Kenny Clark (defensive tackle)

Kenneth Duane Clark Jr. (born October 4, 1995) is an American football nose tackle for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). Playing college football for the UCLA Bruins, he was named a third-team All-American as a junior in 2015, when he also earned his second all-conference selection in the Pac-12. He was selected by the Packers in the first round of the 2016 NFL draft, with the 27th overall pick.

Kenny Clark
Clark with the Packers in 2017
No. 97 – Green Bay Packers
Position:Nose tackle
Personal information
Born: (1995-10-04) October 4, 1995
San Bernardino, California
Height:6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:314 lb (142 kg)
Career information
High school:Carter (Rialto, California)
College:UCLA
NFL Draft:2016 / Round: 1 / Pick: 27
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2019
Total tackles:193
Sacks:16.5
Forced fumbles:4
Fumble recoveries:4
Pass deflections:7
Player stats at NFL.com

Early years

Clark attended Wilmer Amina Carter High School in Rialto, California. As a senior, he had 71 tackles and 11 sacks. He was rated by Rivals.com as a four-star recruit and committed to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) to play college football.[1] Clark also wrestled in high school.[2]

College career
Clark catching a touchdown pass for UCLA in 2015

Clark appeared in all 13 games as a true freshman at UCLA in 2013.[3] He started four games and had 31 tackles. As a sophomore in 2014, Clark was a second-team All-Pac-12 selection after starting all 13 games and making 58 tackles.[4][5][6] Already established as a strong run defender, he improved as a pass rusher as a junior after entering 2015 with just one career sack. He had a career-high three sacks against Washington State.[7] He was named third-team All-American by the Associated Press and was the lone Bruin named first-team All-Pac-12.[8][9] Clark had a career-high 11 tackles in the Foster Farms Bowl against Nebraska, and ranked second on the team with 75 tackles and six sacks. After the season, he decided to forgo his senior year and enter the 2016 NFL draft.[10]

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand size 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press Wonderlic
6 ft 2 5⁄8 in
(1.90 m)		 314 lb
(142 kg)		 32 1⁄8 in
(0.82 m)		 10 1⁄2 in
(0.27 m)		 5.06 s 1.72 s 2.90 s 4.62 s 28.5 in
(0.72 m)		 8 ft 6 in
(2.59 m)		 29 reps 16[11]
All values are from NFL Combine[12][13]

Clark was selected in the first round (27th overall) by the Green Bay Packers in the 2016 NFL Draft.[14]

On July 17, 2016, the Green Bay Packers signed Clark to a four-year, $9.36 million contract with $7.18 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $5.00 million.[15][16]

He began his rookie season as a starting defensive tackle alongside veteran Mike Daniels. He was also named a backup and rotational defensive end in the Packers' 3–4 defense.[17]

Clark made his professional debut in the Packers' season opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars and made one assisted tackle in the 23–27 victory. On September 25, 2016, he made his first career start against the Detroit Lions and racked up a total of four tackles in the Packer's win. In Week 14, Clark made four combined tackles during a 38–10 victory against the Seattle Seahawks.[18] As a rookie in 2016, Clark finished with 21 tackles and two passes defended in 16 games.

In Week 13 of the 2017 season, Clark recorded 1.5 sacks, his first of his NFL career and 6 combined tackles in a 26–20 OT win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He finished the season with 4.5 sacks and 55 tackles.

Clark had a breakout season in 2018, recording 55 tackles, three passes defensed, and six sacks, and was named a Pro Bowl alternate. He suffered an elbow injury in Week 14 and was placed on injured reserve on December 25, 2018.[19]

On April 22, 2019, the Packers picked up the fifth-year option on Clark's contract.[20]

NFL career statistics

Regular season
SeasonTeamGPGSTotalSoloAstSckFFFRPD
2016GB 162211380.0022
2017GB 15155532234.5201
2018GB 13135536196.0123
2019GB 16166231316.0101
Total 60461931128116.5447
Source: NFL.com

Postseason
SeasonTeamGamesTackles
GPGSTotalSoloAstSckInt
2016GB 306510.00
2019GB 226511.00
Total52121021.00
Source: pro-football-reference.com

References
  1. "Rivals".
  2. "High School Wrestling: UCLA football commit Kenny Clark competing in state meet". Archived from the original on May 2, 2016. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  3. "UCLA football notes: Kenny Clark growing into anchor for Bruins' defensive line".
  4. KYLE GLASER (September 1, 2015). "UCLA: Rialto Carter's Clark a defensive force up front". Press Enterprise.
  5. "UCLA DT Kenny Clark stands tall among Pac-12's best players". ESPN.
  6. 18 Bruins Named to Football All-Conference Teams Archived December 8, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, UCLABruins.com, December 2, 2014
  7. Terrill, Mark J. (November 18, 2015). "UCLA nose tackle Kenny Clark expands his repertoire". The Orange County Register. Archived from the original on November 21, 2015.
  8. Haney, Travis (December 13, 2015). "Heisman winner Henry leads selections for Associated Press All-America Team". ESPN. Archived from the original on December 14, 2015.
  9. Kaufman, Joey (December 1, 2015). "UCLA DT Kenny Clark on All-Pac-12 first team; eight Bruins on second team". Orange County Register. Archived from the original on December 2, 2015.
  10. Wang, Jack (December 28, 2015). "UCLA nose tackle Kenny Clark declares for NFL draft". Los Angeles Daily News. Archived from the original on January 5, 2016.
  11. "Green Bay Packers' picks in the 2016 NFL draft". JSOnline.com. April 30, 2016. Archived from the original on April 21, 2018. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  12. "NFL Events: Combine Player Profiles – Kenny Clark". National Football League. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  13. "Kenny Clark – UCLA, DT : 2016 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". NFLDraftScout.com. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  14. "Kenny Clark NFL Draft Profile". National Football League. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  15. "Sportrac.com: Kenny Clark contract". sportrac.com. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  16. "Packers sign first-round draft pick Kenny Clark". Packers.com. July 17, 2016. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  17. "Ourlads.com: Green Bay Packer's Depth Chart". ourlads.com. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  18. "NFL Player Profile: Kenny Clark". National Football League. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  19. Alper, Josh (December 25, 2018). "Packers put Kenny Clark on injured reserve". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports.
  20. "Packers plan to pick up Kenny Clark's fifth-year option". Acme Packing Company. April 22, 2019.
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