Anthony Zettel (born August 9, 1992) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

. He played

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. He was drafted by the

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in the sixth round of the

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High school career

Zettel attended Ogemaw Heights High School in

West Branch, Michigan West Branch is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 2,139. It is the county seat of Ogemaw County. West Branch is mostly surrounded by West Branch Township, but the two are administered autonomo ...

, where he was a first-team all-state selection as a senior. He recorded 82 solo tackles, 25 assisted tackles and dropped the quarterback in the backfield seven times as a senior. Zettel also lettered in

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

and

track & field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

at Ogemaw Heights. As a senior in track, he set the Michigan high school state record in the

shot put The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...

with a toss of , earning his second straight state championship and breaking both the school record (60'9") and the Division II state record (58'8"). That same year, he finished second in the discus with a heave of . He also participated in sprints, running the

100-meter dash The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contest ...

in 11.55 seconds and helping Ogemaw's 400m sprint relay post a season-low 45.95 in 2010. Zettel was rated as a four-star recruit and was listed as the nation's No. 6 prep

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College career

Zettel played inside and outside during a 2014 first-team All-Big Ten season at

and recorded 17 tackles for loss, eight sacks, and three interceptions. He was moved inside in 2015 and his production dipped a bit with 47 tackles, 11 for loss, four sacks and six pass breakups.

Professional career

Detroit Lions

Zettel was drafted in the sixth round (202nd overall) by the

in the

2016 NFL draft The 2016 NFL Draft was the 81st annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. As in 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park in Chicago. The draft beg ...

. He recorded his first career sack against

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

quarterback

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in Week 15 of the

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. On September 5, 2018, Zettel was waived by the Lions.

Cleveland Browns

On September 6, 2018, Zettel was claimed off waivers by the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

. He was released during final roster cuts on August 31, 2019.

Cincinnati Bengals

On October 17, 2019, Zettel was signed by the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...

. He was waived on October 21, but re-signed on October 23. He was waived on December 17, 2019.

San Francisco 49ers

On December 23, 2019, the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

signed Zettel. Zettel reached

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with the 49ers, but the team was defeated by the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

Minnesota Vikings

On March 25, 2020, Zettel signed with the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

. He was released on September 2, 2020.

New Orleans Saints

On September 19, 2020, Zettel was signed to the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

practice squad. He was elevated to the active roster on December 5 for the team's week 13 game against the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

, and reverted to the practice squad after the game. He was released on January 11, 2021, but re-signed with the practice squad on January 13. Zettel was released again on January 16.

San Francisco 49ers (second stint)

On July 27, 2021, Zettel signed with the

Retirement

On August 6, 2021, Zettel announced his retirement from

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References

External links

Penn State Nittany Lions bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zettel, Anthony 1992 births Living people Players of American football from Michigan People from West Branch, Michigan American football defensive tackles Penn State Nittany Lions football players Detroit Lions players Cleveland Browns players Cincinnati Bengals players San Francisco 49ers players Minnesota Vikings players New Orleans Saints players