Yosuah Hesdy Nijman (born January 2, 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 with ...

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 ...

for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

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 ...

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...

Early years

Born in

Orange, New Jersey The City of Orange is a township in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 30,134, reflecting a decline of 2,734 (−8.3%) from the 32,868 counted in 2000. Orange was original ...

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...

se parents, Nijman was raised in nearby Maplewood and played prep football at

Columbia High School Columbia High School may refer to: *Columbia High School (Huntsville, Alabama) *Columbia High School (Georgia) *Columbia High School (Florida) *Columbia High School (Idaho) *Columbia High School (Illinois) *Columbia High School (Mississippi), a Mis ...

Professional career

175px, left, Nijman at Packers training camp in 2019. After playing four years at

, Nijman was signed by the

as an undrafted free agent on May 3, 2019. He was waived on August 31 and was signed to the practice squad the next day. On November 26, he was promoted to the active roster; however, on December 21, he was placed on injured reserve after suffering an elbow injury that would keep him out for the rest of the season. Nijman made the Packers' 53-man roster in 2020, playing mostly on special teams. He signed an

exclusive-rights free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

tender with the Packers on May 6, 2021. Nijman was named the Packers' third-string left tackle to begin the 2021 season, behind

David Bakhtiari David Afrasiab Assad Bakhtiari (born September 30, 1991) is an American football offensive tackle for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Colorado, and was drafted by the Packers in the fourt ...

and Elgton Jenkins. After Jenkins injured his ankle in a Week 2 victory over the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...

, and with Bakhtiari still rehabilitating a torn ACL suffered during the 2020 season, Nijman made his first career start in a Week 3 victory over the

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 ...

. With Jenkins remaining out, Nijman retained the starting job for a Week 4 win against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

and a Week 5 win against 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 ...

before Jenkins finally returned for a Week 6 win against the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

. Nijman was dubbed the "World's Biggest Robot" by teammate,

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

Aaron Rodgers Aaron Charles Rodgers (born December 2, 1983) is an American football quarterback for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). Rodgers began his college football career at Butte College in 2002 before transferring to the ...

, after doing "The Robot" dance during a touchdown celebration. Rodgers praised Nijman for his play, stating that he "almost forgot about that side of the line", implying he trusted Nijman to protect his blindside. During the Packers' Week 11 game against the Minnesota Vikings, Jenkins suffered a season-ending knee injury. Nijman again stepped in during the game and remained the Packers' starting left tackle for the next several weeks. He missed several snaps during their Week 15 matchup with the Cleveland Browns, being replaced by fourth-string tackle

Ben Braden Benjamin Alan Braden (born March 9, 1994) is an American football guard who is a free agent. He played college football at Michigan. Professional career New York Jets Braden signed with the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent on May 7, ...

, but returned later during the game. On January 9 against the Detroit Lions, the Packers named five-time All-Pro

the starter for the game after he missed nearly the entire regular-season with a knee injury sustained the previous year. Bakhtiari played most of the first half, but exited the game from fatigue and Nijman replaced him for the remainder of the game. He signed his tender offer from the Packers on April 18, 2022, to keep him with the team. Entering the 2023 offseason as a restricted free agent, the Packers placed a second round tender on Nijman on March 15, 2023.

References

External links

Green Bay Packers bioVirginia Tech Hokies bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nijman, Yosh 1995 births Living people American football offensive tackles Columbia High School (New Jersey) alumni Green Bay Packers players Virginia Tech Hokies football players People from Maplewood, New Jersey People from Orange, New Jersey Players of American football from New Jersey Sportspeople from Essex County, New Jersey American people of Surinamese descent Sportspeople of Surinamese descent African-American players of American football 21st-century African-American sportspeople