David Njoku
 Njoku in 2018 preseason. | |||||||||
| No. 85 – Cleveland Browns | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Tight end | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | July 10, 1996 Cedar Grove, New Jersey | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 246 lb (112 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Cedar Grove (Cedar Grove, New Jersey) | ||||||||
| College: | Miami (FL) | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2017 / round: 1 / pick: 29 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of Week 3, 2018 | |||||||||
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David Njoku (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, and was drafted by the Browns in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft.
Early years
Njoku attended Cedar Grove High School in Cedar Grove, New Jersey. During his career, he had 76 receptions for 1,794 yards and 19 touchdowns. He committed to the University of Miami to play college football.[1][2] 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.[3][4]
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.[5] In 2016, he had 43 receptions for 698 yards and eight touchdowns.[6] After the season, Njoku decided to forgo his remaining two years of eligibility and enter the 2017 NFL Draft.[7][8]
College statistics
| Receiving | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | GP | Rec | Yards | TDs |
| 2015 | Miami | 13 | 21 | 362 | 1 |
| 2016 | Miami | 12 | 43 | 698 | 8 |
| College Totals | 25 | 64 | 1,060 | 9 | |
Source:[9]
Professional career
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.[10][11][12][13]
| 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 s | 1.61 s | 2.70 s | 4.34 s | 6.97 s | 37+1⁄2 in (0.95 m) |
11 ft 1 in (3.38 m) |
21 reps | |
| All value from NFL Scouting Combine[14] | ||||||||||||
The Cleveland Browns selected Njoku in the first round (29th overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft.[15] He was the third tight end to be selected in the draft.
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.[16]
On September 10, Njoku made his NFL debut in a 21–18 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. He had two receptions for 20 yards.[17] 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.[18]
References
- ^ "Football: David Njoku of Cedar Grove commits to Miami (Fla.)".
- ^ "David Njoku of Cedar Grove signs to play football at Miami on National Signing Day".
- ^ "Cedar Grove Panthers' David Njoku wins high jump national championship".
- ^ "Former high school track star David Njoku emerges as playmaker for UM football team".
- ^ "This leaping, pass-catching 'freak' is one University of Miami fans hope sticks around".
- ^ "Miami Hurricanes TE David Njoku declares for NFL draft - Canes Watch".
- ^ "UM tight end David Njoku announces he will enter the NFL Draft".
- ^ Tight End David Njoku Declares For NFL Draft
- ^ "David Njoku College Stats - College Football at Sports-Reference.com".
- ^ Chris Burke (April 24, 2017). "2017 NFL draft rankings: Top prospects by position". si.com. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
- ^ Jeff Legwold (April 22, 2017). "Ranking the 2017 Draft's Top 100 Prospects". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
- ^ Bucky Brooks (April 25, 2017). "Bucky Brooks' top 5 2017 NFL Draft prospects by position 3.0". NFL.com. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
- ^ Mike Mayock (April 12, 2017). "Mike Mayock's top 5 2017 NFL Draft prospects by position". NFL.com. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
- ^ "NFL Combine Profile", NFL.com, retrieved 2017-03-04
- ^ Shook, Nick (April 27, 2017). "Browns trade back into first round, take TE David Njoku". NFL.com.
- ^ "Spotrac.com: David Njoku contract". spotrac.com. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
- ^ "Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns - September 10th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
- ^ "Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens - September 17th, 2017". Retrieved 28 October 2017.