Chris Covington
Chris Covington (born January 3, 1996) is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the sixth round of the 2018 NFL Draft. He played college football at Indiana University.
Free agent | |||||||||||||
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Position: | Linebacker | ||||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||||
Born: | Chicago, Illinois | January 3, 1996||||||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||
Weight: | 245 lb (111 kg) | ||||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||||
High school: | Al Raby (Chicago, Illinois) | ||||||||||||
College: | Indiana | ||||||||||||
NFL Draft: | 2018 / Round: 6 / Pick: 193 | ||||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||||
Career NFL statistics as of 2019 | |||||||||||||
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Player stats at PFR |
Early years
Covington attended Al Raby High School, where he played as a quarterback and defensive back. As a senior, he posted 1,993 passing yards, 26 passing touchdowns, 657 rushing yards, 13 rushing touchdowns, 6 tackles for loss, 3 interceptions, one forced fumble, while receiving All-city and All-conference honors.[1]
College career
He accepted a football scholarship from Indiana University to be a defensive player. As a freshman, he was tried at linebacker and defensive back. After Tre Roberson and Cam Coffman announced they would be transferring to other schools, Covington was moved to be the backup quarterback behind Nate Sudfeld. He appeared in four of the first five games and was used mostly in the Wildcat formation. In the sixth game against the University of Iowa, he saw extensive action after Sudfeld was injured with a separated left shoulder in the second quarter, registering 3 out of 12 completions for 31 yards, 11 carries for 41 yards,[2] but suffered a season-ending torn ACL during the contest.[3] He finished with 3-of-12 completions for 31 yards and ran 11 times for 41 yards.
As a sophomore, he was moved to linebacker during spring practice. He appeared in the last 8 contests of the season and tallied 4 tackles (all against Penn State University).
As junior, he played in all 13 games (one start) backing up Marcus Oliver. He posted 29 tackles (19 solo), 2 sacks, one quarterback pressure, 3 tackles for loss, and one forced fumble. He earned his first career start in the eleventh game against the University of Michigan, making 6 tackles, one sack, and one forced fumble.[4]
As a senior, he started all 12 games at middle linebacker, replacing the recently graduated Oliver. He registered 85 tackles (third on the team), 50 solo tackles (third on the team), 12 tackles for loss (second on the team), 3 sacks, 5 quarterback hurries (second on the team), 5 passes defensed (third on the team), and one fumble recovery. He was named the team's Defensive Player of the Year. He finished his college career with 118 tackles, 70 solo tackles, 5 sacks, and 15 tackles for loss.
Professional career
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 | |
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6 ft 2 1⁄4 in (1.89 m) |
245 lb (111 kg) |
32 1⁄2 in (0.83 m) |
9 1⁄4 in (0.23 m) |
4.78 s | 1.63 s | 2.76 s | 4.39 s | 7.02 s | 33 1⁄2 in (0.85 m) |
9 ft 8 in (2.95 m) |
23 reps | |
All values from Pro Day except 40-yd dash and BP |
Covington was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the sixth round (193rd overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft.[5] As a rookie, he was a backup linebacker and was declared inactive in 11 games. He appeared in five games, playing mostly on special teams, and had one assisted tackle
On August 31, 2019, Covington was waived by the Cowboys and re-signed to the practice squad.[6][7] He was promoted to the active roster on September 10, only to be waived four days later and re-signed back to the practice squad.[8] He was promoted to the active roster on December 14.[9] He appeared in 3 games.
Covington was released by the Cowboys on April 30, 2020.[10]
References
- "How Chicago's Chris Covington Reached Indiana University From The West Side". Archived from the original on April 29, 2018. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
- "With Nate Sudfeld out, IU turns to Chris Covington". Retrieved April 28, 2020.
- "The Covington Report: Torn ACL". Retrieved April 28, 2020.
- "IU's Chris Covington aims to fill big gap left by Marcus Oliver". Retrieved April 28, 2020.
- "The Dallas Cowboys select Chris Covington with the 193rd pick in the 2018 NFL draft". BloggingTheBoys.com. April 28, 2018. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
- Helman, David (August 31, 2019). "Several Young Draft Picks Among Cowboys' Cuts". DallasCowboys.com. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
- Phillips, Rob (September 2, 2019). "Initial Practice Squad Includes New QB, TE, WR". DallasCowboys.com. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
- "Cowboys roster move: Dallas waiving running back Jordan Chunn, calling up Chris Covington". Blogging the Boys. SB Nation. September 10, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
- "Cowboys roster move: LB Chris Covington promoted to 53-man roster with Sean Lee questionable for Rams". Blogging the Boys. SB Nation. December 14, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
- "April 30 Updates". DallasCowboys.com. April 30, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2020.