Quinton Jefferson (born March 31, 1993) 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 ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is ...

for the New York Jets 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 was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fifth round of the

2016 NFL Draft The 2016 NFL Draft was the 81st annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. As in 2015 NFL Draft, 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park (Chicago), ...

. He played college football at

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. He played for the Seahawks from 2016 to 2019, as well as, brief stints for the Los Angeles Rams, Buffalo Bills, and

Las Vegas Raiders The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West div ...

Early years

Quinton Jefferson was born to Larry and Bahiyyah Jefferson in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 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 ...

. Jefferson attended

Woodland Hills High School Woodland Hills Junior / Senior High School is a large, suburban public high school providing grades 9-12 for the Woodland Hills School District located in Churchill, Pennsylvania, USA. It serves the communities of Braddock, Braddock Hills, Chalfa ...

, where he played both football and basketball.

College career

Jefferson verbally committed to

on January 24, 2011 and signed on February 2. Jefferson played all four years with the Terrapins, playing in 37 games over that span.

Professional career

Seattle Seahawks

Jefferson was drafted in the fifth round of the

with the 147th overall selection by the Seattle Seahawks. The team swapped seventh round picks with the New England Patriots while giving them a fourth round pick in the

2017 NFL Draft The 2017 NFL Draft was the 82nd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. It was held in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art on April 27–29, returning to Philadelphia ...

in order to move up to #147 in order to select Jefferson. On May 6, 2016, the Seahawks announced that they had signed Jefferson to his rookie contract. He was placed on injured reserve on October 25, 2016, after suffering a knee injury. On September 2, 2017, Jefferson was waived by the Seahawks.

Los Angeles Rams

On September 3, 2017, Jefferson was claimed off waivers by the Los Angeles Rams. He was waived on September 12, 2017 and was re-signed to the practice squad.

Seattle Seahawks (second stint)

On October 2, 2017, Jefferson was signed by the Seahawks off the Rams' practice squad. In Week 14 of the 2017 season, Jefferson was

ejected Ejection or Eject may refer to: * Ejection (sports), the act of officially removing someone from a game * Eject (''Transformers''), a fictional character from ''The Transformers'' television series * "Eject" (song), 1993 rap rock single by Sense ...

for being involved in a scuffle with some players on the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team pla ...

. As he was leaving the field, some Jacksonville fans threw drinks at him. Jefferson attempted to climb into the stands in an effort to attack the fans, but was restrained by a team official. In Week 1 of the 2019 season against the Cincinnati Bengals, Jefferson recorded six tackles and sacked

Andy Dalton Andrew Gregory Dalton (born October 29, 1987) is an American football quarterback for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). Nicknamed "Red Rifle", Dalton previously played for the Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys, and ...

twice in the 21-20 win.

Buffalo Bills

On March 26, 2020, Jefferson signed a two-year contract with the Buffalo Bills. In Week 4 against the

, Jefferson recorded his first career forced fumble, a strip sack on

Derek Carr Derek Dallas Carr (born March 28, 1991) is an American football quarterback for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Fresno State, where he twice received first-team All- MWC honors, and w ...

which he recovered himself, during the 30–23 win. Jefferson was released by the Bills after the season on March 10, 2021.

Las Vegas Raiders

Jefferson signed with the

on a one-year deal on March 17, 2021.

Seattle Seahawks (third stint)

Jefferson signed with the Seahawks on March 21, 2022. He played in 17 games with three starts, recording 29 tackles, two passes defensed, and a career-high 5.5 sacks. On March 14, 2023, Jefferson was released by the Seahawks.

New York Jets

On April 7, 2023, Jefferson signed with the New York Jets.

Statistics

''Source
NFL.com
'

Personal life

Jefferson graduated in December 2015 from the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

with a degree in family science. Jefferson is married to Nadia Jefferson and has four children. The oldest three children are daughters, with the youngest two girls being twins, and the youngest child is a boy.

References

External links

Seattle Seahawks bioMaryland Terrapins bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jefferson, Quinton 1993 births Living people American football defensive tackles Players of American football from Pittsburgh Maryland Terrapins football players Seattle Seahawks players Los Angeles Rams players Buffalo Bills players Las Vegas Raiders players New York Jets players