Winding Pro Football Career Lands Carson Taylor Back Home

By Alyssa Buruato
Rattlers Media

For Carson Taylor, football has never simply been about reaching the next level. It has been about staying ready, staying patient, and continuing to trust the path. 

Now, after years of moving through different leagues and organizations, Taylor has returned to Arizona as a member of the Arizona Rattlers, bringing his football journey back to the state where much of it first took shape.

He made his first start for the Rattlers in Saturday's 49-27 season-opening victory over the San Diego Strike Force. Playing defense end, Carson recorded five tackles, two of those solo, and one tackle for loss as the Rattlers limited the Strike force to 215 yards of total offense and only 49 yards rushing.

For the first time in years, Taylor is not leaving family behind to continue his football career.

"It's been hard leaving the family and having to come back, so now getting a chance to come home, having all my home people be there, it's a blessing," Taylor said, "Having the whole city root for me, it's going to bring a lot of pressure on me, which brings the best out of me." 

Taylor first began playing football at five years old, starting in flag football before transitioning into tackle football. Long before professional opportunities appeared, the sport had already become a major part of his identity.

Originally from Decatur, Ill., Taylor moved to Glendale, Ariz., when he was 15 years old, where he continued developing his game at Apollo High School. It was there that his talent began opening larger doors.

After a successful high school career, Taylor earned a full scholarship to Northern Arizona University, where he spent five seasons playing college football, including an additional year because of COVID eligibility.

His time at NAU became the foundation for what would turn into a long and unpredictable professional journey.

"Did very well for myself up there and scored a couple of pro opportunities," Taylor said of his college career.

Those opportunities quickly expanded beyond Arizona. Taylor first received NFL minicamp invitations with the Carolina Panthers and later the Chicago Bears, eventually signing with the Bears in 2022 after finishing college.

Although his NFL opportunity was short-lived, Taylor continued pushing forward rather than allowing setbacks to define his career.

After being released, he moved through several professional leagues, including time with the Philadelphia Stars, the Ottawa Redblacks in Canada, and the Houston Roughnecks before arriving in Arizona once again.

"My story is definitely a unique one," Taylor said. "I'm definitely excited to still be playing at this age and still doing what I love."

That journey has made joining the Rattlers feel different than any previous stop.

Despite years of roster changes, travel and uncertainty, Taylor says the reason he continues to play remains simple.

"I play for the love of the game," he said. "A lot of people play for the money. A lot of people play just for the fame. I play for the love of the game."

That love now drives more than his own ambitions. Taylor says he hopes younger athletes watching his career understand that setbacks are part of the process, not the end of it.

"When things are hard and it seems like things aren't going your way, it's really just a sign of God giving you the test of, are you going to keep going?" Taylor said. "The only people who are successful in life are the ones who keep going."

For Taylor, that mindset has carried him through every chapter of his football journey, and now, back home in Arizona, it continues to define the next one.