Kyzir Rasim White (born March 24, 1996) 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 wi ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

for the Arizona Cardinals 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 at

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...

and was drafted by the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...

in the fourth round of the 2018 NFL Draft.

High school career

White played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

Emmaus High School Emmaus High School is a large public high school located in Emmaus, Pennsylvania. The school serves grades nine through 12 in Pennsylvania's East Penn School District in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. Emmaus High School is loca ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

's highly-competitive East Penn Conference, where his play was highlighted by

MaxPreps MaxPreps is an American website that specializes in coverage of American high school sports. The site is owned by Paramount Global and is a division of CBS Sports. Founded on August 1, 2002, the company has covered up to 29 sports, including b ...

and other outlets highlighting top high school prospects.

College career

Following two years at

Lackawanna College Lackawanna College (Lackawanna or LC) is a private college in Scranton, Pennsylvania. It also has satellite centers in Hazleton, Hawley, Sunbury, Towanda, and Tunkhannock, and an Environmental Education Center in Covington Township. Acad ...

, White committed to

, passing on scholarship opportunities from

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

Arizona State Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

, and

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

. In his career at West Virginia, he recorded 152 total tackles, four sacks, three interceptions, nine passes defended, and four forced fumbles.

Professional career

Los Angeles Chargers

In the 2018 NFL Draft, White was drafted by the

in the fourth round (119th overall). White was the 11th

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

drafted in 2018. On May 13, 2018, the Los Angeles Chargers signed White to a four-year, $3.11 million

contract A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tr ...

that includes a signing bonus of $654,441.

2018

During rookie minicamp, Los Angeles Chargers' coaching staff announced their decision to move White to

. White adjusted to the new position quickly and immediately impressed coaching staff. During training camp, he began competing as the Chargers' starting weak side linebacker against

Jatavis Brown Jatavis Brown (born February 18, 1994) is a former American football linebacker. He attended Glades Central High School in Belle Glade, Florida and would later play college football at Akron. He was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the fif ...

. Head coach

Anthony Lynn Anthony Ray Lynn (born December 21, 1968) is an American football coach and former running back who is the assistant head coach and running backs coach for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He previously played in t ...

named White the backup weakside linebacker behind Brown to start the regular season. But an hour before kickoff in the Chargers' season-opener, it was reported Lynn has instead elected to start White alongside

Kyle Emanuel Kyle Emanuel (born August 16, 1991) is a former American football linebacker. He won the Buck Buchanan Award in 2014. He played college football for North Dakota State University where they won four straight FCS championships. He was drafted by ...

and middle linebacker

Denzel Perryman Denzel Perryman (born December 5, 1992) is an American football middle linebacker for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Miami. High school career Perryman attended Coral Gables Senior Hig ...

. White made his professional regular season debut and first career start on September 9, 2018 in the Los Angeles Chargers' season-opener against 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 ...

and recorded six combined tackles in their 38–28 loss. On September 16, 2018, White recorded four solo tackles, broke up two passes, and made his first career

interception In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team ...

during a 31–20 win at the Buffalo Bills in Week 2. He made his first career interception off a pass thrown by Bills' rookie quarterback

Josh Allen Josh or Joshua Allen may refer to: * Josh Allen (offensive lineman) (born 1991), former American football player * Josh Allen (quarterback) (born 1996), American football quarterback in the NFL for the Buffalo Bills since 2018 * Josh Allen (defensi ...

intended for tight end

Jason Croom Jason Croom (born February 28, 1994) is an American football tight end who is currently a free agent. He played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers. Early years Croom attended and played high school football at Norcross High School in ...

, and returned it for a nine-yard gain in the game's fourth quarter. In a Week 3 game at the Los Angeles Rams, White suffered a knee injury that required minor surgery, and he was inactive for the following four games (Weeks 4–8). On November 3, 2018, the Chargers announced he was being placed on injured reserve.

2019

In Week 5 of the 2019 season, White recorded an interception off

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquar ...

quarterback Joe Flacco in the Chargers' 20–13 loss.

2020

White was placed on the reserve/

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

list by the Chargers on November 21, 2020, and was reactivated on December 9. On December 23, 2020, White was placed on injured reserve due to a hamstring injury.

2021

White entered the 2021 season as the Chargers' starting linebacker and finished the season as the team's leading tackler with 144 tackles, one sack, two forced fumbles, three passes defensed, and two interceptions.

Philadelphia Eagles

2022

On March 26, 2022, White signed a one-year contract, worth up to $5 million, with the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...

. In White's first season with the Eagles, the team reached

Super Bowl LVII Super Bowl LVII is the upcoming championship game of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2022 NFL season. The game is scheduled to be played on February 12, 2023, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. It will be the fourth Super B ...

, where they lost 38-35 to the

. White had four tackles in Super Bowl LVII.

Arizona Cardinals

On March 15, 2023, White signed a two-year contract with the Arizona Cardinals.

Personal life

White has two brothers,

Kevin Kevin () is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; mga, Caoimhghín ; sga, Cóemgein ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ). The variant '' Kevan'' is anglicized from , a ...

and Ka'Raun, both of whom also played college football at Lackawanna before transferring to

. White's older brother Kevin is a wide receiver who was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the first round in 2015 and later played with 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 ...

and

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 ...

References

External links

Arizona Cardinals bioWest Virginia Mountaineers bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:White, Kyzir 1996 births Living people American football safeties American football linebackers Arizona Cardinals players Emmaus High School alumni Los Angeles Chargers players Philadelphia Eagles players Players of American football from Lehigh County, Pennsylvania West Virginia Mountaineers football players