John Brown (born April 3, 1990), nicknamed "Smokey" or "Smoke,"[1] is an American professional football wide receiver who is a free agent.

He played college football for the Pittsburg State Gorillas and was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the third round of the 2014 NFL draft.

He has also played for the Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills, Denver Broncos, Jacksonville Jaguars and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Due to academic troubles, he sat out the 2009 season before transferring to Coffeyville Community College in 2010, but he was redshirted.

[5][6] In 2011, he was a second-team Associated Press (AP) Little All-American as all-purpose player while leading Pittsburg State to the NCAA Division II National Championship.

He was named first-team All-Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) as kick returner and second-team All-MIAA as a wide receiver after he led his team with 61 receptions for 1,216 yards and 12 touchdowns.

He was named the MIAA and the NCAA Division II National Special Teams Player of the Year.

[12] In his debut for the Arizona Cardinals, Brown caught his first professional touchdown on a 13-yard pass from Carson Palmer against the San Diego Chargers in Week 1 of the 2014 season.

[16] An injury to the Cardinal's quarterback, Palmer, caused a sharp decline in the team's offense.

[19] Plagued with hamstring issues throughout the season,[20] Brown posted 39 receptions on 72 targets for 517 yards and two touchdowns in 2016.

[31] In a Week 7 matchup against the Miami Dolphins, Brown caught a go-ahead touchdown from Josh Allen in the fourth quarter, giving Buffalo a 17–14 lead.

During the rematch with the Dolphins in Week 11, Brown finished with 137 receiving yards and two touchdowns as the Bills won 37–20.

[32] During the Thanksgiving Series against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 13, Brown completed one pass for a 28 yard touchdown to rookie running back Devin Singletary.

[37] In a season opening 27–17 victory over the Jets, Brown was targeted ten times, catching six passes for 70 yards and a touchdown.

[44] In the Divisional Round of the playoffs, Brown received eight receptions for a total of 62 yards in the 17–3 victory over the Ravens.

He insisted a cyst on his spine he had treated during the 2016 season was the root cause of his leg issues and that the sickle cell trait will not affect his football career.