Jabaal Sheard

Jabaal Lamar Sheard (born May 10, 1989) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Pittsburgh, and was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the second round of the 2011 NFL draft. He also played for the New England Patriots, with whom he won Super Bowl LI.

Early life Sheard was an All-Broward County defensive lineman who had 54 tackles and 11 sacks as a senior at Hollywood Hills, a Florida 5A (second largest classification) school. He was rated as the nation's No. 23 weakside defensive end and was one of the top 60 prospects in the state of Florida according to Rivals.com. He was a PrepStar All-Southeast Region.He was rated one of the top 100 prospects in Florida by SuperPrep. He was rated one of the top 75 prospects in the southeast region by Scout.com.

Sheard was also a track and field letterman. In 2007, he placed fourth in the shot put at the FHSAA Outdoor State Championships with a throw of 16.20 meters (53-0). He also earned All-Broward County honors in the discus. He was timed at 4.6 in the 40-yard dash at the Nike combine prior to his senior season.

College career Sheard was described as someone who didn't get enough credit on the Pittsburgh defensive line He had four tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack, one pass breakup and four quarterback hurries in the game, as he "simply overwhelmed right tackle Sam Young off the edge with his speed". Commentator Wes Bunting describes Sheard, a 6–4, 260-pound lineman, as being balanced and exhibiting impressive body control, "an explosive first step", and "keeping his pad level down and making himself small when turning the corner". The Panthers lead the country in sacks.

Sheard was suspended from the Pitt Football team indefinitely after his July 18, 2010 arrest on charges stemming from an off-campus brawl that occurred on East Carson Street in Pittsburgh. He was restored to the team after charges were reduced to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct, and paid restitution for injuries and damages incurred during the fight.

Sheard earned first-team American Football Coaches Association All-American honors in 2010 and was named as one of six finalists for the Ted Hendricks Award for the years best defensive end.

Professional career

Cleveland Browns Sheard was selected with the 37th overall pick in the second round of the 2011 NFL draft by the Cleveland Browns.

In 2011, Sheard started all 16 games for the Browns and led the team in sacks (8.5) and forced fumbles (5). Sheard and teammate Phil Taylor were chosen to the Pro Football Weekly 2011 All-Rookie Team. Sheard recorded his first career sack and forced fumble against the Indianapolis Colts in week 2 and recorded a career-high 2 sacks against the Arizona Cardinals in week 15.

In 2012, Sheard started all 16 games for the Browns, recording 7.0 sacks and 36 tackles to cap a productive year.

Limited by injury, Sheard started 13 games in 2013. He recorded 5.5 sacks and 19 tackles.

Sheard improved in 2014 under a new coaching staff led by head coach Mike Pettine. During the 2014 season, he started all 16 games and ended the year on a solid note with 44 combined tackles (25 solo, 19 assisted) and 2 sacks.

New England Patriots As a free agent, Sheard signed a two-year, $11 million contract with the New England Patriots on March 11, 2015. He made an immediate impact on the Patriots' defense, collecting four sacks in his first four games. He finished the season with 37 tackles, 8 sacks, and two passes defensed.

After Chandler Jones was traded to the Arizona Cardinals during the offseason, Sheard was expected to fill his starting role on the defensive line. In Week 3, he sacked Brock Osweiler twice in a 27-0 shutout win against the Texans. On February 5, 2017, Sheard was part of the Patriots team that won Super Bowl LI. In the game, he recorded two tackles and 0.5 sacks as the Patriots defeated the Atlanta Falcons by a score of 34–28 in overtime. The Patriots trailed 28–3 in the third quarter and rallied back to win the game, which featured the first overtime game in Super Bowl history.

Indianapolis Colts On March 10, 2017, Sheard signed a three-year, $25.5 million deal with the Indianapolis Colts. Sheard was switched to an OLB due to the Colts' 3-4 scheme. He again made an immediate impact on the Colts' defense, collecting 5.5 sacks and 52 tackles over the course of the 2017 season.

After the 2017 season, the Colts fired Chuck Pagano and hired Frank Reich. The Colts then returned to a 4-3 defense and Sheard was moved back to defensive end.

Jacksonville Jaguars On October 12, 2020, Sheard was signed to the Jacksonville Jaguars' practice squad. He was elevated to the active roster on October 17 for the team's week 6 game against the Detroit Lions, and reverted to the practice squad after the game.

New York Giants On October 20, 2020, Sheard was signed by the New York Giants off the Jaguars practice squad. In Week 12 against the Cincinnati Bengals, Sheard secured a 19–17 Giants victory by stripping Bengals backup quarterback Brandon Allen on the 50 yard line late in the fourth quarter, very close to field-goal range for kicker Randy Bullock.

Miami Dolphins On September 1, 2021, Sheard was signed to the Miami Dolphins practice squad. He was released on November 16.

NFL statistics Year Team 2011 CLE 16 55 40 15 8.5 5 1 5 0 0 0 0 0 2 2012 CLE 16 55 38 17 7.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 2013 CLE 13 36 19 17 5.5 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 2014 CLE 16 44 25 19 2.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 2015 NE 13 37 28 9 8.0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2016 NE 15 33 20 13 5.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 2017 IND 16 52 37 15 5.5 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 2018 IND 16 50 27 13 5.5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 2019 IND 13 25 20 5 4.5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2020 JAXNYG 10 19 10 9 1.5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1Career 144 406 274 132 53.0 14 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 28