Donald Parham Jr.’s stats in the NFL total 67 receptions for 764 yards and 11 touchdowns across 47 regular-season games, all with the Los Angeles Chargers from 2020 to 2023. That is 11.4 yards per catch and a touchdown on roughly one of every six receptions, an unusually high rate for a rotational tight end. He has not added regular-season numbers since 2023: he spent 2024 on the Denver Broncos practice squad and tore his Achilles tendon during Pittsburgh Steelers organized team activities in June 2025.
This page breaks those totals down season by season, puts them in context against how tight ends are normally judged, and covers his college production at Stetson, the winding route he took into the league, the injuries that interrupted his career and what is actually known about his contracts.
Donald Parham Jr. at a glance
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Full name | Donald Parham Jr. |
| Born | August 16, 1997, Lakeland, Florida |
| Age | 29 (as of October 2026) |
| Height and weight | 6 ft 8 in, listed at about 237 lb |
| Position | Tight end |
| High school | Lake Gibson High School, Lakeland |
| College | Stetson University (2015 to 2018) |
| Draft | Undrafted, 2019 |
| NFL teams | Lions and Washington (2019, offseason and practice squad), Chargers (2020 to 2023), Broncos practice squad (2024), Steelers (2025) |
| Career NFL stats | 47 games, 67 receptions, 764 yards, 11 touchdowns |
Season-by-season NFL stats
Every one of Parham’s regular-season catches came in a Chargers uniform. The yards-per-catch column below is calculated directly from the receptions and yardage figures, and the career line adds up the four seasons.
| Season | Team | Games (starts) | Receptions | Yards | Yards per catch | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Chargers | 13 (5) | 10 | 159 | 15.9 | 3 |
| 2021 | Chargers | 14 (9) | 20 | 190 | 9.5 | 3 |
| 2022 | Chargers | 6 (1) | 10 | 130 | 13.0 | 1 |
| 2023 | Chargers | 14 (8) | 27 | 285 | 10.6 | 4 |
| Career | Chargers | 47 (23) | 67 | 764 | 11.4 | 11 |
Figures are regular season only. If you need the most recent numbers or snap counts, check the official NFL site or Pro Football Reference, which update after every game and transaction.
2020: a rookie who made his catches count
Parham arrived in Los Angeles after the XFL shut down and saw the field in 13 games. Ten catches does not look like much, but 159 yards and three touchdowns on those ten touches show how the Chargers used him: as a vertical option up the seam and a jump-ball target in the end zone. His 15.9 yards per catch that year remains the best of his career.
2021: more snaps, shorter throws
His role expanded in 2021 with nine starts, and his catch total doubled to 20. The yards per catch dropped to 9.5 because more of his targets were short and intermediate throws rather than seam shots. He again scored three times before the frightening head injury against Kansas City in December ended his season.
2022: a lost year
Injuries limited him to six games and ten catches. He still averaged 13.0 yards per reception and scored once, so the efficiency was there, but he could not stay on the field long enough to build on it.
2023: career highs
His last season in Los Angeles was his most productive: 27 receptions, 285 yards and four touchdowns, all career highs. He made eight starts and was a regular part of the red-zone package, which is where most of his value came from.
What the numbers tell you
Totals alone make Parham look like a minor contributor. A closer read of the same figures tells a more interesting story.
- Touchdown efficiency: 11 touchdowns on 67 catches means about 16 percent of his receptions ended in the end zone. For a tight end who was usually the second or third option at his position, that share is unusually high and reflects how deliberately he was targeted near the goal line.
- Per-game output: spread over 47 games, he averaged about 1.4 catches and 16 yards a game. That is typical of a rotational tight end and confirms he was a role player rather than a focal point.
- Early big-play ability: the 15.9 yards per catch as a rookie shows he was used to stretch defenses, not only to move the chains on short throws.
- Volume ceiling: he never reached 30 catches in a season, so his value came from specific situations rather than every-down usage.
- Availability: missing most of 2022 and the end of 2021 cost him the chance to build a bigger sample, which is often what separates specialists from established starters.
College stats at Stetson
Parham came to football late. At Lake Gibson High School in Lakeland he was mainly a basketball player and played football only as a senior, lining up at wide receiver and defensive end. Stetson, a small FCS program in DeLand, Florida, took a chance on him, and he left as the school’s all-time leading receiver.
| Season | Receptions | Yards | TDs | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 (sophomore) | 37 | 455 | 6 | 11 games, 6 starts |
| 2017 (junior) | 58 | 817 | 1 | Honorable mention all-conference |
| 2018 (senior) | 85 | 1,319 | 13 | FCS All-American |
| Career | 180 | 2,591 | 20 | School’s all-time leading receiver |
The 2018 season was his breakout. Eighty-five catches for 1,319 yards and 13 touchdowns put him on NFL scouts’ radar and earned him a place in post-season all-star games, including the Senior Bowl. The jump from 58 to 85 receptions in a single year also showed coaches he could handle a heavy workload, something he was never asked to do in the NFL.
Career timeline: from undrafted to the Chargers
Parham’s path into the league was anything but straightforward, and it explains why his NFL stats start only in 2020.
- 2019 draft: undrafted. He signed with the Detroit Lions in May 2019 but was released within days.
- 2019 with Washington: signed in June, waived at final cuts, then spent a short spell on the practice squad in September.
