Clelin Ferrell (born May 17, 1997) is an American professional football defensive end for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Clemson Tigers, winning the 2018 Ted Hendricks Award prior to being selected fourth overall by the Las Vegas Raiders in the 2019 NFL draft. Ferrell has also played for the San Francisco 49ers, making with the team.

Clelin Ferrell
refer to caption
Ferrell with the Washington Commanders in 2024
No. 99 – Washington Commanders
Position:Defensive end
Personal information
Born: (1997-05-17) May 17, 1997 (age 27)
Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:265 lb (120 kg)
Career information
High school:Benedictine (Richmond)
College:Clemson (2015–2018)
NFL draft:2019 / round: 1 / pick: 4
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 14, 2024
Tackles:153
Sacks:16
Forced fumbles:3
Fumble recoveries:2
Pass deflections:12
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

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Ferrell was born on May 17, 1997, in Richmond, Virginia. Clelin attended Benedictine College Preparatory, a private military academy in Richmond.[1] Clelin committed to play college football at Clemson nearly three months before he tore his ACL, which caused him to miss his senior football season.[1][2]

College career

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At Clemson, Ferrell suffered a hand injury that forced him to redshirt the 2015 season.[3] Returning the following season, he was named co-defensive rookie of the year award with Dexter Lawrence after recording 50 tackles, 12.5 for loss, and six sacks. Ferrell was named first-team All-American in 2017 and won the Ted Hendricks Award and ACC Defensive Player of the Year in 2018 after recording 53 tackles, 11.5 sacks, four pass breakups, and three forced fumbles.[4][5][6] He led the ACC in sacks and tackles for loss in the 2018 season.[7] He declared for the 2019 NFL draft following the season.[8]

College statistics
Year GP Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
Solo Ast Total Loss Sack Int Yds Avg TD PD FR Yds TD FF
2015 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2016 14 21 23 44 12.5 6 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
2017 14 33 33 66 18 9.5 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2
2018 15 29 26 55 20 11.5 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 1 3
Career 44 84 82 166 50.5 27 0 0 0 0 5 1 0 1 5

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Broad jump Bench press Wonderlic
6 ft 4+38 in
(1.94 m)
264 lb
(120 kg)
34+18 in
(0.87 m)
10+12 in
(0.27 m)
4.40 s 7.26 s 9 ft 6 in
(2.90 m)
25 reps 21[9]
All values are from NFL Scouting Combine[10][11]

Oakland / Las Vegas Raiders

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Ferrell signing an autograph at the Oakland Raiders training camp in 2019

Ferrell was selected by the Oakland Raiders fourth overall in the 2019 NFL draft.[12] This selection was met with widespread criticism as Ferrell was widely regarded as a late first round or early second round pick, while several other defensive linemen more highly-rated than Ferrell like Josh Allen and Ed Oliver were available.[13] On June 18, 2019, Ferrell signed his four-year rookie contract, worth a fully guaranteed $31.2 million, including a $20.8 million signing bonus.[14] Ferrell made his NFL debut in Week 1 against the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football. In the game, Ferrell made three tackles and recorded his first sack on Joe Flacco in the 24–16 win.[15] In Week 10 against the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday Night Football, Ferrell recorded 8 tackles and sacked Philip Rivers 2.5 times in the 26–24 win.[16]

Ferrell was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the Raiders on November 17, 2020,[17] and activated on November 26.[18] In Week 13 against the New York Jets, he recorded two strip sacks on Sam Darnold that were recovered by the Raiders during the 31–28 win.[19] On December 30, 2020, Ferrell was placed on injured reserve.[20] He finished the season with 27 tackles, two sacks, and two forced fumbles through 11 games.[21]

On April 29, 2022, the Raiders announced that they would not pick up the fifth-year option on Ferrell's contract, making him a free agent in the 2023 offseason.[22] Ferrell recorded half sacks in a Week 7, 38–20 win against the Houston Texans[23] and a Week 13, 27–20 win against the Chargers.[24] He recorded his final sack as a Raider during a Week 18, 31–13 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.[25]

San Francisco 49ers

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On March 16, 2023, Ferrell signed a one-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers.[26]

Ferrell recorded his first forced fumble as a 49er in a Week 8, 31–17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, during which he also recorded his first half sack for the team.[27] The following week he recorded his first full sack in a 34–3 victory against the Jacksonville Jaguars.[28] He recorded another sack in a Week 14, 28–16 victory over the Seattle Seahawks.[29] In the 2023 season, he started in all 17 regular season games. He finished with 3.5 sacks, 28 total tackles (15 solo), one pass defended, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.[30]

Washington Commanders

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On March 18, 2024, Ferrell signed with the Washington Commanders.[31]

