Clayton Daniel Fejedelem ( ; born June 2, 1993) is an

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 ...

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are ...

and

special teamer In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

who is a free agent. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at Saint Xavier and

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, and was drafted 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 ...

in the seventh round of 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 ...

Early years

A native of Illinois, Clayton Fejedelem attended

Lemont High School Lemont High School, or LHS, is a public four-year high school located in Lemont, Illinois, a southwest suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is the only school of Lemont Township High School District 210, which serves the Village of ...

in Lemont, Illinois where he lettered in football, wrestling, and lacrosse. Fejedelem was a two-time All-Conference selection in football for the Lemont Indians, and earned All-State honors in football as a senior in 2010. That same year, he also earned South Suburban Blue Player of the Year honors.

College career

Saint Xavier University

Fejedelem played two seasons at NAIA

Saint Xavier University Saint Xavier University (or SXU) is a private Roman Catholic university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1846 by the Sisters of Mercy, the university enrolls 3,749 students. History Saint Xavier University was founded as a women's college by ...

from 2011 to 2012. In 2011, he recorded 68 tackles, 5.0 TFLs, five interceptions, a team-high nine PBUs, three forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries and one pick-six touchdown. Clayton was named St. Xavier Newcomer of the Year in 2011 after helping the Cougars to the NAIA Championship and 14–1 record. He led SXU to an 11–2 record in 2012, racking up 87 tackles, 10.5 TFLs,1.0 sack, 3 interceptions, 8 PBUs and two fumble recoveries to earn second-team All-Mid-State Football Association honors.

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Fejedelem redshirted his junior season at Illinois in 2013 after joining the team as a walk-on during spring practices, but had to sit out due to NCAA transfer rules. In 2014, he recorded his first tackle as an Illini against Western Kentucky and went on to tally 51 tackles, a tackle for loss, two PBUs and a fumble recovery on the season. He played in all 13 games, including one start at Northwestern University where he recorded a career-high of 12 tackles and one PBU. In 2015, Clayton started all 12 games at free safety, going on to record a team-best 140 tackles (fifth in the nation at 11.7 tackles per game), 4.5 TFLs, second PBUs, two INTs, and one FF. He was the Illini Team Captain and Defensive Player of the Year, earning him the All-Big Ten honorable mention selection by coaches and All-Big Ten second-team selections by the media.

Professional career

Cincinnati Bengals

Fejedelem was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the seventh round, 245th overall, in the

. In his rookie season, he appeared in all 16 games and recorded three total tackles. In the 2017 season, he appeared in all 16 games as a team captain and started five. He recorded one interception, two passes defensed, and 56 total tackles. In the 2018, he was named a team captain, played in all 16 games and started one.. During the season opener against the Indianapolis Colts, he recorded a game-clinching 83-yard fumble return for a touchdown on a drive where the Colts were threatening to score and go ahead late. In 2019, he was named a team captain and played in all 16 games.

Miami Dolphins

On March 20, 2020, Fejedelem signed a three-year contract with the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...

. In the 2020 season, he was named special teams captain and appeared in 13 games after missing the first three due to injury. He recorded one FF and 10 tackles total. Against the

Las Vegas Raiders The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West divis ...

, he rushed for 22 yards on a fake punt to convert a 4th-and-1 to extend a drive that ended in a Miami TD. On September 1, 2022, Fejedelem was placed on injured reserve. He was activated on October 8.

Personal life

The son of Steven and Colleen Fejedelem, Clayton has two brothers, Ryan (older) and Jeremy (younger). They were born and raised in Lemont, Illinois, a southwestern suburb of Chicago. Fejedelem attended Saint Xavier University as a business major in 2011, but transferred to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 2013 where he walked on and graduated with a bachelor's degree in communications in 2015. He married Gabriele Fejedelem in Chicago, Illinois in March 2020. The couple welcomed their son in December 2020, and a daughter in July 2022.

References

External links

Illinois Fighting Illini bio

Saint Xavier Cougars bio

Miami Dolphins bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fejedelem, Clayton 1993 births Living people American football safeties Cincinnati Bengals players Illinois Fighting Illini football players Miami Dolphins players People from Lemont, Illinois Saint Xavier University alumni Players of American football from Cook County, Illinois Players of American football from DuPage County, Illinois