Kayvon Thibodeaux

Kayvon Thibodeaux

Thibodeaux in 2022
No. 5 – New York Giants
Position:	Linebacker
Personal information
Born:	(2000-12-15) December 15, 2000 (age 24) South Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:	258 lb (117 kg)
Career information
High school:	Oaks Christian (Westlake Village, California)
College:	Oregon (2019–2021)
NFL draft:	2022 / round: 1 / pick: 5
Career history
New York Giants (2022–present)
Roster status:	Active
Career highlights and awards
PFWA All-Rookie Team (2022) Morris Trophy (2020) Unanimous All-American (2021) 2× First-team All-Pac-12 (2020, 2021) Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year (2019)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2024
Total tackles: 123 Sacks: 19.5 Forced fumbles: 6 Fumble recoveries: 3 Pass deflections: 11 Defensive touchdowns: 1 Stats at Pro Football Reference

Kayvon Thibodeaux (/ˈtɪbədoʊ/ TIB-ə-doh;^[1] born December 15, 2000) is an American professional football linebacker for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). A native of Los Angeles, he was named USA Today's High School Football Defensive Player of the Year in 2018.

Thibodeaux played college football for the Oregon Ducks, where he was named the Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year in 2019, won the Morris Trophy in 2020, and was voted a unanimous All-American in 2021. He was selected by the Giants fifth overall in the 2022 NFL draft.

Early life

Thibodeaux was born in South Los Angeles, California, on December 15, 2000. He attended and played football at Susan Miller Dorsey High School for two years before transferring to Oaks Christian School in 2017.^[2] He was named the High School Football Defensive Player of the Year by the USA Today after recording 18 sacks and 54 tackles during his senior season in 2018.^[3]

Thibodeaux recorded 152 total tackles, 54 sacks, and eight forced fumbles during his high school career, and was the second-highest rated overall player in the 2019 recruiting class. He accepted a scholarship to play college football for the Ducks at the University of Oregon over several other offers including USC and Stanford.^[4]

College career

Thibodeaux was named the Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year in 2019.^[5] As a sophomore, he won the Morris Trophy on defense and was named first-team All-Pac-12 while also winning MVP honors of the 2020 Pac-12 Football Championship Game.^[6][7] Thibodeaux suffered a sprained ankle in the first game of his junior season,^[8] and sat out the following two games.^[9] He recorded seven sacks in 2021 and was unanimously voted to the 2021 College Football All-America Team.^[10] Following the season, Thibodeaux announced that he would forgo his senior year and declared for the 2022 NFL draft.^[11]

College statistics

Season	GP	Tackles					Interceptions					Fumbles
		Solo	Ast	Cmb	TfL	Sck	Int	Yds	Avg	TD	PD	FR	Yds	TD	FF
2019	13	24	11	35	14	9.0	0	0	0.0	0	3	0	0	0	1
2020	7	25	17	42	9	3.0	0	0	0.0	0	3	0	0	0	0
2021	10	35	14	49	12	7.0	0	0	0.0	0	1	0	0	0	2
Career	30	84	42	126	35.5	19.0	0	0	0.0	0	7	0	0	0	3

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables

Height	Weight	Arm length	Hand span	40-yard dash	10-yard split	20-yard split	20-yard shuttle	Three-cone drill	Broad jump	Bench press
6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	254 lb (115 kg)	33+1⁄8 in (0.84 m)	9+3⁄4 in (0.25 m)	4.58 s	1.56 s	2.64 s	4.38 s	7.23 s	9 ft 11 in (3.02 m)	27 reps
Sources:[12][13]

2022

Thibodeaux was selected fifth overall by the New York Giants in the 2022 NFL Draft.^[14] Thibodeaux suffered a sprained MCL in Week 2 of the preseason against the Cincinnati Bengals.^[15]

Thibodeaux made his NFL debut against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 3, where he had one tackle in the 23–16 loss.^[16] In Week 6 against the Baltimore Ravens, Thibodeaux had his first career sack, forcing a game-winning fumble by quarterback Lamar Jackson in the fourth quarter during the 24–20 win.^[17][18] On December 18, 2022, against the Washington Commanders, Thibodeaux completed a forced fumble and recovery for his first career touchdown. His performance earned him the NFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 15.^[19][20]

