Zaven Collins
American football player (born 1999)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Zaven Collins (born May 19, 1999) is an American professional football linebacker for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, earning unanimous All-American honors and winning several defensive player of the year awards in 2020. Collins was selected by the Cardinals in the first round of the 2021 NFL draft.
Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S.
Collins with the Tulsa Golden Hurricane in 2020 | |||||||||||||||||
| No. 25 – Arizona Cardinals | |||||||||||||||||
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| Position | Linebacker | ||||||||||||||||
| Roster status | Active | ||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
| Born | May 19, 1999 Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 270 lb (122 kg) | ||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||
| High school | Hominy (Hominy, Oklahoma) | ||||||||||||||||
| College | Tulsa (2017–2020) | ||||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2021: 1st round, 16th overall pick | ||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of 2025 | |||||||||||||||||
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Early life
Collins was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on May 19, 1999, and later attended Hominy High School in Hominy, Oklahoma.[1][2] He played quarterback, linebacker and safety in high school. During his career, he had 4,084 rushing yards with 54 touchdowns and passed for 3,056 yards and 32 touchdowns. He committed to the University of Tulsa to play college football.
College career
After redshirting his first year at Tulsa in 2017, Collins played in 12 games and started 10 in 2018. He had 85 tackles, 1.5 sacks and one interception.[3] As a sophomore in 2019, he started all 12 games, recording 97 tackles and two sacks.[4] Collins returned to Tulsa in 2020, where he was awarded the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and Chuck Bednarik Award as the nation's best defensive player,[5][6][7][8] as well as the Lombardi Award.[9]
College statistics
Professional career
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 4+7⁄8 in (1.95 m) | 259 lb (117 kg) | 33+5⁄8 in (0.85 m) | 9+3⁄8 in (0.24 m) | 4.65 s | 1.63 s | 2.78 s | 4.36 s | 35 in (0.89 m) | 10 ft 2 in (3.10 m) | 19 reps | ||
| All values from Pro Day[10][11][12] | ||||||||||||
Collins was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the first round (16th overall) of the 2021 NFL draft.[13] He signed his four-year rookie contract, worth $14 million, on June 8, 2021.[14]
Collins entered his rookie season in 2021 as a starting inside linebacker alongside Jordan Hicks and Isaiah Simmons. He was relegated to a backup role midway through the season, playing the third-most snaps of the inside linebackers. He finished the season with 25 tackles and three passes defensed through 17 games and six starts.[15]
In Week 9 of the 2022 season, Collins had a 30-yard interception returned for a touchdown against the Seattle Seahawks.[16] In the 2022 season, he appeared in 16 games and finished with 100 total tackles (63 solo), one interception, six passes defended, and one forced fumble.[17]
In the 2023 season, Collins finished with 3.5 sacks, 41 tackles, one interception, and three passes defended.[18] On April 30, 2024, the Cardinals declined the fifth-year option on Collins' contract, making him a free agent after the 2024 season.[19] On August 3, 2024, Collins and the Cardinals agreed to a two–year, $14 million contract extension.[20] In the 2024 season, Collins finished with five sacks, 57 tackles, and one pass defended.[21]
NFL career statistics
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
Regular season
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | TFL | Sfty | PD | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2021 | ARI | 17 | 6 | 25 | 13 | 12 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | ARI | 16 | 16 | 100 | 63 | 37 | 2.0 | 11 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 30 | 30.0 | 30 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | ARI | 17 | 17 | 41 | 27 | 14 | 3.5 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | ARI | 17 | 17 | 57 | 33 | 24 | 5.0 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | ARI | 17 | 9 | 40 | 26 | 14 | 1.5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| Career | 84 | 65 | 263 | 162 | 101 | 12.0 | 31 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 31 | 15.5 | 30 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | |
Postseason
Personal
Collins was arrested in Arizona for speeding and reckless driving in June 2021; he was released from custody within an hour.[22]
