The story of Quintez Cephus is a complex one, as it has undergone numerous twists and turns, including lawsuits and acquittals, sports gambling suspensions, and injuries that have derailed his NFL dreams. He's had quite the road of adversity, and yet, today, Adam Schefter is reporting that he is getting another go at it with the San Francisco 49ers. Cephus has signed a one-year deal to play wide receiver, catching passes from Brock Purdy.
49ers have signed WR Quintez Cephus to a one-year deal and waived RB Israel Abanikanda.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 24, 2025
49ers have signed former Badger star WR Quintez Cephus to a one-year deal
Cephus was with the Badgers from 2016 to 2019, and his final season before declaring for the NFL draft was electric. He grabbed 93 receptions for 1,496 yards and 13 touchdowns. He launched himself into an NFL draft slot during that season, ultimately being selected by the Detroit Lions in the 5th round.
He signed a four-year deal with the Lions, but from 2020 to 2022, he continued to get derailed by injuries. In his rookie year, he hauled in 20 receptions for 349 yards and two touchdowns in 13 games. Setting up an important sophomore campaign.
However, in 2021, he was placed on IR due to a shoulder injury, only playing in five games. Though during that time he had almost caught his previous season yardage with 204, and he did catch his touchdown total of two. In 2022, ready for a bounce back, he got through four games before landing on the IR again.
He was then suspended by the NFL for violating the policy on sports gambling and was released by the Lions. With the fear that his NFL career might have ended and concern that it had never really even begun, his agent got to work on securing him another opportunity. He signed with the Buffalo Bills in 2024 but was released before the start of training camp. He then signed in the same year with the Houston Texans but suffered the same problem a release before camp.
He finally landed on the Los Angeles Rams practice squad for 2024 but never made it onto the active roster. This time, the 49ers are going to kick the tires and see if there's something there. He will make his training camp debut this week and hopefully this time prove he's good to go for an NFL career that started to bloom but never blossomed.