Demetrius Knight
American football player (born 2000)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Demetrius T. Knight Jr. (born July 21, 2000)[1][2] is an American professional football linebacker for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the South Carolina Gamecocks, Charlotte 49ers and Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. Knight was selected by the Bengals in the second round of the 2025 NFL draft.
Knight in 2024 | |||||||||||||
| No. 44 – Cincinnati Bengals | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Linebacker | ||||||||||||
| Roster status | Active | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born | July 21, 2000 | ||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 240 lb (109 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school | Strong Rock Christian (Locust Grove, Georgia) | ||||||||||||
| College | Georgia Tech (2019–2022) Charlotte (2023) South Carolina (2024) | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2025: 2nd round, 49th overall pick | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of 2025 | |||||||||||||
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Early life
Knight attended Strong Rock Christian School in Locust Grove, Georgia.[3] Coming out of high school, Knight was unranked, where he committed to play college football for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.[4][5]
College career
Georgia Tech
During Knight's four-year career at Georgia Tech from 2019 through 2022, he appeared in 36 games where he notched 51 tackles with three being for a loss, a sack, two pass deflections, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery, while also completing one pass for four yards.[6][7][8][9][10][excessive citations] After the 2022 season, Knight entered his name into the NCAA transfer portal.[11]
Charlotte
Knight transferred to play for the Charlotte 49ers.[12] In 2023, he notched 96 tackles with six being for a loss, three interceptions, and a touchdown for the 49ers.[13] After one year with Charlotte, Knight once again entered his name into the NCAA transfer portal.[14]
South Carolina
Knight transferred to play for the South Carolina Gamecocks.[15] In week 10 of the 2024 season, he notched seven tackles in a 28-7 win over Vanderbilt.[16] In the 2024 regular-season finale, Knight intercepted quarterback Cade Klubnik with 12 seconds remaining to help the Gamecocks seal a rivalry win over Clemson.[17]
Professional career
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 1+5⁄8 in (1.87 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | 32+5⁄8 in (0.83 m) | 10 in (0.25 m) | 4.58 s | 1.58 s | 2.69 s | 4.25 s | 7.12 s | 31.5 in (0.80 m) | 9 ft 10 in (3.00 m) | 22 reps | |
| All values from NFL Combine[18][19] | ||||||||||||
Knight was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals with the 49th pick in the second round of the 2025 NFL draft.[20][21]
NFL career statistics
Personal
Knight is cousins with former Pro Bowl defensive back DeAngelo Hall and distant cousins with musical superstars Aretha Franklin and Gladys Knight.[22]