In Week 17, Thibodeaux sacked Colts quarterback Nick Foles. Despite Foles writhing on the ground with a rib injury, Thibodeaux could be seen celebrating the sack by pretending to make snow angels. As Foles was being carted off the field, Thibodeaux could be seen mimicking Foles "going to sleep." Despite being neither flagged nor fined, fans, analysts and Colts players widely criticized Thibodeaux's celebration as disrespectful and unsportsmanlike.^[21]

He started and appeared in 14 games as a rookie. He finished with four sacks, 49 total tackles, five passes defended, and two forced fumbles.^[22] He was named to the 2022 PFWA All-Rookie Team.^[23]

2023

In Week 8 against the New York Jets, Thibodeaux recorded three sacks, a forced fumble, and nine tackles in the 13–10 loss in overtime.^[24]

During a Week 14 game against the Green Bay Packers, Thibodeaux recorded a forced fumble on Packers quarterback Jordan Love.^[25]

In his second season, Thibodeaux finished with 11.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, four pass deflections, and a fumble recovery.^[26]

2024

Thibodeaux suffered a wrist injury that required surgery in Week 5 of the 2024 season and was placed on injured reserve on October 12, 2024.^[27] He was activated on November 23.^[28]

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Legend
Bold	Career high

Year	Team	GP	Tackles				Fumbles			Interceptions
			Cmb	Solo	Ast	Sck	FF	FR	Yds	Int	Yds	Lng	TD	PD
2022	NYG	14	49	33	16	4.0	2	2	1	0	0	0	0	5
2023	NYG	17	50	26	24	11.5	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	4
Career		31	99	59	40	15.5	5	3	1	0	0	0	0	9

Personal life

In July 2021, Thibodeaux announced a collaboration with Nike CEO Phil Knight and shoe designer Tinker Hatfield to design non-fungible token (NFT) artwork.^[29] He launched his own cryptocurrency, "$JREAM", in September 2021.^[30] It was named after the Jream Foundation, which Thibodeaux also founded.^[30] Thibodeaux graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in journalism-advertising.^[31]

Thibodeaux is an avid chess player, saying he used chess principles to hone his skills as a football player.^[32][33][34] He began playing chess at a young age, watching his uncles play the board game. Playing online chess became a passion for him.^[35] He was selected as a player for Chess.com's BlitzChamp tournament, a rapid tournament for NFL players. Thibodeaux is also a minority owner of the New York Warriors USA Masters T10 cricket team.^[36]

Thibodeaux was present for the 2023 Grammys.^[37]