- 2020 XFL: played for the Renegades in the XFL’s 2020 season, which was suspended after five weeks because of the COVID-19 pandemic. His film there helped him earn a second NFL chance.
- 2020 to 2023 Chargers: signed after the XFL shut down and played four seasons in Los Angeles, producing all of his NFL stats.
- 2024: released by the Chargers in late August, then signed to the Denver Broncos practice squad the following day.
- 2025: signed a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers in February, then tore his Achilles tendon during OTAs on June 3, 2025, ending his season before it began.
Injuries that shaped his career
Two injuries define the story behind his modest totals. On December 16, 2021, during a Thursday night game against the Kansas City Chiefs, Parham hit his head on the turf while trying to make a catch in the end zone. He was taken off the field on a stretcher and to hospital, then placed on injured reserve later that month. He returned for 2022, but that season was cut short when he went back on injured reserve in November.
The second was the Achilles tear with Pittsburgh in June 2025. An Achilles rupture usually requires surgery and a long rehabilitation, and it is a difficult injury for any player in his late 20s, especially one whose game relies on reaching and leaping for contested balls. For his current status, check official team announcements and league transaction reports rather than social media rumors.
| Year | Injury | Effect on stats |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Head injury vs. Chiefs (December 16) | Season ended on injured reserve after 14 games |
| 2022 | Placed on injured reserve in November | Limited to 6 games and 10 catches |
| 2025 | Torn Achilles in Steelers OTAs (June 3) | Missed the 2025 season |
Play style: why his size matters
At 6 foot 8, Parham is one of the tallest pass catchers to play in the league in recent years, and his basketball background shows in the way he plays.
- Catch radius: quarterbacks can throw high to a spot only he can reach, which is especially useful on fades and back-shoulder throws near the goal line.
- Mismatch value: linebackers usually lack the speed to stay with him, and safeties give up several inches in height.
- Body control: years of rebounding translate into timing his jump and shielding defenders with his frame on contested catches.
- Blocking as the development area: like many receiver-style tight ends, in-line blocking was the part of his game coaches worked hardest to improve, which partly explains why he stayed a rotational player.
If you like comparing how pass catchers build careers, our profile of Terrell Owens’ career and life after football follows a very different kind of receiver, while our look at Shedeur Sanders’ stats and awards covers a quarterback at the other end of the draft spectrum.
How to read tight end stats like his
Raw yardage undersells a player like Parham. When you compare tight ends, these are the measures worth checking:
- Touchdowns per reception: shows how often a player is trusted in scoring situations. Parham’s 16 percent stands out.
- Yards per target: rewards efficiency rather than volume, and accounts for incomplete passes thrown his way.
- Snap share: a tight end playing a third of offensive snaps will never match a starter’s totals, so compare production per snap, not per season.
- Role in the offense: blocking-first, receiving-first and red-zone specialists all produce very different stat lines with similar value to their team.
- Games missed: injury-shortened seasons distort career averages, so look at full-season samples where possible.
Applied to Parham, the pattern is clear: a low catch count combined with a double-digit touchdown total points to a specialist role built around the red zone and third downs, not a lack of ability.
Contracts and net worth
The best-documented figure is his March 2023 deal with the Chargers, a two-year contract reported at about $2.5 million. His other NFL contracts were short, lower-value agreements typical of undrafted players and practice squad members, and his 2025 contract with Pittsburgh was a one-year deal.
Net worth figures you may see online, often in the low millions, are not based on public financial records. They usually add up reported contract values while ignoring taxes, agent fees and living costs, so treat them as rough estimates rather than fact.
Personal life and background
Parham was born and raised in Lakeland, Florida, and stayed close to home for college at Stetson. He keeps a relatively low public profile, so beyond football there is little verified information about his private life, and this article does not repeat unconfirmed claims about relationships or outside earnings.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Donald Parham Jr.’s career stats?
In 47 regular-season NFL games from 2020 to 2023, all with the Chargers, he caught 67 passes for 764 yards and 11 touchdowns. That works out to 11.4 yards per catch.
What was Donald Parham Jr.’s best NFL season?
His best season was 2023, when he set career highs with 27 receptions, 285 yards and four touchdowns in 14 games for the Chargers.
How tall is Donald Parham Jr.?
He is listed at 6 feet 8 inches and about 237 pounds, which makes him one of the tallest pass catchers to play in the NFL in recent years.
What injury did Donald Parham Jr. suffer in 2025?
He tore his Achilles tendon during Pittsburgh Steelers OTAs on June 3, 2025. The injury ended his 2025 season before it started.
Where did Donald Parham Jr. play college football?
He played at Stetson University in Florida and became the school’s all-time leading receiver with 180 catches for 2,591 yards and 20 touchdowns.
Was Donald Parham Jr. drafted?
No. He went undrafted in 2019, had brief stints with the Lions and Washington, played in the XFL in 2020 and then joined the Chargers.
Bottom Line on Donald Parham Jr.’s Stats
Parham’s NFL line of 67 catches, 764 yards and 11 touchdowns looks modest until you factor in his role and his injuries. He was a red-zone specialist who turned about one catch in six into a touchdown, built on a rare 6-foot-8 frame and a record-setting college career at Stetson. Whether he adds to those numbers depends on his recovery from the 2025 Achilles tear, so official team and league reports are the place to watch.
