From not making HS team to Bills' next man up, Ja'Marcus Ingram is the ultimate underdog

ORCHARD PARK - Nothing on a football field has ever been handed to Buffalo Bills cornerback Ja’Marcus Ingram.

Every NFL player has a story, a journey that is unique to him, and from the very best players in the NFL - the Josh Allens, the Von Millers, the Stefon Diggs’ of the world - right down to the practice squad guys, hard work, determination and perseverance are almost always paramount in the telling of that story or in defining that journey.

Ingram, who may start at cornerback Sunday night for the Bills when they host the New York Giants at Highmark Stadium, has certainly exuded all of those characteristics on his way from not making his high school team outside Dallas until his senior year, to walking on at Utah State, to transferring to Texas Tech and then again to the University at Buffalo, to earning a practice squad spot with the Bills in 2022 and 2023, to now being called up to the 53-man roster.

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“Yeah, it was a journey, it was a journey,” Ingram said Wednesday following Buffalo’s walk-through practice. “But that’s pretty much been the story of my life, really, just kind of waiting my turn and then when I get the opportunity, capitalize on it and just make the best of it.”

Ingram grew up in the high school football hotbed of Dallas – yet, if you can believe this, he was a Philadelphia Eagles fan – and attended South Oak Cliff. But because he was so small, just 5 feet 11 and 140 pounds as a junior, he didn’t even get a sniff of the varsity until his senior year, and that was at wide receiver.

“We had a lot of athletes in my high school so I just kind of had to wait,” said Ingram, who has nine siblings. “I was sitting behind Texas Tech commits, TCU commits, Boise State commits, Oklahoma commits, Texas commits. And my body hadn't really caught up.”

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The only college that showed any interest was Louisiana (and we’re not talking about LSU here), so Ingram took a look around and decided Utah State was the place for him, and he walked on, paying tuition his first year minus a scholarship.

He ultimately became a two-year starter (he missed half of 2018 due to an injury), but he decided he wanted a bigger challenge so when Utah State coach Matt Wells left to take the head job at Texas Tech, Ingram entered the transfer portal and followed him there, moving up in competition to the Big 12.

However, Ingram spent most of his two years in a backup role, so after earning his bachelor's degree in sociology in three years and then beginning his work on a master’s degree in interdisciplinary studies, he decided he wanted to use his fifth year of eligibility (granted due to the pandemic) to go a place where he would play because he still held out hopes of making it to the NFL.

“Ultimately, for me, it was always to put myself in a position where I could showcase what I could do,” Ingram said.

He was all set to go to Central Arkansas in 2021, but at the last minute, UB entered the picture. DeAndre Thompson, a coach at Campbell University, had been recruiting Ingram to go there. But Thompson was hired away by new UB coach Mo Linguist so he reconnected with Ingram and got him to change his mind and come to western New York.

One key in the decision is that Linguist had spent 2020 in the NFL coaching cornerbacks for the Dallas Cowboys, and that piqued Ingram’s interest.

“He was with the Cowboys so he was where I was trying to get to ultimately, the NFL, and so he just brought me in and he treated me like I was one of the guys and embraced me and let me be me,” Ingram said.

In his one year with the Bulls, Ingram started 11 games, made 47 tackles, three pass breakups and forced a fumble.

That didn’t get him invited to the 2022 NFL Scouting Combine, nor did it lead him to be chosen in the NFL Draft, but he did wrangle an invite to the Bills’ rookie minicamp, something they’ve done for several UB players. Once there, the now 6-foot-2, 190-pounder made enough of an impression that general manager Brandon Beane signed him and brought him to training camp.

He didn’t make the team but he was re-signed to the practice squad and due to a spate of injuries made his NFL debut in Week 3 at Miami, making two tackles. The only other game he saw action in was Week 5 against Pittsburgh, and this season, it seemed like he was headed for a similar track – cut after training camp, brought back to the practice squad.

Here, the story may be diverging. Tre’Davious White tore his Achilles tendon, Christian Benford injured his shoulder, and the Bills needed to elevate Ingram for the Jacksonville game. And when 2022 first-round pick Kaiir Elam struggled, Ingram took over for eight snaps late in the game.

“It was a good feeling to get in there and get my feet wet,” Ingram said. “Whenever they call my number, I’ll be ready.”

And that could be Sunday against the Giants. As of Friday there is still one 53-man roster spot open and when asked if Ingram was in line to get it, coach Sean McDermott said “yes.” Part of the reason is that while Benford is expected back, Dane Jackson now has a foot injury, so the Bills will need Ingram up, possibly to start given Elam’s performance last week.

“He’s been through a lot, kind of like all of us, but he’s been through a lot on his own journey,” safety Jordan Poyer said. “He’s a kid who's got so much potential, just athleticism-wise, and he's a student of the game.

“I think the sky's the limit for him and I'm excited for him to continue to get his opportunity. He’s pretty ready. He's somebody that I trust when he's out on the field and I know he's gonna do what I ask him to do and he's gonna get the job done.”

Sal Maiorana can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @salmaiorana and on Threads @salmaiorana1. To subscribe to Sal's newsletter, Bills Blast, which comes out twice a week during the season, please follow this link: https://profile.democratandchronicle.com/newsletters/bills-blast

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Bills' Ja'Marcus Ingram could start vs. Giants, is ultimate underdog