Casey Sayles (born September 4, 1995) is an American professional football defensive tackle for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football with the Ohio Bobcats.
No. 44 Hamilton Tiger-Cats | |
Born: | Omaha, Nebraska, U.S. | September 4, 1995
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Career information | |
Status | Active |
CFL status | American |
Position(s) | Defensive tackle |
Height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) |
Weight | 289 lb (131 kg) |
College | Ohio Bobcats |
High school | Omaha North |
NFL draft | 2017, undrafted |
Career history | |
As player | |
2017* | Los Angeles Rams |
2018* | Pittsburgh Steelers |
2019 | Birmingham Iron |
2019* | Pittsburgh Steelers |
2020 | St. Louis BattleHawks |
2021–2022 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers |
2023–present | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
Career highlights and awards | |
CFL All-Star | 2023 |
CFL East All-Star | 2023 |
Career stats | |
Early life
editSayles attended Omaha North High School in Omaha, Nebraska.[1] As a senior, Sayles compiled 36 solo tackles and 40 assists, with 19 tackles for loss for 71 yards, including 4 1/2 sacks. He also registered four pass breakups, and while playing tight end, he caught nine passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns.[2] He helped Omaha North reach the Class A championship game and was named to the All-Nebraska team. Sayles signed with the Ohio Bobcats out of high school.[3]
College career
editSayles played defensive line for the Ohio Bobcats from 2013 to 2016. In 2013, he also played special teams and returned 4 kicks for a total of 30 yards.[4] In 2014, he played in only seven games. In his senior season in 2016, Sayles has 33 tackles and six sacks, earning Second-team All-Mid-American Conference honors.[5] He finished his four year college career with 111 total tackles and 12.5 sacks and three fumble recoveries in 50 games.
Statistics
editTackles | Def Int | Fumbles | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | School | Conf | Class | Pos | G | Solo | Ast | Tot | Loss | Sk | Int | Yds | Avg | TD | PD | FR | Yds | TD | FF |
*2013 | Ohio | MAC | FR | DL | 11 | 14 | 18 | 32 | 5.0 | 3.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2014 | Ohio | MAC | SO | DL | 7 | 7 | 12 | 19 | 2.0 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
*2015 | Ohio | MAC | JR | DL | 13 | 9 | 18 | 27 | 6.0 | 2.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
*2016 | Ohio | MAC | SR | DL | 14 | 17 | 15 | 32 | 6.5 | 5.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Career | Ohio | 45 | 47 | 63 | 110 | 19.5 | 11.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
*indicates bowl stats included. Reference[4] |
Professional career
editLos Angeles Rams
editOn May 3, 2017, Sayles was signed by the Los Angeles Rams as an undrafted free agent.[6] He was released by the team on September 3, 2017.[7]
Pittsburgh Steelers (first stint)
editOn January 18, 2018, the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Sayles to a Reserve/Future contract.[7] He had four tackles in four preseason games.[8] On September 1, 2018, he was waived.[7]
Birmingham Iron
editIn 2019, Sayles played for the Birmingham Iron of the Alliance of American Football (AAF).[8] According to Pro Football Focus, he was one of the best defensive lineman in the league on a per-snap basis.[9] The league ceased operations in April 2019.[10]
Pittsburgh Steelers (second stint)
editOn April 9, 2019, the Steelers signed Sayles to a one-year contract.[7] On August 30, 2019, he was released.[11]
St. Louis BattleHawks
editIn October 2019, Sayles was drafted by the St. Louis BattleHawks via the 2020 XFL Draft. He was picked up in the first round of Phase 3: Defensive Front Seven.[12] He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.[13]
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
editSayles signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL on April 5, 2021.[14] He played for two seasons with the Blue Bombers where he won a Grey Cup in 2021 and became a free agent upon the expiry of his contract on February 14, 2023.[15]
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
editOn February 15, 2023, it was announced that Sayles had signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.[15] On November 8, 2023, Sayles was named a CFL All-Star, after leading the team in quarterback sacks and tackles for loss.[16]
References
edit- ^ "Profile: Casey Sayles". 247sports.com. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
- ^ Hambleton, Ryan (December 8, 2012). "Casey Sayles, DL". Lincoln Journal-Star. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
- ^ Pospisil, Stu (February 6, 2013). "Metro's Sayles, Keely twins sign letters". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
- ^ a b "Profile: Casey Sayles". sports-reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
- ^ "Former Ohio Football Standout Sayles Set To Open Inaugural AAF Season With Birmingham Iron". Ohio Bobcats. February 9, 2019. Archived from the original on May 25, 2019. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
- ^ "Profile: Casey Sayles". rotoworld.com. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
- ^ a b c d "Profile: Casey Sayles". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
- ^ a b Klinger, Jacob (April 9, 2019). "Steelers bring back former AAF DL Casey Sayles". PennLive. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
- ^ Marczi, Matthew (March 7, 2019). "Casey Sayles Another Former Steeler Making Mark In Alliance With The Iron". Steelers Depot. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
- ^ Rothstein, Michael; Wickersham, Seth (June 13, 2019). "Inside the short, unhappy life of the Alliance of American Football". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
- ^ Asti, Mike (August 30, 2019). "Report: Steelers Release DL Casey Sayles". steelersnow.com. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
- ^ Bender, Bill (October 21, 2019). "XFL Draft picks 2019: Complete results, rosters, players for new football league". Sporting News. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
- ^ Condotta, Bob (April 10, 2020). "XFL suspends operations, terminates all employees, but Jim Zorn says he has hopes league will continue". SeattleTimes.com. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
- ^ Marra, Riley (April 5, 2021). "Bombers add Casey Sayles to roster". BlueBombers.com. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
- ^ a b "Transactions – Football player trades and signings". Canadian Football League. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
- ^ "TIGER-CATS WHITE AND SAYLES NAMED CFL ALL-STARS".
External links
edit- Media related to Casey Sayles at Wikimedia Commons