Troy Niklas (born September 18, 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 ...

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

. He was drafted by the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft. 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 Notre Dame.

High school

Niklas attended Servite High School in

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most p ...

. He was a two-way standout as both an offensive and defensive lineman. He helped lead Servite to 14–1 record in 2010, a second straight CIF Southern Section Pac-5 Division title and runner-up in state playoffs. He was named the ''

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'' lineman of the year as a senior in 2010. Also a standout athlete, Niklas was one of the state's top performers in the

discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field event in which an athlete throws a heavy disk (mathematics), disc—called a discus—in an attempt to mark a farther distance than their competitors. It is an classical antiqui ...

(top throw of 54.10 meters as a senior). Considered a four-star recruit by ''

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'', he was rated the 24th-best

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...

prospect in the nation. He accepted a scholarship from Notre Dame over offers from

Stanford Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is considere ...

and USC.

College career

Niklas attended the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

from 2011 to 2013. As a freshman, he played as a

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, p ...

, appearing in 12 games with one start against

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

. He was moved to tight end as a sophomore. Playing behind

Tyler Eifert Tyler Gregory Eifert (born September 8, 1990) is an American football tight end who is a free agent. He played college football at the University of Notre Dame, received All-American honors, and was recognized as the top college tight end. Eife ...

, he caught 5 passes for 75 yards and one touchdown. As a junior, he hauled in 32 receptions for 498 yards with five

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether Rush (gridiron football), running, Forward pass, passing, returning a Kickoff (gridiron football), kickoff or Punt (gridiron football), punt, or recovering a Turno ...

. On January 9, 2014, Niklas announced his intentions to forgo his remaining eligibility and enter the 2014 NFL Draft.

Professional career

Arizona Cardinals

Niklas was drafted by the

in the second round (52nd overall) of the 2014 NFL Draft. He was the fourth tight end selected in 2014. Niklas progress as a rookie was slowed due to his inability to participate in organized team activities after recovering from a hernia surgery in February. On September 27, 2016, Niklas was placed on injured reserve. In 2017, Niklas played in 15 games with 11 starts, recording 11 catches for 132 yards and one touchdown.

New England Patriots

On April 4, 2018, Niklas signed with the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

. On July 27, Niklas was released by the team.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On July 24, 2019, Niklas signed with the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

. On July 29, 2019, Niklas was waived/injured by the Buccaneers and placed on injured reserve. He was released on August 6.

Personal life

Niklas' uncle, Bruce Matthews, played at USC, was ninth overall pick in 1983 NFL Draft, earned

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

honors 14 times while playing with NFL

Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 a ...

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...

from 1983–2001 and was elected to the

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coach ...

in 2007.

References

External links

Notre Dame Fighting Irish bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Niklas, Troy 1992 births Living people Sportspeople from Fullerton, California Players of American football from California American football tight ends American football linebackers Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players Arizona Cardinals players New England Patriots players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Matthews football family