Shamar Stephen

Shamar Irvin Stephen ( ; born February 25, 1991) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UConn Huskies. He was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round of the 2014 NFL draft. He also played for the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos.

Early life Stephen attended Long Island Lutheran Middle and High School in Brookville, New York, where he was a two-sport standout playing football and basketball. As a sophomore, he played both on defense and offense and compiled 9 tackles and a sack while also rushing for 91 yards on 18 carries (5.1 avg.) and a touchdown. As a junior, he started every game at defensive tackle and recorded 41 tackles and 7 sacks. While serving as the team captain in his senior season, he earned All-American Lutheran Team honors after finishing his final prep year with 57 tackles and 12.0 sacks along with 2 blocked kicks, helping lead the Crusaders to a 7–2 record. In basketball, he was teammates with current Detroit Pistons player Tobias Harris as a sophomore.

College career Stephen played college football for the Connecticut Huskies from 2009 to 2013, where he was named a team captain prior to his senior season and also winning team MVP following the season.

Minnesota Vikings 2014 season Stephen was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round (220th overall pick) of the 2014 NFL draft, becoming the first player from the University of Connecticut drafted by the team since running back Vince Clements in 1971.

Stephen enjoyed a solid rookie season, with only first-round linebacker Anthony Barr being more productive among Vikings' rookie defenders. In the preseason, he received first-team snaps at nose tackle and lined up in both the nose and three-technique spots. He played 42 snaps against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 2, getting the second-most playing time of any Vikings defender. Stephen played in all 16 regular season games, the only Vikings rookie to do so, and started three times. He made his professional debut in the Vikings' season opener against the St. Louis Rams on September 7, 2014, notching two total tackles. He started his second career game against the Panthers in Week 13 and notched a career-best 10 tackles, with five solo stops. In the loss at Miami in Week 16, he had a season-high four quarterback hurries. On November 23, he made his first career start against the Green Bay Packers, replacing Sharrif Floyd at defensive tackle and matching his then career-best with four tackles in the game.

2015 season In his second season, Stephen played in the first five games of the season for the Vikings. In Week 2, he recovered his first career fumble against the Detroit Lions after he fell on a Theo Riddick fumble forced by safety Harrison Smith. The following week, he had season-highs in defensive snaps with 20 and tackles with two against the San Diego Chargers.

On October 18, 2015, Stephen suffered a season-ending toe injury against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 6 and was carted off the field. The Vikings would go on to place him on injured reserve on October 20, 2015.

2016–2017 seasons In 2016, Stephen started all 16 games, recording a career-high 39 tackles.

In 2017, Stephen was moved to a reserve role, starting only one game in 15 games played, recording 28 tackles.

Seattle Seahawks

On March 24, 2018, Stephen signed with the Seattle Seahawks.

Return to Minnesota On March 13, 2019, Stephen returned to the Vikings, signing a three-year, $12.45 million contract. In week 4 against the Chicago Bears, Stephen recorded his first sack of his second tenure with the Vikings on Chase Daniel in the 16–6 loss.

Stephen was released on March 16, 2021.

Denver Broncos Stephen signed a one-year contract with the Denver Broncos on April 8, 2021.

Career statistics

NFL Season Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles Season Team 2014 Minnesota Vikings 16 3 23 13 10 0.0 -- 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 2015 Minnesota Vikings 5 0 2 1 1 0.0 -- 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1 0 2016 Minnesota Vikings 16 16 38 16 22 0.0 -- 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1 0 2017 Minnesota Vikings 15 1 27 8 19 1.0 -- 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 2018 Seattle Seahawks 15 14 22 8 14 2.0 -- 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 2019 Minnesota Vikings 15 15 20 14 6 1.0 -- 3 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1 1 2020 Minnesota Vikings 16 16 32 18 14 0.5 -- 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 2021 Denver Broncos 17 0 32 10 22 0.0 -- 2 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0Career stats 115 65 196 88 108 4.5 -- 5 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 3 1

College Regular season statistics Tackles Interceptions Fumbles Season Team 2010 Connecticut 12 7 27 13 14 2.0 4.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 2011 Connecticut 12 12 17 7 10 0.0 1.0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 2012 Connecticut 12 10 26 14 12 0.0 2.0 4 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 2013 Connecticut 12 12 60 21 39 3.0 10.0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0Career stats 48 41 130 55 75 5.0 17.0 6 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0