References

1. Foley, Damian (August 29, 2019). "Why Thibodeaux Picked the UO". uoregon.edu. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
2. "Kayvon Thibodeaux, No. 1 player in 2019, transfers to Oaks Christian (Calif.)". usatodayhss.com. May 6, 2017. Retrieved August 25, 2021 – via USA Today.
3. "Kayvon Thibodeaux's High School Timeline". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
4. Hodgkinson, Oliver (June 8, 2021). "Kayvon Thibodeaux, Oregon DE NFL Draft Scouting Report". ProFootballNetwork.com. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
5. "Oregon's Kayvon Thibodeaux wins Pac-12 Football Defensive Freshman Player of the Year after a dynamic season". Pac-12. December 9, 2019. Archived from the original on March 18, 2020. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
6. Crepea, James (January 11, 2021). "Oregon Ducks DE Kayvon Thibodeaux wins Morris Trophy as Pac-12′s top defensive lineman". OregonLive.com. Retrieved July 12, 2021 – via The Oregonian.
7. "Oregon holds off USC late, grabs Pac-12 title with 31-24 win". ESPN.com. Associated Press. December 18, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
8. Scarborough, Alex (September 4, 2021). "Star defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux leaves Oregon Ducks' season opener after first half". ESPN. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
9. Neel, Zachary (September 18, 2021). "Oregon Ducks' star Kayvon Thibodeaux will not play vs. Stony Brook". Ducks Wire. USA Today. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
10. "AP All-America team: Young and Tide lead with 3 1st teamers". Associated Press. December 13, 2021. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
11. Shook, Nick (December 6, 2021). "Oregon DE Kayvon Thibodeaux declares for 2022 NFL Draft". NFL.com. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
12. "Kayvon Thibodeaux Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
13. "2022 Draft Scout Kayvon Thibodeaux, Oregon NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
14. "Giants draft Oregon EDGE Kayvon Thibodeaux with 5th pick". Giants.com. April 28, 2022. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
15. "Injury Updates: Kayvon Thibodeaux (MCL sprain); LB Darrian Beavers (torn ACL)". Giants.com. August 22, 2022. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
16. Eisen, Michael (September 29, 2022). "Kayvon Thibodeaux looks to build off NFL debut". Giants.com. Retrieved October 19, 2022.
17. Raanan, Jordan (October 17, 2022). "Giants' Thibodeaux gets first sack on Lamar Jackson vs. Ravens". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 19, 2022.
18. Leonard, Pat (October 16, 2022). "Julian Love, Kayvon Thibodeaux force stunning Giants comeback win over Ravens". New York Daily News. Retrieved October 19, 2022.
19. "Giants beat Commanders in prime time to end winless streak". ESPN.com. Associated Press. December 19, 2022. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
20. "2022 NFL Week 15 Leaders & Scores". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 27, 2023.
21. D'Andrea, Christian (January 1, 2023). "Kayvon Thibodeaux did so many snow angels while an injured Nick Foles writhed in pain". For The Win. USA Today. Retrieved May 23, 2023.
22. "Kayvon Thibodeaux 2022 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 27, 2023.
23. "2022 NFL All-Rookie Team". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 27, 2023.
24. Schwartz, Jared (October 30, 2023). "Kayvon Thibodeaux's dominant Giants outing in face of critics had perfect ending spoiled". New York Post. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
25. "Kayvon Thibodeaux strips ball from Jordan Love; Xavier McKinney recovers | Giants vs. Packers Highlights". www.giants.com. Retrieved January 15, 2024.
26. "Giants' Kayvon Thibodeaux: Posts 11.5 sacks in second season". CBSSports.com. January 13, 2024. Retrieved January 15, 2024.
27. Citak, Matt (October 12, 2024). "Giants place Kayvon Thibodeaux on injured reserve, sign punter Matt Haack". Giants.com.
28. "Giants Activate Kayvon Thibodeaux from IR; Waive QB Daniel Jones". New York Giants On SI. November 23, 2024. Retrieved November 25, 2024.
29. Kercheval, Ben (July 7, 2021). "Oregon star Kayvon Thibodeaux partners with Nike co-founder, shoe designer for NFT artwork collaboration". CBSSports.com. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
30. Bonagura, Kyle (September 23, 2021). "Oregon Ducks star Kayvon Thibodeaux launches his own cryptocurrency". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
31. "CONGRATS, GRADUATES!". Oregon Ducks Athletics. June 18, 2021. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
32. "How the game of chess has influenced Kayvon Thibodeaux | College GameDay". YouTube.com. ESPN College Football. October 23, 2021. Retrieved July 5, 2022.
33. "How the game of Chess has helped mold Oregon's Kayvon Thibodeaux". RSN. July 20, 2021. Archived from the original on July 20, 2021. Retrieved July 5, 2022.
34. DiRocco, Michael (March 4, 2022). "Thibodeaux checklist: Copy greats to capture QB". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 5, 2022.
35. Emma, Chris (March 4, 2022). "How Kayvon Thibodeaux's love of chess made him a top NFL prospect: 'I'm thinking moves ahead'". Audacy.com. Retrieved July 5, 2022.
36. "Announcing BlitzChamps With NFL Stars Fitzgerald, Thibodeaux, Parsons, And More!". Chess.com. June 17, 2022. Retrieved July 5, 2022.
37. "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved January 15, 2024.

External links

• Kayvon Thibodeaux on Twitter
• Career statistics from NFL.com · ESPN · Yahoo Sports
• New York Giants bio
• Oregon Ducks bio