Gregory Newsome II (born May 18, 2000) 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 ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

for 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 ( ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). 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 Northwestern and was drafted by the Browns in the first round of the

2021 NFL Draft The 2021 NFL Draft was the 86th National Football League Draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland from April 29 to May 1, 2021 ...

Early years

Newsome attended

Glenbard North High School Glenbard North High School, or GBN, and locally referred to as "Glenbard" or "North", is a public closed campus four-year high school located at the corner of Kuhn Road and Lies Road in Carol Stream, Illinois, a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, ...

Carol Stream, Illinois Carol Stream is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States, and a suburb of Chicago. Carol Stream was incorporated on January 5, 1959, and named after its founder's daughter. Per the 2020 census, the population was 39,854. History In ...

before transferring to

IMG Academy IMG Academy is a preparatory boarding school and sports training destination in Bradenton, Florida, United States. IMG Academy is set across over 600 acres and features programs consisting of sport camps for youth athletes, adult camps, a board ...

Bradenton, Florida Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698. History Late 18th and early 19th centuries ...

for his senior year. He committed to

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

to play college football.

College career

Newsome recorded 71 tackles and one interception over three years at Northwestern. He started 18 games and led the Wildcats to two Big Ten title games. As a junior in 2020, he was named an All-American by ''

The Athletic ''The Athletic'' is a subscription-based sports website that provides national and local coverage in 47 North American cities as well as the United Kingdom. ''The Athletic'' also covers national stories from top professional and college sports ...

''. After that season, he entered the

Professional career

On April 29, 2021, Newsome was selected by the

in the first round with the 26th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Newsome's pick marked the first time Northwestern has had two first-round picks in the NFL draft after

Rashawn Slater Rashawn Slater (born March 26, 1999) is an American football offensive tackle for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Northwestern and was drafted by the Chargers in the first round of ...

was taken 13th overall. He was the fourth cornerback taken in the draft. On July 24, 2021, Newsome signed his four-year rookie contract with Cleveland, worth $12.75 million. He started all 12 games he appeared in as a rookie. He had 37 total tackles and nine passes defensed. In the 2022 season, he started all 15 games he appeared in. He had .5 sacks, 42 total tackles, and six passes defensed. In Week 10 of the 2023 season, Newsome recorded his first interception off of

Lamar Jackson Lamar Demeatrice Jackson Jr. (born January 7, 1997) is an American football quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Louisville, where he won the Heisman Trophy during his soph ...

and returned it for a touchdown as the Browns would go on to win 33-31.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

References

External links

Cleveland Browns bioNorthwestern Wildcats bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Newsome, Greg II 2000 births Living people Players of American football from Chicago American football cornerbacks IMG Academy alumni Northwestern Wildcats football players Cleveland Browns players