David Njoku

David Njoku (/ɪnˈdʒoʊku/ in-JOE-koo; born July 10, 1996) is an American football tight end for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Miami (FL). He was selected by the Browns in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft.

David Njoku
refer to caption
Njoku with the Browns in 2021
No. 85 – Cleveland Browns
Position:Tight end
Personal information
Born: (1996-07-10) July 10, 1996
Cedar Grove, New Jersey, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:246 lb (112 kg)
Career information
High school:Cedar Grove
College:Miami (FL) (2014–2016)
NFL Draft:2017 / Round: 1 / Pick: 29
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career NFL statistics as of 2022
Receptions:209
Receiving yards:2,404
Receiving touchdowns:19
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Early years

Njoku is one of nine children born to Nigerian parents who immigrated to the United States.[1] He attended Cedar Grove High School in Cedar Grove, New Jersey. During his career, he had 76 receptions for 1,794 yards and 19 touchdowns. A 3-star tight end recruit, Njoku committed to Miami (FL) to play college football over offers from Boston College, Ohio State, and Temple.[2][3][4] Njoku also competed in the high jump in high school, winning the national championship at the New Balance Nationals Outdoor his senior year in 2014.[5][1]

College career

After redshirting his first year at Miami in 2014, Njoku played in all 13 games with four starts in 2015 and had 21 receptions for 362 yards and one touchdown.[6] In 2016, he had 43 receptions for 698 yards and eight touchdowns.[7] After the season, Njoku decided to forgo his remaining two years of eligibility and enter the 2017 NFL Draft.[8][9]

College statistics
Receiving
YearTeamGPRecYardsTDs
2015Miami13213621
2016Miami12436988
College Totals25641,0609

Source:[10]

Professional career
Njoku with the Cleveland Browns, 2018

Njoku received an invitation to the NFL Combine and completed all of the combine and positional drills. In addition, he attended Miami's Pro Day and opted to again perform the vertical jump, broad jump, short shuttle, 40-yard dash, 20-yard dash, and 10-yard dash. NFL draft experts and analysts projected Njoku to be selected in the first round of the draft. He was ranked the third best tight end available in the draft by Sports Illustrated and was ranked the second best tight end by ESPN, NFL analyst Mike Mayock, and NFL analyst Bucky Brooks.[11][12][13][14]

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench pressWonderlic
6 ft 4 in
(1.93 m)		 246 lb
(112 kg)		 35+1⁄4 in
(0.90 m)		 10 in
(0.25 m)		4.64 s1.61 s2.70 s4.34 s6.97 s40 in
(1.02 m)		11 ft 1 in
(3.38 m)		21 reps24
All value from NFL Scouting Combine except vertical.[15][16]

The Cleveland Browns selected Njoku in the first round (29th overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft.[17] He was the third tight end to be selected in the draft.[18]

2017 season

On June 15, 2017, the Cleveland Browns signed Njoku to a fully guaranteed, four-year, $9.52 million contract which included a signing bonus of $5.06 million.[19]

On September 10, Njoku made his NFL debut in a 21–18 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. He had two receptions for 20 yards.[20] in the Week 2 game against the Baltimore Ravens, he had three receptions for 27 yards and his first NFL touchdown in the 24–10 loss.[21] He finished his rookie year with 32 catches for 386 yards and four touchdowns.

2018 season

In 2018, Njoku entered the season as the Browns starting tight end. He played in all 16 games with 14 starts, recording 56 catches for 639 yards and four touchdowns.[22]

2019 season

In Week 2 of the 2019 season, Njoku was upended and landed on his head and left the game against the New York Jets due to a concussion. However, later in the week, it was revealed that Njoku suffered a broken wrist on the same play. He was placed on injured reserve on September 20, 2019.[23] He was designated for return from injured reserve on November 20, 2019, and began practicing with the team again.[24] He was activated on December 7, 2019.[25]

2020 season

On April 27, 2020, the Browns exercised the fifth-year option on Njoku's contract.[26] Njoku was placed on injured reserve on September 14, 2020, with a knee injury, a day after he posted 3 catches for 50 yards and a touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens.[27] He was activated on October 10.[28]

2021 season
Njoku playing against the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2021.

In Week 5 against the Los Angeles Chargers, Njoku caught 7 passes for 149 yards and a touchdown, with the score coming off a 71 yard catch and run. The Browns would go on to lose 47-42 in a thriller.

