Kyzir White
Kyzir Rasim White (born March 24, 1996) is an American football linebacker for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at West Virginia and was drafted by the Los Angeles Chargers in the fourth round of the 2018 NFL Draft.[1]
No. 7 – Arizona Cardinals | |||||||||||
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Position: | Linebacker | ||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||
Born: | Macungie, Pennsylvania, U.S. | March 24, 1996||||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||
Weight: | 234 lb (106 kg) | ||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||
High school: | Emmaus (Emmaus, Pennsylvania) | ||||||||||
College: | West Virginia | ||||||||||
NFL Draft: | 2018 / Round: 4 / Pick: 119 | ||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||
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Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||
Career NFL statistics as of Week 18, 2022 | |||||||||||
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Player stats at NFL.com · PFR |
High school career
White played high school football at Emmaus High School in Pennsylvania's highly-competitive East Penn Conference,[2] where his play was highlighted by MaxPreps and other outlets highlighting top high school prospects.[3]
College career
Following two years at Lackawanna College, White committed to West Virginia, passing on scholarship opportunities from Pittsburgh, Arizona State, Louisville, and Illinois.[4] In his career at West Virginia, he recorded 152 total tackles, four sacks, three interceptions, nine passes defended, and four forced fumbles.[5]
Professional career
External video | |
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Kyzir White's NFL Combine Workout | |
NFL Draft Profile: Kyzir White |
Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
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6 ft 1+7⁄8 in (1.88 m) |
218 lb (99 kg) |
31+5⁄8 in (0.80 m) |
10+1⁄8 in (0.26 m) | 4.69 s | 1.55 s | 2.67 s | 4.26 s | 6.96 s | 35+1⁄2 in (0.90 m) | 9 ft 5 in (2.87 m) | 21 reps | |
All values from NFL Combine/West Virginia's Pro Day[6] |
Los Angeles Chargers
In the 2018 NFL Draft, White was drafted by the Los Angeles Chargers in the fourth round (119th overall).[7] White was the 11th safety drafted in 2018.[8]
External video | |
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"Chargers select Kyzir White at No. 119l |
On May 13, 2018, the Los Angeles Chargers signed White to a four-year, $3.11 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $654,441.[9]
"It's hard for me to talk about Kyzir because I get real excited. I don't want to jump the gun on him. I want to get him in some games and watch him play, but just watching him run around here and some of the things he did in the offseason, I get real excited talking about him. His speed. His attitude. His explosiveness. He just has great instincts as a football player. We had a hammer on him (in the draft)."[10]
2018
During rookie minicamp, Los Angeles Chargers' coaching staff announced their decision to move White to linebacker.[11] White adjusted to the new position quickly and immediately impressed coaching staff. During training camp, he began competing as the Chargers' starting weak side linebacker against Jatavis Brown.[12] Head coach Anthony Lynn named White the backup weakside linebacker behind Brown to start the regular season.[13] But an hour before kickoff in the Chargers' season-opener, it was reported Lynn has instead elected to start White alongside Kyle Emanuel and middle linebacker Denzel Perryman.[14]
White made his professional regular season debut and first career start on September 9, 2018 in the Los Angeles Chargers' season-opener against the Kansas City Chiefs and recorded six combined tackles in their 38–28 loss. On September 16, 2018, White recorded four solo tackles, broke up two passes, and made his first career interception during a 31–20 win at the Buffalo Bills in Week 2. He made his first career interception off a pass thrown by Bills' rookie quarterback Josh Allen intended for tight end Jason Croom, and returned it for a nine-yard gain in the game's fourth quarter.[15][16] In a Week 3 game at the Los Angeles Rams, White suffered a knee injury that required minor surgery, and he was inactive for the following four games (Weeks 4–8).[17] On November 3, 2018, the Chargers announced he was being placed on injured reserve.[18]
2019
In Week 5 of the 2019 season, White recorded an interception off Denver Broncos quarterback Joe Flacco in the Chargers' 20–13 loss.[19]
2020
White was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the Chargers on November 21, 2020,[20] and was reactivated on December 9.[21] On December 23, 2020, White was placed on injured reserve due to a hamstring injury.[22]
2021
White entered the 2021 season as the Chargers' starting linebacker and finished the season as the team's leading tackler with 144 tackles, one sack, two forced fumbles, three passes defensed, and two interceptions.