Statistics

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Legend
Bold Career high

Regular season

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Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast TfL Sck Sfty Int Yds Lng TD PD FF FR Yds TD
2019 OAK 15 15 38 24 14 8 4.5 0 0 0 0 0 5 0 1 0 0
2020 LV 11 11 27 18 9 3 2.0 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 0 0 0
2021 LV 16 0 14 8 6 1 1.5 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
2022 LV 16 4 26 8 18 3 2.0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
2023 SF 17 17 28 15 13 6 3.5 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0
Career 75 47 133 73 60 21 13.5 0 0 0 0 0 12 3 2 0 0

Postseason

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Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast TfL Sck Sfty Int Yds Lng TD PD FF FR Yds TD
2021 LV 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Career 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Personal life

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Both of Ferrell's parents served in the U.S. military.[1] He has four brothers and four sisters, all at least 10 years older than him.[1] Ferrell's father Cleavester died from cancer in March 2012.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Brenner, Aaron (September 7, 2016). "Clelin Ferrell's tough-love journey from military school to Clemson starter". Post and Courier. Archived from the original on September 4, 2020. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
  2. ^ Rapp, Timothy (June 4, 2014). "Clelin Ferrell to Clemson: Tigers Land 4-Star DE Prospect". Bleacher Report. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  3. ^ Crouse, Karen (January 1, 2017). "After Waiting His Turn, Clemson Defensive End Clelin Ferrell Pounces". The New York Times. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
  4. ^ "Ted Hendricks Award Winners". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
  5. ^ "ACC Defensive Player of the Year Winners". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
  6. ^ "NFL Draft & Combine Profile - Clelin Ferrell". NFL.com. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
  7. ^ "2018 Atlantic Coast Conference Leaders". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
  8. ^ Crawford, Brad (January 11, 2019). "Clemson pass rusher Clelin Ferrell declares for 2019 NFL Draft". 247 Sports. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
  9. ^ Hladik, Matt (May 26, 2024). "The Wonderlic Scores For NFL Draft's Top Prospects Have Leaked". The Spun. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
  10. ^ "Clelin Ferrell Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
  11. ^ "2019 Draft Scout Clelin Ferrell, Clemson NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved November 10, 2022.
  12. ^ Wesseling, Chris (April 25, 2019). "Oakland Raiders select Clelin Ferrell at No. 4 overall". NFL.com. Retrieved April 26, 2019.
  13. ^ Johnson, Dalton (April 26, 2019). "NFL Draft 2019: Clelin Ferrell to Raiders at No. 4 pick shocks Twitter". NBC Sports Bay Area & California. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
  14. ^ Bair, Scott (June 18, 2019). "Raiders, No. 4 overall pick Clelin Ferrell agree to four-year contract". NBC Sports Bay Area & California. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
  15. ^ "Raiders beat Broncos 24–16 in 1st game after Brown's release". ESPN. Associated Press. September 9, 2019. Retrieved September 9, 2019.
  16. ^ "Raiders rally to beat Chargers 26-24". ESPN. Associated Press. November 7, 2019. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  17. ^ Alper, Josh (November 17, 2020). "Raiders put Clelin Ferrell, Lamarcus Joyner on COVID-19 list". NBCSports.com. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  18. ^ Damien, Levi (November 26, 2020). "Raiders activate DE Clelin Ferrell from reserve/COVID-19 list". USAToday.com. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  19. ^ "Las Vegas Raiders at New York Jets - December 6th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  20. ^ "Clelin Ferrell ruled out for season finale vs. Broncos". Raiders.com. December 30, 2020. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  21. ^ "Clelin Ferrell 2020 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
  22. ^ Gordon, Grant (April 29, 2022). "Raiders decline fifth-year options for DE Clelin Ferrell, RB Josh Jacobs, DB Johnathan Abram". NFL.com. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  23. ^ "Josh Jacobs rushes for 3 TDs, Raiders beat Texans 38-20". ESPN.com. Associated Press. October 24, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  24. ^ "Carr-Adams connection rallies Raiders past Chargers 27-20". ESPN.com. Associated Press. December 5, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  25. ^ Kopp, Ron (January 7, 2023). "Final score: Chiefs handle Raiders 31-13, earn top seed in AFC playoffs". ArrowheadPride.com. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  26. ^ "49ers Sign DL Clelin Ferrell to a One-Year Deal". 49ers.com. March 16, 2023. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
  27. ^ "Burrow throws 3 TD passes to lead the Bengals past the 49ers 31-17". ESPN.com. Associated Press. October 30, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  28. ^ "49ers dominate Jaguars 34-3 to end 3-game skid and look like Super Bowl contendors again". ESPN.com. Associated Press. November 12, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  29. ^ "Samuel scores 2 TDs, Purdy throws for career-best 368 yards as 49ers beat Seahawks 28-16". ESPN.com. Associated Press. December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  30. ^ "Clelin Ferrell 2023 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
  31. ^ "Commanders sign DE Clelin Ferrell". Commanders.com. March 18, 2024. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
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