Kayvon Thibodeaux

OLB

#5

Experience: 3 years

Height: 6-5

Age: 23

Weight: 258 lbs

College: Oregon

Biography

NFC Defensive Player of the Week: 2022 Week 15

Originally a first-round (5th pick overall) draft choice by the Giants in 2022.

HONORS:

NFC Defensive Player of the Week: 2022 Week 15

TRANSACTIONS:

Originally a first-round (5th pick overall) draft choice by the Giants in 2022.

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:

Has started all 31 regular-season games and 2 postseason games in which he's played for the Giants...Totals include recorded 99 tackles (59 solo), 15.5 sacks, 29 quarterback hits, 18 tackles for loss, 9 passes defensed, 5 forced fumbles, and 3 fumble recoveries, including one for a touchdown.
Through his first 25 career games, recorded 14.5 sacks, the most by any player in their first 25 games with the Giants since sacks became on official statistic in 1982.
In 2023, started all 17 regular-season games…Led the Giants and tied for 12^th in the NFL with 11.5 sacks…Became the first Giant since Leonard Williams, who also had 11.5 in 2020, to record double-digit sacks…Added 50 tackles (26 solo), 16 quarterback hits, 12 tackles for loss, 4 passes defensed, 3 forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery…His 12 tackles for loss tied Micah McFadden for the team lead and his 16 quarterback hits were 2^nd to Dexter Lawrence's 21.-most…Among players who debuted in 2022, Thibodeaux is 3^rd in sacks with 15.5 and 4^th in pressures with 86.
Earned his first sack of the season, a 4-yarder of Brock Purdy, and had 3 tackles, one stop for loss, and one quarterback hit, at San Francisco (9/21)…Recorded the first multi-sack game of his career with 2,0 vs. Seattle (10/2)...Registered 2 tackles (one solo), 1.0 sack, one tackle for loss, one quarterback hit, and one fumble recovery at Miami (10/8).
Tallied 4 tackles, 2 quarterback hits, and 1.5 sacks vs. Washington (10/22).
Recorded a career-high 3.0 sacks while making a season-best 9 tackles (6 solo), 3 tackles for loss, 3 quarterback hits, a and a forced fumble vs. the Jets (10/29)...It was his 3rd multi-sack game of the season…Became the first Giants player with 3.0 sacks in a game since Williams recorded 3.0 vs. Dallas on Jan. 3, 2021.
Contributed 5 tackles (3 solo), 3 quarterback hits, 2.0 sacks, 2 tackles for loss and a pass defensed at Washington (11/19)...Joined Dallas' Micah Parsons and Pittsburgh's T.J. Watt as the only players to have 10+ sacks over the first 11 weeks of a season within their first 2 NFL seasons.
Notched 5 tackles (4 solo), 2 tackles for loss, one forced fumble and a half-sack vs. New England (11/26)…Totaled 8 tackles (one solo), one quarterback hit, one pass deflection, one forced fumble, and a half-sack vs. Green Bay (12/11)…Registered 3 solo tackles, one quarterback hit, and one pass defensed vs. Philadelphia (1/7).
As a rookie in 2022, started all 14 regular-season games in which he played, as well as both of the Giants' postseason games…Missed the first 2 games of the season with a knee injury suffered in the preseason…Finished 3rd on the team with 4.0 sacks while collecting with 49 tackles (33 solo), 6 tackles for loss, 13 quarterback hits, 5 passes defensed, 2 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries and one touchdown…In the playoffs, he had 11 tackles (7 solo) and one quarterback hit.
Recorded one solo tackle in his NFL debut, vs. Dallas (9/26)…Recovered a fumble forced to accompany 4 tackles (2 solo) and a quarterback hit vs. Chicago (10/2).
Notched his first career sack, an 8-yarder of Lamar Jackson, on a game-clinching strip sack with 1:30 remaining, vs. Baltimore (10/16)…Sacked Taylor Heinicke with 1:28 remaining in overtime vs. Washington (12/4).
Named NFC Defensive Player of the Week after posting a career and team-high 12 tackles (9 solo), including 3 tackles for loss, and strip-sack of Heinicke, whose fumble he recovered and returned one yard for his first NFL touchdown, at Washington (12/18)...It was the Giants' first defensive touchdown since Nov. 7, 2021, when Xavier McKinney intercepted a pass vs. Las Vegas and returned it 41 yards for a touchdown...Thibodeaux scored his first touchdown since he played tight end in high school and his first ever defensive touchdown.
Made 5 tackles (4 solo) and sacked Nick Foles Indianapolis (1/1)…Did not play, along with numerous other starters, at Philadelphia (1/8).
Recorded 3 solo tackles and a quarterback hit of Kirk Cousins in the NFC Wild Card Game at Minnesota (1/15)…Added 8 tackles (4 solo) in the divisional round at Philadelphia (1/21).

