Tim Hightower Timothy " Tim " Michael Hightower ( born May 23 , 1986 ) is an American football running back of the National Football League ( NFL ) , who is currently a free agent . He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft . He played college football at the University of Richmond . College career . As a true freshman at the University of Richmond in 2004 , Hightower played in all 11 games for the Spiders and carried the ball 58 times for 161 yards . He also made 19 receptions for 158 yards . In his sophomore year , Hightower played in 13 games and started nine , rushing 142 times for 777 yards and nine touchdowns and catching 21 passes for 163 yards . He finished third on the team in scoring with 54 total points on nine touchdowns . Starting all 11 games as a junior , Hightower posted career - highs in carries ( 177 ) , rushing yards ( 850 ) , receptions ( 34 ) , receiving yards ( 269 ) and touchdown catches ( 2 ) . He scored seven touchdowns and was a Third - team All - Atlantic 10 selection . In his senior season , Hightower set school season - records with 1 , 924 yards and 20 touchdowns , carrying the ball 327 times ( 5 . 9 avg ) . His average of 137 . 43 yards per game rushing led the league and ranked sixth in the nation , earning him an All - Colonial Athletic Association first - team selection . Professional career . 2008 NFL Draft . Hightower was not invited to the 2008 NFL combine , but performed well at Richmond ' s " pro day " . He was considered one of the " small - school sleepers " in the 2008 NFL Draft , but lacked the speed of elite running back prospects . Regarded as " more of a ‘ three yards and a cloud of dust ’ runner " , Hightower was projected as a solid middle - round pick . He was drafted in the 5th round of the 2008 NFL Draft by the Cardinals with the 149th overall pick . Arizona Cardinals . Hightower rushed for a total amount of 399 yards in 2008 . Hightower would then become the only Cardinal rookie running back ever to have scored a touchdown in each of his first two games with the franchise . Eventually , he would go on to score 10 regular season touchdowns ( 13 including the playoffs ) , setting a Cardinals rookie record . He would score the winning touchdown for the Arizona Cardinals in their last drive of the 2008 NFC Championship Game to propel the Arizona Cardinals to Super Bowl XLIII ( the Arizona Cardinals ' first ) . In the 2009 regular season , despite exactly the same number of carries ( 143 ) he was able to improve his previous 399 yards to 598 yards , an improvement which brought his yards per carry up from 2 . 8 in 2008 to 4 . 2 . Hightower would begin the season well by getting a 80 - yard rushing touchdown in a game against the Atlanta Falcons . Hightower would get injured during a game against the Seattle Seahawks and would not be able to play in the following game . In the 2010 regular season , he carried the football 153 times for a total of 736 yards , averaging 4 . 8 yards per carry , and scored 5 touchdowns . Washington Redskins . Hightower was traded on July 31 , 2011 to the Washington Redskins in exchange for defensive end Vonnie Holliday and a sixth round draft pick in 2012 . After starting in the first five of the Redskins ' games , he rushed for 321 yards on 84 carries with two total touchdowns , Hightower was placed on injured reserve due to a torn ACL . On May 13 , 2012 , Hightower re - signed with Redskins on a one - year contract . He was expected to compete for the starting spot in the 2012 season against Roy Helu and Evan Royster , however , he was cut on August 31 for final roster cuts before the start of the season due to an emerging Alfred Morris .