2022
On March 26, 2022, White signed a one-year contract, worth up to $5 million, with the Philadelphia Eagles.[23][24] In White's first season with the Eagles, the team reached Super Bowl LVII, where they lost 38-35 to the Kansas City Chiefs. White had four tackles in Super Bowl LVII.[25]
Arizona Cardinals
On March 15, 2023, White signed a two-year contract with the Arizona Cardinals.[26]
Personal life
White has two brothers, Kevin and Ka'Raun, both of whom also played college football at Lackawanna before transferring to West Virginia.[4] White's older brother Kevin is a wide receiver who was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the first round in 2015 and later played with the New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers.
References
- Henne, Ricky (April 28, 2018). "Chargers Kick off Day Three with West Virginia LB Kyzir White". Chargers.com. Archived from the original on April 28, 2018.
- "Kyzir White", PennLive.com, retrieved April 30, 2018.
- Kyzir White highlights at MaxPreps
- Taylor, Allen (June 17, 2015). "Kyzir White becomes highest-rated brother to commit to WVU". West Virginia Metro News. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- "Kyzir White College Stats". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
- "NFL Draft Profile: Kyzir Whitewash". NFL.com. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
- "2018 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- "Los Angeles Chargers Select LB Kyzir White". BoltsFromTheBlue.com. April 28, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
- "Spotrac.com: Kyzir White contract". Spotrac.com. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
- Henne, Ricky (July 30, 2018). "Kyzir White Earns Highest Possible Praise from Coach Lynn". Chargers.com. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
- Anderson, Chris (May 12, 2018). "WATCH: Kyzir White Discusses NFL Position Change". 247sports.com. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
- Posey, Kyle (July 30, 2018). "Kyzir White getting first team reps at linebacker during today's practice". Retrieved October 29, 2018.
- Stanley, Matthew (September 4, 2018). "Chargers release first "unofficial" depth chart". boltsfromtheblue.com. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
- "Chargers to have three new starters on the defense". Bolts From The Blue. September 9, 2018. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
- "Bills lose in Allen's first start; McCoy hurt". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
- "Los Angeles Chargers at Buffalo Bills - September 16th, 2018". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
- "Chargers' Kyzir White: Sidelined for Week 4". cbssports.com. September 28, 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
- Henne, Ricky (November 3, 2018). "Chargers Place Kyzir White on IR; Sign Jeff Richards". Chargers.com. Archived from the original on November 3, 2018. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
- "Lindsay helps give Broncos' Fangio first win as coach". www.espn.com. October 6, 2019. Retrieved October 6, 2019.
- "Los Angeles Chargers put leading tackler Kyzir White on COVID-19 list". ESPN.com. November 21, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- "Chargers' Kyzir White: All clear from COVID-19". CBSSports.com. December 9, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
- Williams, Charean (December 23, 2020). "Chargers place Kyzir White on injured reserve". NBCSports.com. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
- "Kyzir White returns home as perfect fit," Sports Illustrated, April 5, 2022
- Erby, Glenn (March 26, 2022). "4 takeaways from the Eagles agreeing to a deal with former Chargers LB Kyzir White". Eagles Wire. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
- "Super Bowl LVII - Philadelphia Eagles vs. Kansas City Chiefs - February 12th, 2023". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
- Urban, Darren (March 15, 2023). "Kyzir White Agrees To Two-Year Deal With Cardinals". AZCardinals.com. Retrieved March 26, 2023.