Tavon Antonio Young (born March 14, 1994) 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 ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

who is a free agent. He played college football at

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

. He was originally drafted in the fourth 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), ...

by the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...

Early years

Young attended Frederick Douglass High School from 2008 to 2011 and Potomac High School from 2011 to 2012 in Oxon Hill, Maryland, where he was teammates with cornerback Ronald Darby.

Professional career

On November 17, 2015, it was announced that Young accepted his invitation to play in the

2016 Senior Bowl The 2016 Senior Bowl was an all-star college football exhibition game featuring players from the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season, and prospects for the 2016 Draft of the professional National Football League (NFL). The game concluded th ...

. His home state

selected Young in the fourth round (104th overall) 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), ...

. Young was the 16th cornerback drafted in 2016.

Baltimore Ravens

2016 season

On May 9, 2016, the Baltimore Ravens signed Young to a four-year, $2.94 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $605,130. Young recorded his first career interception in Week 3 of the 2016 season in a 19–17 win vs. 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 ...

. He made his first NFL start in Week 6 against the New York Giants, recording three tackles and snagging his second interception of the season, picking off Eli Manning. He became the Ravens' No. 2 cornerback behind Jimmy Smith, playing in 16 games with 11 starts recording 53 tackles, eight passes defensed and two interceptions.

2017 season

On June 1, 2017, Young suffered a torn ACL during OTAs, and missed the entire 2017 season. He was placed on injured reserve on September 1, 2017.

2018 season

Young entered the 2018 season as the Ravens No. 3 cornerback behind

Brandon Carr Brandon Carey Carr (born May 19, 1986) is a former American football cornerback. He last played for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Grand Valley State and was drafted by the Kansas City Ch ...

and

Marlon Humphrey Marlon N. Humphrey (born July 8, 1996) is an American football cornerback for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He attended Hoover High School, where he was named to the USA Today All-USA high school football team in ...

. Young recorded his first two sacks of his career in the season opener against the Buffalo Bills, becoming the first Ravens defensive back to do so since Bennie Thompson in 1996. He recorded his third-career interception in Week 5 against the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...

. In Week 13, Young returned a fumble forced by Patrick Onwuasor and returned it 12 yards for the touchdown in a 26–16 win over the Atlanta Falcons. In Week 16, Young returned another fumble forced by Patrick Onwuasor and returned it 62 yards for the touchdown in a 22–10 win over the Los Angeles Chargers. He played in 15 games with six starts, recording 37 combined tackles, five pass deflections, an interception, three fumble recoveries and two defensive touchdowns.

2019 season

On February 21, 2019, Young signed a three-year, $25.8 million contract extension with the Ravens, making him the highest-paid nickel cornerback in the NFL. On August 15, 2019, head coach

John Harbaugh John William Harbaugh (born September 23, 1962) is an American football coach who is the head coach of the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). Previously, he coached the defensive backs for the Philadelphia Eagles and served ...

announced that Young was expected to miss the entire

2019 NFL season The 2019 NFL season was the 100th season of the National Football League (NFL) and the 54th of the Super Bowl era. The season began on September 5, 2019, with the NFL Kickoff Game, in which Green Bay defeated Chicago. The season concluded ...

due to a neck injury he suffered in practice. He was placed on season-ending injured reserve on August 31, 2019.

2020 season

Young appeared in the Ravens' season opener against the

, recording two solo tackles. During the first quarter of the Ravens' Week 2 matchup on September 20, 2020, against the Houston Texans, Young forced an incomplete pass, but suffered a

torn ACL An anterior cruciate ligament injury occurs when the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is either stretched, partially torn, or completely torn. The most common injury is a complete tear. Symptoms include pain, an audible cracking sound during inju ...

on the play and the team placed him on injured reserve following the game on September 28. He was placed on the reserve/

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

list by the Ravens on November 28, 2020, and moved back to injured reserve three days later.

2021 season

Young would see slightly more playing time in 2021 due in part to a season-ending ACL injury to fellow corner

Marcus Peters Marcus Peters (born January 9, 1993) is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft and was also a member of the Los Angeles Rams and the Baltimore Raven ...

. In Week 2 against the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The ...

, he had a crucial interception off

Patrick Mahomes Patrick Lavon Mahomes II (born September 17, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). The son of former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher Pat Mahomes, he initially played c ...

in the 3rd quarter to help spark a rally as the Ravens won 36–35. He also broke up a pass during the game. Young was released on March 9, 2022, after six seasons.

Chicago Bears

On April 11, 2022, the Chicago Bears signed Young to a one-year contract. He was placed on injured reserve on August 30, 2022. He was released on September 17.

References

External links

Temple Owls bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Young, Tavon 1994 births Living people American football cornerbacks Baltimore Ravens players Chicago Bears players People from Oxon Hill, Maryland Players of American football from Prince George's County, Maryland Temple Owls football players