Jayron Kearse

Jayron Kearse (born February 11, 1994) is an American football safety who is a free agent. He played college football at Clemson and was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round of the 2016 NFL Draft.

Jayron Kearse
Kearse (1) playing for Clemson
Free agent
Position:Safety
Personal information
Born: (1994-02-11) February 11, 1994
Fort Myers, Florida
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High school:South Fort Myers
(Fort Myers, Florida)
College:Clemson
NFL Draft:2016 / Round: 7 / Pick: 244
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2020
Total tackles:138
Sacks:0.5
Forced fumbles:1
Pass deflections:10
Interceptions:1
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

High school career

A native of Fort Myers, Florida, Kearse transferred to South Fort Myers High School in January 2012 after playing mostly quarterback three years at Cypress Lake High School. There, he played defense in his freshman season and switched to the offensive side as a junior and totalled 1,600 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns. He played as a safety, running back and wide receiver at South Fort Myers as a senior in 2012, helping lead his team to an 11-2 record after rushing for 528 yards (12.3 yards per carry) and five touchdowns to go along with five more receiving scores while averaging 18.9 yards per reception; as a safety on defense, he also recorded 87 tackles, three sacks and an interception. Following his senior season, he was invited to play in the Offense-Defense All-American Bowl in Houston, Texas. Kearse also participated in track & field for the Wolfpack.

Frequently listed as an "athlete" by most recruiting services, Kearse was rated as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, as well as the No. 16 athlete in the nation according to both Rivals and 247Sports.com. He was viewed as the seventh best outside linebacker in the class of 2012 by Scout.com, while MaxPreps listed him as the fifteenth best athlete in the nation and considered him a four-star recruit.

Kearse originally committed to play college football at Auburn University in August 2011, but in January 2012, he verbally committed to the University of Miami after the Tigers lost coach Gus Malzahn to Arkansas State.[1][2] Kearse posted a picture of himself on his Twitter feed holding a Miami helmet and wearing a Hurricanes sweatshirt standing next to Hurricanes coach Al Golden.[3] However, after attending camp at Clemson in June, he de-committed from the Hurricanes and ended up committing to Clemson University on August 2, 2012. Kearse stated: "I chose Clemson because the coaches are genuine people that care about their athletes, and is just a great place to be with a group of guys who all want the best for you."[4]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight 40‡ Commit date
Jayron Kearse
ATH		 Fort Myers, Florida South Fort Myers (FL) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 4.45 Aug 2, 2012 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 6 (OLB); 100 (national)   Rivals: 14 (ATH); 40 (FL); 242 (national)
  • ‡ Refers to 40 yard dash
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2013 Clemson Football Commitment List". Rivals.com. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
  • "2013 Clemson College Football Team Recruiting Prospects". Scout.com. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
  • "2013 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved May 1, 2016.

    College career

    Kearse attended Clemson University, where he played as a strong safety under head coach Dabo Swinney's Clemson Tigers football team from 2013 to 2015. He amassed 164 total tackles (11.5 tackles for loss), seven interceptions, 11 pass breakups, two forced fumbles and two recovered fumbles in 1,998 snaps over 40 games with 29 starts in his career. Following his junior season, he declared early for the 2016 NFL Draft.

    Freshman season (2013)
    See also: 2013 Clemson Tigers football team

    Two weeks before his freshman season began, Kearse was a candidate to play nickel back in Clemson’s five-DB formations, but a shoulder injury caused him to miss the end of fall camp and the Georgia opener, so fellow freshman strong safety Korrin Wiggins moved to nickel and Kearse settled in as Travis Blanks’ backup. In the following three games of the season, Kearse logged some spare playing time in home blowouts over South Carolina State in week 2 and Wake Forest in week 4 until he was thrust into 75 snaps during Clemson’s 49-14 win over the Syracuse Orange in week 5, recording eight tackles and his first career interception.[5] The following week, he started against Boston College and contributed with 4 tackles. However, in week 7, Kearse played just three snaps against Florida State. In the next two weeks, at Maryland and Virginia, a knee injury to Travis Blanks gave Kearse more playing time and he recorded 2 interceptions. In the season finale against South Carolina, he played all 81 snaps and had 10 tackles.[6] In his true freshman season with the Tigers, Kearse played in 12 games and made three starts, compiling 41 tackles (29 solo), four interceptions and a forced fumble.

    Sophomore season (2014)
    See also: 2014 Clemson Tigers football team

    As a sophomore in 2014, he started 12 of 13 games, recording 67 tackles, two interceptions, and three sacks.[7][8]

    Junior season (2015)
    See also: 2015 Clemson Tigers football team

    After the 2016 national championship game, Kearse announced that he would forgo his senior season and enter the NFL draft, with many mock drafts projecting him as a late 1st round selection.

