Rashaad Armein Penny is an American footballrunning back for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League. He played college football at San Diego State, where, in 2017, he led the nation with 2,248 rushing yards and scored 23 touchdowns on 289 carries, finishing fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting and garnering first-team All-American and All-Mountain West honors. Penny also caught 19 passes for 135 yards and two scores and scored twice on kickoff returns, averaging 30.6 yards on 17 attempts. He also scored a 70-yard touchdown on one of his two punt returns for the year.
Penny played college football for the San Diego State Aztecs from 2014 to 2017. During the 2016 season, Penny rushed for 1,018 yards on 136 carries for an average of 7.5 yards per carry. As a senior in 2017, Penny rushed for 216 yards and 12.0 yards per carry against Arizona State and 175 yards and 5.5 yards per carry against Stanford. On September 25, 2017, he received the Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Week award for the fourth consecutive week. During the 2017 regular season, he ranked first among all Division I FBS players with 2,027 rushing yards.
College statistics
Professional career
2018
Penny was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks with the 27th overall pick in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft. On May 16, 2018, Penny signed a four-year deal worth $10.7 million featuring a $5.9 million signing bonus. He made his NFL debut in the Seahawks' 27–24 loss to the Denver Broncos in the season opener. He had seven carries for eight yards to go along with four receptions for 35 yards. In a Week 10 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, Penny had a breakout game with 12 carries for 108 yards and a touchdown. Overall, he finished his rookie season with 419 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns. The Seahawks made the playoffs as the #5-seed and faced off against the Dallas Cowboys in the. In the 24–22 loss, Penny had four carries for 29 rushing yards.
2019
In Week 2 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Penny rushed 10 times for 62 yards and his first rushing touchdown of the season as the Seahawks won 28–26. During Week 12 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Penny finished with 129 rushing yards and a touchdown as the Seahawks won 17–9. In Week 13 against the Minnesota Vikings on Monday Night Football, Penny rushed 15 times for 74 yards and a touchdown and caught four passes for 33 yards and a touchdown in the 37–30 win. In Week 14, Penny suffered a torn ACL and was ruled out the rest of the season. Overall, in the 2019 season, Penny appeared in ten games and recorded 370 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns to go along with eight receptions for 83 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown.
Personal life
Penny has four siblings: Robert Jr., Elijhaa, Breonna, and Brionne. His parents are Desiree and Robert Penny. Penny's older brother Elijhaa is a fullback for the New York Giants.
