James Washington James McArthur Washington ( born January 10 , 1965 in Los Angeles , California ) is a former American football safety for the UCLA Bruins and in the National Football League . Currently he is a co - host of FOX Sports Radio ' s flagship morning show " Out Of Bounds " with Craig Shemon . Nicknamed " J - Dub " on the radio , his nickname was " Drive - by " in the NFL for " his fierce hits on defenseless receivers " . Early years . Washington played high school football in Jordan High School , then played college football at UCLA . Washington was a redshirt freshmen starter at UCLA , where he was a standout defensive back . He played for five seasons . He played in the 1984 Rose Bowl , 1985 Fiesta Bowl , 1986 Rose Bowl , 1986 Freedom Bowl , and 1987 Aloha Bowl . He was the co - most valuable player of the game in the 1985 Fiesta Bowl . Washington has a BA degree in history from UCLA . Professional career . Los Angeles Rams . Washington was drafted in the fifth round of the 1988 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams . He dropped in the NFL draft because he tore a knee ligament as a junior , and he tore the same ligament as a senior . Playing sparingly during his first two years in the league , the Rams left him unprotected — eligible to sign with any team that wanted him — under Plan B free agency at the end of the 1989 season . Dallas Cowboys . He signed on with the Dallas Cowboys , where he became one of the hardest hitting defensive backs in the league and even though his natural position was free safety , he was used most of the time as a strong safety for this reason . In Dallas , he was reunited with Troy Aikman , a teammate at UCLA . He started for the Cowboys four out of five years and led the team in interceptions each of those starting years . He was the signal caller for the Cowboys when they were the top - ranked defense in the league ( 1992 and 1994 ) . He lost his starting spot during training camp for the 1993 season because of the emergence of second year safety Darren Woodson . Throughout that year , Washington was a reserve and nickel defensive back . In Super Bowl XXVIII the Buffalo Bills ran a three receiver single back formation . The Cowboys base defense most of the day would be in nickel ( 5 defensive backs ) so Washington started the game at free safety . He made the best of this starting opportunity by recording a fumble returned for a touchdown , causing a fumble that was recovered by Leon Lett and an interception . Washington would regain a full - time starting position the following season ( 1994 ) at free safety with the departure of Thomas Everett . Washington Redskins . In 1995 he signed a free agent contract with the Washington Redskins , but would play only 12 games and end his career after that single season . That season included an incident at the infamous green fence at RFK Stadium , in which Washington attempted to punch a Redskin fan who was giving him grief for his subpar play the prior week . Washington played in the NFL for 8 seasons . He intercepted 17 passes . Super Bowl XXVIII . One of his most notable performances was in Super Bowl XXVIII when Thurman Thomas , after being tackled by Leon Lett , fumbled the ball , Washington returned it for a 46 yard touchdown to tie the game . He also made a team - high 11 tackles , had an interception that eventually became an Emmit Smith touchdown and knocked Andre Reed to the sidelines for a brief recovery ( delivering a message to the Bills receivers ) . His performance was so dominating , that he received strong MVP consideration . Halftime fight incident . While playing for the Cowboys , Washington was briefly the subject of notoriety for his part in an on - field fight during halftime at a November 7 , 1994 , game against the New York Giants in Dallas . The player grabbed the camera and monopod of " Dallas Morning News " photographer David Leeson in an attempt to defend teammate Alvin Harper . Although Washington did not strike anyone with the equipment , he was fined for his actions , as were Michael Irvin , Cowboys assistant coach Hubbard Alexander , and Giants players Tito Wooten and Jarvis Williams . The event was so memorable to local sports journalists that they not only included it in a year - end roundup , but were still writing about it two years later . " There were a lot of Giants , and I didn ' t see any of my teammates , " Washington said at the time . " I just felt me and Michael were being rushed , and I wanted to keep them off Michael . It was foolish . I didn ' t hit anybody with it , but there was really no reason for it . " Fox Sports on - air . He was the co - host of FOX Sports Radio ' s flagship morning show " Out Of Bounds " with Craig Shemon . He was also featured on foxsports net ' s interactive video college football breakdowns . Washington still serves as an analyst during UCLA football games for Fox Sports . Washington produces and host the UCLA coaches show that air FSN . Shelter 37 . SHELTER 37 , Inc . was founded by Washington in 1993 as a not - for - profit public benefit corporation that provides quality after - school enrichment and life skills programs in southern California . Return to UCLA . On April 26 , 2011 , Washington was named Director of Scholarship in UCLA Athletics . He is responsible for raising scholarship funds for the campus and increasing the visibility of the Bruin Scholars Initiative .