Kendall A. Reyes (born September 26, 1989) 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 ...

. In 2010, he served as one of four team captains for the

University of Connecticut Huskies The UConn Huskies (or Connecticut Huskies) are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Connecticut, located in Storrs. The school is a member of the NCAA's Division I and the Big East Conference. The university's fo ...

and was named to the All-

Big East Conference The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and M ...

first-team following the season. He was drafted by the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

in the second round of the

2012 NFL Draft The 2012 NFL draft was the 77th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players for their rosters. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held ...

, and also played for the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

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 ...

, and

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

High school career

Kendall Reyes attended

Nashua High School North Nashua High School North is a public high school located in Nashua, New Hampshire. The school's current location was erected in 2002 with its first class graduating in June 2005, one year after the city's high schools officially split into two l ...

Nashua, New Hampshire Nashua is a city in southern New Hampshire, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 91,322, the second-largest in northern New England after nearby Manchester, New Hampshire, Manchester. Along with Manc ...

from 2003–2007. In

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

, Reyes was a standout wide receiver, tight end, linebacker and defensive end. He was twice named All-State and also a two-time All-Conference pick. Following his senior year, he was selected to play at the Shriners' All-Star Game. Reyes was also a three-sport athlete at Nashua North, also playing

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 ...

during his high school career. As a sophomore in 2005, he placed eighth in the

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a gr ...

with a leap of 6.18 meters (20 ft, 3.5 in) at the NHIAA Meet of Champions. At the 2006 NHIAA Class L Track Championships, he earned a third-place finish in the discus with a throw of 52.12 meters (171 ft), while also placing sixth in the

high jump The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...

(1.83m or 6'0"). He posted a personal-best throw of 14.35 meters (47'1") 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 ...

as a senior. Reyes was not that heavily recruited out of high school, and he only received 3 offers from Division 1 schools (

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

). On November 11, 2006, Reyes verbally committed to

Professional career

Reyes was selected in round 2, pick 49 by the

in the

. He was the highest drafted

defensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

in school history.

San Diego Chargers

When the Chargers drafted him with the 49th overall pick in the

, Reyes became

’s first NFL draft pick and the first player from Nashua to be drafted since 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 ...

selected tackle Herb Webster in the fifth round of the

1988 NFL Draft The 1988 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 24–25, 1988, at the Marriot Marq ...

. He was also the highest drafted defensive lineman in school history. In his rookie season, Reyes led the Chargers’ defensive line with 19 quarterback pressures and 15 quarterback hits, and he finished the year third on the team with 5.5 sacks and nine tackles for loss. He recorded his first two NFL sacks against future Hall of Fame quarterback

Peyton Manning Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons. Nicknamed "the Sheriff", he spent 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and four with th ...

and on December 23, during a road win against the

, racked up 3.5 sacks, the most by a Chargers rookie in 26 years. Reyes closed out his initial campaign by earning All-Rookie honors from ESPN.com. In 2013, Reyes was named starter right next to

Corey Liuget Corey Devon Liuget (born March 18, 1990) is a former American football defensive tackle. He played college football at Illinois, and was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft. College career During his three ...

on the defensive line. Reyes went on to play all 16 games as a starter and managed to collect 34 tackles, 5 sacks, and 2 passes defended.

Washington Redskins

Reyes signed a one-year contract with the

on March 11, 2016. He was released by the Redskins on October 5, 2016.

Kansas City Chiefs

On October 18, 2016, Reyes was signed by the

New York Jets

On August 3, 2018, Reyes signed with the

. He was released on August 31, 2018.

Coaching career

Reyes began his coaching career in January 2019 at the University of New Hampshire.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Personal life

Reyes still spends a lot of time in Nashua during the offseason. In March 2013, the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Nashua inducted him into its Hall of Fame. Reyes spent much of his time as a youth at the Club, where he sharpened his athletic and academic skills. Now he works with the Club to help develop initiatives for youths. A former class president at Nashua North High, Reyes also spends time at his alma mater talking to student-athletes about education and being good community citizens.

References

External links

* * UConnHuskies.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Reyes, Kendall 1989 births Living people American football defensive tackles American football defensive ends Players of American football from New Hampshire Sportspeople from Nashua, New Hampshire UConn Huskies football players San Diego Chargers players Washington Redskins players Kansas City Chiefs players New York Jets players