2022 season

The Browns placed the franchise tag on Njoku on March 7, 2022.[29] On May 27, Njoku signed a four-year, $56.75 million contract extension.[30] In Week 7 against the Baltimore Ravens, Njoku suffered a high–ankle sprain. It was later announced that he would not require surgery but would miss two–to–five weeks.[31]

2023 season

On September 30, 2023, before Week 4, the Cleveland Browns announced that Njoku was questionable due to suffering burns on his face and arms in a "freak accident" in his home. [32]

NFL career statistics

Regular season
Year Team Games Receiving
GPGSRecYdsAvgLngTD
2017CLE 1653238612.1344
2018CLE 16145663911.4664
2019CLE 415418.2181
2020CLE 1351921311.2282
2021CLE 16113647513.2714
2022CLE 14145862810.8384
2023CLE 44161388.6290
Total83542222,52011.47119

Personal life

On September 29, 2023, Njoku suffered burns to his face and arms during a household accident where he was trying to light a fire pit.[33]

References
  1. "Former high school track star David Njoku emerges as playmaker for UM football team". Miami Herald.
  2. "Football: David Njoku of Cedar Grove commits to Miami (Fla.)". January 31, 2014.
  3. "David Njoku of Cedar Grove signs to play football at Miami on National Signing Day". February 6, 2014.
  4. "David Njoku, 2014 Tight End - Rivals.com". N.rivals.com. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
  5. "Cedar Grove Panthers' David Njoku wins high jump national championship".
  6. "This leaping, pass-catching 'freak' is one University of Miami fans hope sticks around". Miami Herald.
  7. "Miami Hurricanes TE David Njoku declares for NFL draft - Canes Watch".
  8. "UM tight end David Njoku announces he will enter the NFL Draft". Miami Herald.
  9. Tight End David Njoku Declares For NFL Draft
  10. "David Njoku College Stats". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
  11. Chris Burke (April 24, 2017). "2017 NFL draft rankings: Top prospects by position". si.com. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
  12. Jeff Legwold (April 22, 2017). "Ranking the 2017 Draft's Top 100 Prospects". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
  13. Bucky Brooks (April 25, 2017). "Bucky Brooks' top 5 2017 NFL Draft prospects by position 3.0". NFL.com. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
  14. Mike Mayock (April 12, 2017). "Mike Mayock's top 5 2017 NFL Draft prospects by position". NFL.com. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
  15. "NFL Combine Profile", NFL.com, retrieved March 4, 2017
  16. "David Njoku Draft Profile – NFL.com". NFL.com. Archived from the original on December 4, 2018. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
  17. Shook, Nick (April 27, 2017). "Browns trade back into first round, take TE David Njoku". NFL.com. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  18. "2017 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  19. "Spotrac.com: David Njoku contract". spotrac.com. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  20. "Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns - September 10th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
  21. "Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens - September 17th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
  22. "David Njoku 2018 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
  23. "Browns place TE David Njoku on injured reserve, claim S Juston Burris". ClevelandBrowns.com. September 20, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  24. "Browns TE David Njoku designated for return". ClevelandBrowns.com. November 20, 2019. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  25. "Browns activate TE David Njoku from injured reserve". ClevelandBrowns.com. December 7, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  26. Gribble, Andrew (April 27, 2020). "Browns exercise 5th-year contract options for Myles Garrett, David Njoku". ClevelandBrowns.com. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  27. Shook, Nick (September 14, 2020). "Browns swap kickers, place TE David Njoku on IR following blowout loss". www.nfl.com. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
  28. Florio, Mike (October 10, 2020). "Browns return David Njoku to active roster". NBCSports.com. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  29. Poisal, Anthony (March 7, 2022). "Browns designate TE David Njoku as franchise player, tender three". ClevelandBrowns.com. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  30. Baca, Michael (May 27, 2022). "Browns, TE David Njoku agree to four-year, $56.75M contract extension". NFL.com.
  31. "Browns' David Njoku Suffers High-Ankle Sprain But Avoids Surgery, per Report". si.com. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  32. "Browns' David Njoku Suffers Burns to Face, Arms in Freak Household Accident - Sports Illustrated". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 30, 2023.
  33. Trotter, Jake (September 30, 2023). "Browns TE David Njoku questionable due to burn injuries". espn.com. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
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