    Statistics
    Regular season statistics Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
    SeasonTeamGPGS Total Solo Ast Sck Tfl PDef Int Yds Avg Lng TDs FFFRFR YDS
    2013Clemson1234129120.00.0046215.500100
    2014Clemson13136146153.05.0522110.500010
    2015Clemson14146241210.06.56100.000110
    Totals3930164116483.011.51178311.900220

    Professional career
    External video
    Kearse runs the 40 at the NFL Combine
    Kearse gets drafted by Minnesota
    Pre-draft measurables
    Height Weight Arm length Hand size 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)    		 216 lb
    (98 kg)    		 1⁄4 in
    (0.01 m)    		 5⁄8 in
    (0.02 m)    		 4.62 s 1.62 s 2.69 s 4.60 s 7.06 s 1⁄2 in
    (0.01 m)    		 10 ft 4 in
    (3.15 m)    		 16 reps
    All values from NFL combine except 20-yard shuttle result from Clemson's Pro Day[9]

    Minnesota Vikings

    The Minnesota Vikings selected Kearse in the seventh round (244th overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft, joining his teammate on the Tigers' defense, cornerback Mackensie Alexander, who was taken by the Vikings in the second round.[10] Kearse, who watched the NFL draft with his family back in his hometown, watched hopelessly as he was passed on by NFL teams round after round. "I threw the caps on the ground after I was drafted." Kearse said. "The Vikings gave me a shot. 31 passed on me, so 31 got thrown on the ground. The Vikings are the lucky ones. I'm definitely going to make the other 31 pay.”[11]

    Kearse saw his first significant action of the 2016 season in Week 7 against the Philadelphia Eagles, playing 52-of-58 snaps and recording two tackles after starter Andrew Sendejo went down with an ankle injury after intercepting a pass.[12]

    Detroit Lions

    On March 27, 2020, Kearse signed a one-year, $2.75 million contract with the Detroit Lions.[13] On July 31, 2020, he was suspended the first three games of 2020 for violating the substance-abuse policy.[14] He was reinstated from suspension and activated on October 1, 2020.[15] On December 28, 2020, Kearse was released by the Lions.

    Baltimore Ravens

    On December 31, 2020, Kearse was signed to the Baltimore Ravens practice squad.[16]

    Statistics
    Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
    GPGS Comb Total Ast Sck Sfty PDef Int Yds Avg Lng TDs FFFRYDs
    2016MIN 1616420.0--0000.000000
    2017MIN 15013940.0--0000.000000
    2018MIN 161322750.5--2000.000000
    Total4725140110.5--2000.000000

    [17]

    Personal life

    Kearse has family ties to the NFL, as Jevon Kearse, former Florida Gators All-American and longtime Tennessee Titans defensive end is his uncle, and his cousin, Phillip Buchanon, played college football at Miami and was taken in the first round of the 2002 NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders.[18][19] At the age of 14, Kearse was out of football and in the summer of 2008 got arrested on a felony charge of robbery with another minor in Fort Myers, Florida, according to WBBH-TV. Kearse called that a “turning point” in his life.[20]

    On October 27, 2019, Kearse was stopped by a Minnesota State Patrol Trooper for driving around a construction barricade onto the closed portion of U.S. Interstate 94 at Cedar Avenue in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He was placed under arrest on suspicion of driving while intoxicated (DWI) and had a blood alcohol content of .10. During a search of Kearse's vehicle, the trooper found a loaded firearm for which Kearse did not have a permit to have. He was arrested on fourth-degree DWI and possession of a firearm without a permit.[21] He pleaded guilty on February 27, 2020, to the charges and was sentenced to probation and community service.[22]

    References
    1. Jayron Kearse commits to Auburn for 2013
    2. Jayron Kearse commits to Auburn
    3. Prep football: South Fort Myers' Jayron Kearse commits to Miami
    4. Kearse decides on Clemson
    5. Tall task: Jayron Kearse stepping up as Clemson safety
    6. Jayron Kearse thrives at Clemson
    7. Clemson's Kearse has sights set high
    8. Clemson Top 10: Time for Jayron Kearse to become wily veteran
    9. "*Jayron Kearse – Clemson, SS : 2016 NFL Draft Scout External News". nfldraftscout.com.
    10. "2016 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 25, 2019.
    11. http://www.tigernet.com/update/player/Kearse-Im-31-teams-pay-23026
    12. With Sendejo out, seventh-rounder Kearse gets his shot at safety
    13. "Lions agree to terms with eight free agents". DetroitLions.com. March 20, 2020.
    14. Rothstein, Michael (July 31, 2020). "New Lions safety Jayron Kearse suspended three games". ESPN.com.
    15. "Lions activate S Jayron Kearse". DetroitLions.com. October 1, 2020. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
    16. Mink, Ryan (December 31, 2020). "Ravens Sign Jayron Kearse to Practice Squad". BaltimoreRavens.com.
    17. "Jayron Kearse Stats". ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
    18. Jayron Kearse: 'Talking trash' and backing it up
    19. Kearse has big shoes to follow Jayron is a devout Christian and studied Agriculture at Clemson.
    20. What we’ve learned about the rookies
    21. "Jayron Kearse arrested on suspicion of DWI". NFL. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
    22. Alper, Josh (February 28, 2020). "Jayron Kearse sentenced to probation, community service". NBCSports.com. Retrieved August 1, 2020.
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