.
Croskey-Merritt only got to play in one game for the Wildcats in 2024, rushing for 106 yards and a touchdown. He then played in the East-West Shrine Bowl, where he had 97 yards and two touchdowns.
He had very little film, and teams couldn't really scout him since he wasn't playing.
So even with clear talent, Croskey-Merritt felt like a bigger risk.
So far, that's worked out just fine for the Commanders.
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