Shamar Stephen

Shamar Stephen

refer to caption

Stephen in the 2015 NFL season.
No. 93 Minnesota Vikings
Position: Defensive tackle
Personal information
Date of birth: (1991-02-25) February 25, 1991
Place of birth: Westbury, New York
Height: 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight: 310 lb (141 kg)
Career information
High school: Brookville (NY) Long Island Lutheran
College: Connecticut
NFL Draft: 2014 / Round: 7 / Pick: 220
Career history
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards
  • Second-team All-C-USA (2013)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 4, 2016
Total tackles: 31
Sacks: 0.0
Forced fumbles: 0
Interceptions: 0
Player stats at NFL.com

Shamar Irvin Stephen (born February 25, 1991) is an American football defensive tackle for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Connecticut. He was drafted by the Vikings in the seventh round, 220th overall of the 2014 NFL Draft.

Early years

Stephen attended Long Island Lutheran Middle and High School in Brookville, New York, where he was a two-sport standout playing football and basketball.[1] As a sophomore, he played both on defense and offense and compiled 9 tackles and a sack while also rushing for 91 yards on 18 carries (5.1 avg.) and a touchdown. As a junior, he started every game at defensive tackle and recorded 41 tackles and 7 sacks. While serving as the team captain in his senior season, he earned All-American Lutheran Team honors after finishing his final prep year with 57 tackles and 12.0 sacks along with 2 blocked kicks, helping lead the Crusaders to a 7-2 record.[2] In basketball, he was teammates with current Detroit Pistons player Tobias Harris as a sophomore.

College career

Stephen played college football at Connecticut from to 2009 to 2014, where he was named a team captain prior to his senior season and also winning team MVP following the season.[1] He was selected to the All-American Athletic Conference Second Team also in his senior season.[1] Stephen was selected and participated in the 2014 Senior Bowl following the season at Connecticut.[1]

Statistics

Regular season statistics Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
Season Team GP GS Comb Total Ast Sck Tfl PDef Int Yds Avg Lng TDs FF FR FR YDS
2010 Connecticut 12 7 27 13 14 2.0 4.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0
2011 Connecticut 12 12 17 7 10 0.0 1.0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0
2012 Connecticut 12 10 26 14 12 0.0 2.0 4 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0
2013 Connecticut 12 12 60 21 39 3.0 10.0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0
Totals 48 41 130 55 75 5.0 17.0 6 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Ht Wt 40-yd dash 10-yd split 20-yd split 20-ss 3-cone Vert Broad BP
6 ft 5 in 309 lb 5.25 s 1.83 s 3.02 s 4.89 s 7.81 s 30.5 in 8 ft 7 in 25 reps
All values from NFL Combine and Pro Day[3]

Stephen was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the 7th round (220th overall pick) of the 2014 NFL Draft, becoming the first player from the University of Connecticut drafted by the team since running back Vince Clements in 1971.[4]

2014 season

Stephen enjoyed a solid rookie season, with only 1st-round linebacker Anthony Barr being more productive among Vikings' rookie defenders. In the preseason, he received first-team snaps at nose tackle and lined up in both the nose and three-technique spots. He played 42 snaps against the Arizona Cardinals in week 2, getting the second-most playing time of any Vikings defender. Stephen played in all 16 regular season games, the only Vikings rookie to do so, and started 3 times. He made his professional debut in the Vikings' season opener against the St. Louis Rams on September 7, 2014, notching two total tackles. He started his second career game against the Panthers in week 13 and notched a career-best 10 tackles, with 5 solo stops. In the loss at Miami in week 16, he had a season-high 4 quarterback hurries. On November 23, he made his first career start against the Green Bay Packers, replacing Sharrif Floyd at defensive tackle and matching his then career-best with 4 tackles in the game.

2015 season

In his second season, Stephen played in each of the opening 5 games of the season for the Vikings. In week 2, he recovered his first career fumble against the Detroit Lions after he fell on a Theo Riddick fumble forced by safety Harrison Smith. The following week, he had season-highs in defensive snaps with 20 and tackles with 2 against the Chargers.

On October 18, 2015, Stephen suffered a season ending toe injury against the Kansas City Chiefs in week 6 and was carted off the field. The Vikings would go on to place him on the IR list on October 20, 2015.[5]

Career statistics

Regular season statistics Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
Season Team GP GS Comb Total Ast Sck Sfty PDef Int Yds Avg Lng TDs FF FR FR YDS
2014 Minnesota Vikings 16 3 23 13 10 0.0 -- 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0
2015 Minnesota Vikings 5 0 3 2 1 0.0 -- 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0
Totals 21 3 26 15 11 0.0 -- 0 0 0 -- 0 0 0 0 0

[6]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Connecticut Profile". uconnhuskies.com.
  2. ↑ http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/shamar_stephen_717614.html
  3. ↑ http://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/dsprofile.php?pyid=96714&draftyear=2014&genpos=DT
  4. ↑ "2014 NFL Draft: Minnesota Vikings Select Shamar Stephen". dailynorseman.com. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  5. ↑ "Vikings Place Shamar Stephen on IR, Sign Free Agent Kenrick Ellis". www.vikings.com. Retrieved 2015-10-21.
  6. ↑ "Danielle Hunter Stats". ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved 8 September 2014.

External links

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