Kayvon Thibodeaux

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

TRANSACTIONS:

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

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:

• 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, had a combined 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 and the first to lead the Ducks in sacks and tackles for loss in back-to-back seasons since Kenny Rowe (2009-10).
• In 2021, played in 11 games with 9 starts… Missed 2+ games due to injury, played limited snaps in his return vs. Arizona, and missed the first half vs. California due to a targeting penalty from the previous game…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, both given 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.
• Opened the season with 1.0 sack and a forced fumble in the first half vs. Fresno State (9/4)…Suffered an ankle injury that forced him to miss the next 2 games and play limited snaps in a 3rd…Finished with 5 tackles, 1.0 sack and 10 quarterback pressures vs. California (10/15), despite playing only the first half after getting a targeting penalty in the previous game…Named the Bronko Nagurski, Bednarik Award, Lott IMPACT Trophy, and Pro Football Focus National Defensive Player of the Week as well as the Pac-12 Defensive Player and Defensive Lineman of the Week at UCLA (10/23), where he set career highs with 9 tackles (8 solo) and 4.5 tackles for loss while recording 2.0 sacks and one forced fumble…One of 2 FBS players in 2021 with at least 4 TFLs, 2.0 sacks, and one forced fumble in a game…Swept the Pac-12 Defensive Player and Defensive Lineman of the Week awards for the 2nd time in 2021 after notching 6 solo tackles and 2.0 sacks, his 2nd multi-sack game of the season, vs. Washington State (11/13)…Finished with 3 tackles and 1.0 sack vs. Utah (12/3), giving him 4.5 in 3 Pac-12 Championship Games.
• 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…Had a TFL in each of the final 6 games and a sack in 3 consecutive games…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 second among FBS freshman in sacks and 3rd in tackles for loss…Led the nation with 7.0 sacks in the 4th quarter…Made 35 tackles (24 solo), 3 pass breakups and one forced fumble eight games… Recorded the first multi-sack game of his career, forced one fumble and was named Pac-12 Defensive Lineman of the Week vs. California (10/5)… Returned home to L.A. with 1.5 tackles for loss and 1.0 sack at USC (11/2)…Tallied a season-high 3.0 tackles for loss, highlighted by a pair of fourth-quarter sacks, vs. Arizona (11/16)…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).

PERSONAL:

• Enrolled at Junipero Serra High School as a freshman…Transferred toward the end of the season to Susan Miller Dorsey High and joined the varsity football team for the 2015 playoffs…As a sophomore, he 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 four 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…Consensus five-star prospect and No. 1 rated recruit from California by ESPN, Rivals and 247Sports…Played in the 2019 Under Armour All-American Game and was named a co-captain for Team Sanders…Also invited to the inaugural Pro Football Hall of Fame World Bowl…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.