COLLEGE:

Played in 32 games with 21 starts in 3 seasons at Oregon…Collected 123 tackles (82 solo), 35.5 tackles for loss, 19.0 sacks, 7 passes defensed and 3 forced fumble…In 3 Pac-12 Championship Games, combined for 13 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks and 21 quarterback pressures…His 19.0 sacks are tied for 7th in program history…Was the first Oregon defensive lineman to earn All-America honors since DeForest Buckner in 2015.
In 2021, played in 11 games with 9 starts…Missed 2+ games due to injury…Tallied a career-high 50 tackles (35 solo), 12 tackles for loss, 7.0 sacks and 2 forced fumbles…Became the 4th player in program history – and first defensive player – to be a unanimous All-America…Finalist for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and the Chuck Bednarik Award, each presented to the best defensive player in the nation...Voted a first-team All-Pac-12 selection by the league's coaches for the 2nd straight season…His 7.0 sacks led Oregon and tied for 3rd in the Pac-12.
In 2020, started all 7 games of a Ducks' season that was abbreviated by the pandemic…Led all Pac-12 defensive linemen with 38 tackles (23 solo) and had team-high totals of 9.5 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks…Selected first-team All-Pac-12 and 3rd-team All-America…Earned Pac-12 Championship Game MVP honors after posting 12 quarterback hurries, 2.0 tackles for loss, a 3rd-down sack in the 3rd quarter and a TFL on a 4th down play in the first quarter at USC (12/18).
As a freshman in 2019, played in 14 games with 5 starts…Selected by the league's coaches as the Pac-12 Freshman Defensive Player of the Year and all-conference honorable mention…Set the program freshman record with a team-high 9.0 sacks and also topped the team with 14.0 tackles for loss…Ranked 2nd among FBS freshman in sacks and 3rd in tackles for loss…Set the Pac-12 Championship Game record with 2.5 sacks, all in the 4th quarter, had 5 tackles and was the first player to block a punt in the championship game, vs. Utah (12/6).

OFF-THE-FIELD ACTIVITY:

Founded The Jream Foundation to educate, mentor, empower and instill confidence and wisdom into underprivileged youth…Donated $50,000 to Puppies Behind Bars through his jersey swap with Giants placekicker Graham Gano…Attended The Giants Foundation Golf Classic which raised over $400,000 for The Giants Foundation…Visited schools that participate in the New York City Police Foundation's Far Rockaway Giants youth program and led a flag football clinic with the police officers for the boys in the program…Assisted Eva's Village staff to prepare and serve meals for those in need for Thanksgiving…Met with members from the Wounded Warriors Project during their visit at the Quest Diagnostic Training Facility to watch practice and enjoy a day with the Giants…Partnered with Toys for Tots and the U.S. Marines to hand out 300 toys at School 55 in the Bronx…Represented The Jream Foundation during Week 13 of the NFL season for My Cause My Cleats.

PERSONAL:

Enrolled at Junipero Serra High School in San Mateo, Calif. as a freshman…Transferred to Susan Miller Dorsey High School in Los Angeles…As a sophomore, led Dorsey to an 11-3 record with 27.0 tackles for loss and 17.0 sacks and was named his section's Defensive Lineman of the Year…Near the end of his sophomore year, Thibodeaux and his mother, Shawnta Smith, moved to Woodland Hills in the San Fernando Valley, and he transferred again, to Oaks Christian, a private school in Westlake Village…Recorded 54.0 career sacks in 4 years, including at least 1.0 sack in 16 of 27 games as a junior and senior at Oaks Christian…Top-ranked player in the ESPN300…Named the USA Today High School Defensive Player of the Year, as well as first-team All-USA Defense…Played in the 2019 Under Armour All-American Game and was named a co-captain for Team Sanders…Named the Defensive Player of the Year in California by USA Today, while also being named first-team All-California by the paper…As a senior, selected Marmonte League Co-Player of the Year, All-CIF Southern Section Division 1, first-team Daily News all-area and a member of the Los Angeles Times All-Star Team…Recorded 54 tackles, 18.0 sacks and 5 forced fumbles…Had 6 multi-sack performances, including 3 games with 3.0 sacks.
As a junior, named the Los Angeles Daily News' Player of the Year, the Ventura County Star's Defensive Player of the Year…Selected the CIF Southern Section Division 2 co-Defensive Player of the Year and the Marmonte League co-MVP…Finished with 20.0 sacks, 28 tackles for loss, and 99 tackles…Had at least 4 tackles in every game and at least 3.0 sacks 6 times…Helped lead Oaks Christian to a CIF Southern Section Division 2 title, finishing with 4.0 sacks and 6 tackles in the title game vs. Valencia…Had 9 catches for 134 yards and 3 touchdowns as a tight end.
As a sophomore, named the CIF Los Angeles City Section Division I Defensive Lineman of the Year at Dorsey High…Recorded 17.0 sacks and 27 tackles for loss…Had 4 multi-sack games.