Drue Tranquill (born August 15, 1995) is an American professional football linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Drue Tranquill
refer to caption
Tranquill with the Los Angeles Chargers in 2021
No. 23 – Kansas City Chiefs
Position:Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1995-08-15) August 15, 1995 (age 29)
Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S.
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:234 lb (106 kg)
Career information
High school:Carroll
(Fort Wayne, Indiana)
College:Notre Dame (2014–2018)
NFL draft:2019 / round: 4 / pick: 130
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 2, 2024
Total tackles:387
Sacks:11.0
Forced fumbles:3
Fumble recoveries:1
Pass deflections:7
Interceptions:1
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early years

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Tranquill attended Carroll High School in Fort Wayne, Indiana. As a senior in 2013, Tranquill made 75 tackles, including 16 tackles-for-loss, to go with four sacks and an interception as a linebacker. He added 1,420 yards and 28 touchdowns on 114 carries on the ground as a running back, along with 16 receptions for 348 yards and five touchdowns.[1] Tranquill was a four-star recruit coming out of high school, and received offers from several major programs, mostly in the Big Ten Conference.[2][3] He verbally committed to Purdue University to play college football, but later decommitted and ultimately signed with the University of Notre Dame.[4] Tranquill's younger brother, Justin, played safety for Western Michigan University.[5]

College career

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Initially committed to Purdue University, Tranquill decommitted when he received an offer from Notre Dame.[6]

As a true freshman at Notre Dame in 2014, Tranquill played in 11 games with three starts and recorded 33 tackles, a tackle for loss, an interception, a fumble recovery, and a blocked punt.[1] He played in three games as a sophomore in 2015, with one start, but was lost for the season due to a torn ACL suffered while celebrating after breaking up a pass against Georgia Tech on September 19. He collected a medical redshirt for the 2015 season, and was able to play as a graduate student during the 2018 season as a result.[7] As a junior in 2016, Tranquill started all 12 games for the Irish, tallying 79 tackles, two tackles for loss, and an interception.[1] During Tranquill's senior year in 2017, he finished the year with 85 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, three fumble recoveries, four passes defended, one interception and one forced fumble while starting all 13 games.[1] At the end of the 2017 season, Tranquill announced that he would return for a 5th year as a graduate student in Mechanical Engineering for the 2018–19 season.[8]

Awards and honors

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Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 2 in
(1.88 m)
234 lb
(106 kg)
31+12 in
(0.80 m)
9+34 in
(0.25 m)
4.57 s 1.59 s 2.65 s 4.14 s 6.94 s 37.5 in
(0.95 m)
10 ft 2 in
(3.10 m)
31 reps
All values from NFL Combine[13][14]

Los Angeles Chargers

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Tranquill in 2019

Tranquill was selected by the Los Angeles Chargers in the fourth round (130th overall) of the 2019 NFL draft.[15] He was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team as a special teamer in 2019.[16]

Tranquill entered 2020 as a starting middle linebacker. In Week 1, he suffered a broken ankle and was placed on injured reserve on September 15, 2020.[17]

In the Wild Card Round of the 2022 season against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Tranquill intercepted a tipped pass from Trevor Lawrence.[18]

Kansas City Chiefs

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Tranquill signed with the Kansas City Chiefs on March 21, 2023.[19] He reached Super Bowl LVIII, recording two total tackles in the Chiefs 25–22 victory over the San Francisco 49ers.[20][21][22]

On March 13, 2024, Tranquill signed a three-year, $19 million contract extension with the Chiefs.[23]

Personal life

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Tranquill is a Christian.[24] He and his wife, Jackie, have one son and two daughters.[25]

Tranquill won the Chess.com 2023 BlitzChamps II tournament, beating defending champion Chidobe Awuzie.[26]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f "Drue Tranquill". Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Official Athletics Website. July 9, 2018. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  2. ^ Vitovitch, Frank (November 19, 2013). "Drue Tranquill Commits To Notre Dame". UHND.com. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  3. ^ "Drue Tranquill Recruiting Profile". 247Sports.
  4. ^ Donohue, Tyler (November 20, 2013). "Notre Dame Flips 4-Star Ex-Big Ten Commit". Bleacher Report. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  5. ^ "Justin Tranquill – Football". Western Michigan University Athletics. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  6. ^ Donohue, Tyler (November 20, 2013). "Notre Dame Flips 4-Star Ex-Big Ten Commit Drue Tranquill, What It Means for ND". Bleacher Report. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  7. ^ Farmer, Douglas (July 9, 2017). "Notre Dame 99-to-2: No. 23 Drue Tranquill, rover". NBC Sports. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  8. ^ Ray, Olivia (December 9, 2017). "Drue Tranquill will return in 2018". WSBT. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  9. ^ "2016 Academic All-America® Division I Football Teams Announced". College Sports Communicators. December 11, 2020. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  10. ^ Wittry, Andy (December 9, 2017). "College football award finalists announced". NCAA.com. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  11. ^ a b "Drue Tranquills Work Rewarded". Journal Gazette. December 5, 2018.
  12. ^ "Drue Tranquill Selected as 14th Wuerffel Trophy Recipient". Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Official Athletics Website. December 4, 2018. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  13. ^ "Drue Tranquill Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  14. ^ "2019 Draft Scout Drue Tranquill, Notre Dame NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  15. ^ Henne, Ricky (April 27, 2019). "Chargers Kick Off Day Three With Notre Dame LB Drue Tranquill". Chargers.com. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  16. ^ "2019 NFL All-Rookie Team". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  17. ^ "Los Angeles Chargers Promote Asmar Bilal to Active Roster; Place Drue Tranquill on Injured Reserve". Chargers.com. September 15, 2020.
  18. ^ "Wild Card - Los Angeles Chargers at Jacksonville Jaguars - January 14th, 2023". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  19. ^ McMullen, Matt (March 21, 2023). "Five Things to Know About New Chiefs LB Drue Tranquill". Chiefs.com. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  20. ^ Moore, Casey (February 4, 2024). "Chiefs roster for Super Bowl 58: Starters, backups, depth chart for AFC champs vs. 49ers". USA Today. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  21. ^ "Super Bowl LVIII - San Francisco 49ers vs. Kansas City Chiefs - February 11th, 2024". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  22. ^ Maaddi, Rob (February 12, 2024). "Patrick Mahomes rallies the Chiefs to second straight Super Bowl title, 25–22 over 49ers in overtime". AP News. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  23. ^ Gordon, Grant (March 7, 2024). "Chiefs re-signing LB Drue Tranquill to 3-year, $19M deal". NFL.com.
  24. ^ Doering, Joshua (February 7, 2024). "Chiefs LB Drue Tranquill enters Super Bowl grateful for God's 'overwhelming' faithfulness". Sports Spectrum. Retrieved February 8, 2024.
  25. ^ Smith, Eric (December 8, 2022). "Enjoying the Ride: Tranquill Balances Fatherhood & Full-Time Starting Role". chargers.com. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
  26. ^ Jules (Jules) (June 23, 2023). "Chiefs Drue Tranquill Intercepts BlitzChampsII Victory with a Dramatic Queen Sacrifice". Chess.com. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
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