Deon King

Deon King
No. 50 Indianapolis Colts
Position: Linebacker
Personal information
Date of birth: (1993-07-02) July 2, 1993
Place of birth: Reston, Virginia
Height: 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight: 225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
High school: South Lakes High School
College: Norfolk State
Undrafted: 2016
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status: Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Tackles: 0
Sacks: 0.0
Interceptions: 0
Forced fumbles: 0
Player stats at NFL.com

Deon King (born July 2, 1993) is an American football linebacker for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Norfolk State.

Early years

King attended South Lakes High School in Reston, Virginia, where he was a member of both the football and track & field teams.[1]

College career

Freshman year

In 2012, King transferred from Fork Union Military Academy to Norfolk State. Joining the Spartans as a true freshman, he played in all 11 games that season as an outside linebacker and special teams.[2] In his debut game against in-state rival Virginia State, King put up a season high 5 tackles, with 3 of them being for loss and 2 sacks. Of those 2 sacks, one was on the final play of the game giving Norfolk State their first shutout since 2001.[3] In the 2012 season finale against conference member Morgan State, King earned 2 tackles and his career first interception, which he returned for 15 yards for a touchdown. His performance during the game earned him MEAC Rookie of the Week honors and topped off his freshman season with 19 tackles, with 12 of them being solo efforts.[1][4]

Sophomore year

In the 2013 season opener against Maine, King had five tackles, one of them a quarterback sack. The following week against Rutgers he earned 9.5 sacks against the scarlet knights. For the next 5 games, King would make at least 8 tackles.[2] During the annual meeting between rival Hampton, King would make a season high 13 tackles, with 10 of them being solo efforts.[5] King ended the season earning All-MEAC second team honors and spots on both Norfolk’s Athletics Director’s Honor Roll and the MEAC Commissioner’s All-Academic Team.[2] He also ranked second in the conference for both tackles for loss and sacks, with 18.5 tackles and 9.5 sacks. King’s performance also gained national recognition by ranking 8th in FCS in tackles for loss per game with an average of 1.5 and 16th in sacks with an average of 0.79 per game. Kings sacking average would tie him for the third-most in a single season since the program’s transition to Division-I in 1997.[2]

Junior year

During his junior season, King started as an outside linebacker for all 12 of the Spartan’s games that season. During the season opener against Maine, King would make 9 tackles and 1 sack. King would also have a strong showing against Morgan State where he earned 7 tackles, 3 quarterback hurries, broke up 1 pass and forced 1 fumble.[2] In the annual rivalry game against Hampton, King was able to rack up 15 stops helping the Spartans earn a victory. King would prove to be an asset to the Spartans in their meeting with Florida A&M as he completed eight tackles, forced a fumble, and recovered a fumble.[2] The following week, against Bethune-Cookman, King earned a season-high 19 tackles, 1 interception, and forced a fourth-quarter fumble, which the Spartans were able to recover.[6] King’s performance during the game tied him at the top of the MEAC for the most tackles during the season. In the season finale against South Carolina State, King would set a career high 9 tackles, one of them a sack. King’s season would end with a total 106 tackles, with 46 of them being solo efforts and 60 assists. King also received national recognition when he ranked in the top 50 in fumble recoveries, tackles for loss, total tackles, and sacks.[2] He was also named the team’s Defensive MVP and awarded a spot on the 2014 MEAC first team.[7]

Senior year

In King’s senior season, he was named to the preseason All-MEAC first team and opened the season with 12 tackles and 1 pass breakup against Rutgers.[2][8] In the following weeks, against FBS opponents Old Dominion and Marshall, King would have back to back 21 tackle games.[2] He followed up that performance the following week with a total 10 tackles half a tackle for loss and 1 interception in a victory against Hampton at the Battle of the Bay rivalry game.[9] His performance during that game would earn him his first MEAC Defensive Player of the Week award.[2] Later in the season King posted 15 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss against North Carolina A&T; 15 tackles against Bethune-Cookman and 14 tackles, with 9 solos, against North Carolina Central.[2] The following weeks, against Savannah State and South Carolina State, King would earn back to back MEAC Defensive Player of the Week honors for his performance. King posted 17 tackles and one tackle for loss against Savannah State and 18 tackles; including 12 solo efforts, 3 Tackles for loss and 2 sacks against SC State.[2] King also earned other postseason honors such as being named a Boxtorow HBCU All American;[10] STATS, AP FCS All-American;[11][12] AFCA and SBN Sports Black College All-American.[13][14] King was also awarded the Buck Buchanan Award as the top defensive player in FCS for 2015.[15]

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

King was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2016.[16] On September 3, 2016, he was released by the Cowboys as part of final roster cuts and was signed to the practice squad the next day, then released three days later on September 6, 2016.

San Diego Chargers

On October 4, 2016, King was signed to the San Diego Chargers' practice squad.[17] He was promoted to the active roster on November 5, 2016.[18] He was released on November 14, 2016.

Indianapolis Colts

King was claimed off waivers by the Colts on November 15, 2016.[19]

References

  1. 1 2 "Deon King Bio". nsuspartans.com. NSU Athletics. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "Deon King Bio". nsuspartans.com. Norfolk State University Athletics. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  3. ↑ Michalec, Matt. "Spartans Post 1st Shutout Since 2001, 24-0 over Virginia State". nsuspartans.com. NSU Sports Information. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
  4. ↑ Matt, Michalec. "Lambert, King Garner Weekly MEAC Football Honors". nsuspartans.com. NSU Sports Information. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
  5. ↑ Michalec, Matt. "Hampton Pulls Away Late for 27-17 Win over NSU in State Farm Battle of the Bay". nsuspartans.com. Norfolk State University Athletics. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  6. ↑ Michalec, Matt. "Wildcats Rally Past NSU 13-7 in 1st-Place Showdown". nsuspartans.com. NSU Athletics. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  7. ↑ "Deon King". STATS FCS Football. Stats FCS. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
  8. ↑ "MEAC Announces 2015 Preseason All-MEAC Awards". Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. MEACMedia Relations. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  9. ↑ Michalec, Matt. "Strong Second-Half Surge Lifts NSU over Hampton, 24-14". nsuspartans.com. NSU Athletics. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  10. ↑ "NSU linebacker King receives national honor". The Virginian-Pilot. 9 Dec 2015. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  11. ↑ Michalec, Matt. "King Selected to STATS, AP FCS All-America 1st Teams". nsuspartans.com. NSU Athletics. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  12. ↑ Hall, David (16 Dec 2015). "NSU linebacker Deon King named to AP team". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  13. ↑ Hall, David (21 Dec 2015). "Linebacker King is Norfolk State's 1st consensus FCS All-American". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  14. ↑ "King Named to 2nd HBCU All-America Team". nsuspartans.com. NSU Sports Information. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  15. ↑ Hall, David (22 Dec 2015). "Norfolk State's King wins Buchanan Award". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  16. ↑ Hall, David (1 May 2016). "Norfolk State's Deon King agrees to deal with Dallas Cowboys". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved 2 September 2016.
  17. ↑ Henne, Ricky (October 4, 2016). "Bolts Add Trio to Practice Squad". Chargers.com.
  18. ↑ Henne, Ricky (November 5, 2016). "Chargers Make Four Roster Moves; Place Dexter McCluster on NFL-I List". Chargers.com.
  19. ↑ "Indianapolis Colts Make Roster Moves". Blogs.Colts.com. November 15, 2016.
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