Jeff Gladney
Jeff Gladney (born December 12, 1996) is an American football cornerback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at TCU.
| No. 20 – Minnesota Vikings | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Cornerback | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born: | December 12, 1996 New Boston, Texas | ||||||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight: | 191 lb (87 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school: | New Boston (New Boston, Texas) | ||||||||||||
| College: | TCU | ||||||||||||
| NFL Draft: | 2020 / Round: 1 / Pick: 31 | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2020 | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
High school career
Playing at New Boston High School in New Boston, Texas, Gladney was a three-star recruit[1] and signed with Texas Christian University on February 5, 2015[2] after originally committing to the program on June 6, 2014.[3] Gladney chose TCU over offers from North Texas, Northern Illinois, Rice, Texas State, Tulsa and UTSA.[3]
College career
Gladney redshirted his freshman year due to a torn ACL sustained during his senior year in high school,[4] but then was a four-year starter at Texas Christian University.[5] During his junior season, Gladney made waves as a cover corner, earning first team all-Big 12 Conference by Pro Football Focus and second team all-Big 12 by the coaches.[6] He injured a meniscus before his senior season but played the whole year, waiting for surgery until after the conclusion of the season.[7] Over his TCU career, he recorded five interceptions and was named to the 2020 Senior Bowl roster after his senior season[8] as well as garnering first team all-Big 12 honors by the Associated Press.[9]
NFL draft evaluators praised Gladney for his physical style of play.[10]
Professional career
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand size | 40-yard dash | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 10 1⁄4 in (1.78 m) |
191 lb (87 kg) |
31 7⁄8 in (0.81 m) |
9 in (0.23 m) | 4.48 s | 7.26 s | 37.5 in (0.95 m) | 10 ft 4 in (3.15 m) | 17 reps | ||||
| All values from NFL Combine[11] | ||||||||||||
Gladney was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round with the 31st overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.[12]
2020 season
Heading into his first training camp, Gladney was competing for a starting job against Mike Hughes, Holton Hill, and fellow rookie Cameron Dantzler. Gladney was named the fourth cornerback behind Dantzler, Hughes, and Hill to begin the season.
In Week 6 against the Atlanta Falcons, Gladney forced his first fumble on running back Brian Hill which was recovered by the Vikings during the 40–23 loss.[13]
References
- "Jeff Gladney, New Boston, Athlete". 247Sports. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
- Richert, Josh (February 5, 2015). "On The Dotted Line". Texarkana Gazette. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
- Graham, Mike. "New Boston's Jeff Gladney commits to TCU". ETSN. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
- Brugler, Dane (April 7, 2020). The Athletic's 2020 NFL Draft Guide (PDF). The Athletic. p. 197. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
- Tuls, Jonah (December 6, 2019). "Tuls' Takes: Jeff Gladney is Top-Tier CB Prospect". The Draft Network. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
- Triebwasser, Melissa (June 14, 2019). "TCU Football's Jalen Reagor, Jeff Gladney named preseason All-Americans". Frogs O War. SB Nation. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
- Krammer, Andrew (September 12, 2020). "Vikings rookie cornerback Jeff Gladney keeps reaching his goals". Star-Tribune. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
- Shipley, John. "Senior Bowl Preview: Which CBs in Mobile Should the Jaguars Be Interested In?". JaguarMaven. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
- Davison, Drew (December 13, 2019). "TCU football lands four players on the AP All-Big 12 first team". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
- Brugler, Dane (January 14, 2020). "2020 NFL Mock Draft 2.0: Patriots and five other teams land a quarterback in two-round projection". The Athletic. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
- "Jeff Gladney Combine Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
- White, R.J. (April 23, 2020). "2020 NFL Draft grades: Vikings get a 'B' for selecting Jeff Gladney at No. 31 overall". CBS Sports. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
- "Atlanta Falcons at Minnesota Vikings – October 18th, 2020 | Pro-Football-Reference.com". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2020-10-22.