Bilal Matan Powell (born October 27, 1988) is a former

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 wit ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. The ...

. He played college football at

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

. Drafted by the New York Jets in the fourth round of the

2011 NFL Draft The 2011 NFL Draft was the 76th installment of the annual NFL Draft, where the franchises of the National Football League select newly eligible football players. Like the 2010 draft, the 2011 draft was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York ...

, Powell played his entire professional career with the Jets from 2011 to 2019 and ranks among the top running backs in Jets history. Powell grew up in

Lakeland, Florida Lakeland is the most populous city in Polk County, Florida, part of the Tampa Bay Area, located along Interstate 4 east of Tampa. According to the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau release, the city had a population of 112,641. Lakeland is a principal c ...

, where he was an all-state football player at

Lake Gibson High School Lake Gibson High School is located in Lakeland, Florida, and was established in 1979. Athletics Lake Gibson offers a wide variety of sports for boys and girls including: Baseball, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls cross country, weightl ...

. At the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of ...

, Powell played for the

Louisville Cardinals The Louisville Cardinals (also known as the Cards) are the NCAA athletic teams representing the University of Louisville. The Cardinals teams play in the Atlantic Coast Conference, beginning in the 2014 season. While playing in the Big East Co ...

from 2007 to 2010, completing his college career with 2,338 yards and 19 touchdowns on 436 carries. In his senior season of 2010, Powell earned All-

Big East The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and M ...

and

Phil Steele Phil Steele (c. 1960) is an American sportswriter and analyst who focuses exclusively on college and professional football. He is considered a "highly respected prognosticator" within the sports media. His company, Phil Steele Publications, pr ...

All-American honors and set a school record at Louisville with 1,405 single-season rushing yards, while helping Louisville win the

2010 Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl The 2010 Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl was the third edition of the college football bowl game formerly known as the St. Petersburg Bowl. This was the first edition of the bowl named after the Beef O'Brady's restaurant franchise. It was played at Trop ...

. In the

, Powell was selected in the fourth round, 126th overall. Powell played his entire NFL career with the Jets. In 109 games played from 2011 to 2019, Powell had 38 starts and rushed for 3,675 yards and 15 touchdowns. In 2016, Powell averaged 5.5 yards per carry, second best league-wide in that category. His most productive season was in 2017, with 772 yards and five touchdowns as a rusher.

Early years

Powell attended and played football for

. A second-team all-state honoree, he received offers from

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It ...

and

Southern Miss The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to a ...

and chose to attend Louisville.

College career

Powell attended and played college football for the University of Louisville from 2007 to 2010. Powell completed his Bachelor of Science degree at Louisville in the summer of 2017.

2007 season

As a freshman, Powell contributed on offense and special teams. He was part of a shared backfield that included Anthony Allen, Brock Bolen, George Striping, and Sergio Spencer. On October 27, he had 25 rushing yards and ten receiving yards against

Pitt Pitt most commonly refers to: *The University of Pittsburgh, commonly known as Pitt, a university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States **Pitt Panthers, the athletic teams of the University of Pittsburgh * Pitt (surname), a surname o ...

. His role expanded in the game against

South Florida South Florida is the southernmost region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is one of Florida's three most commonly referred to directional regions; the other two are Central Florida and North Florida. South Florida is the southernmost part of ...

with 70 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, two receptions, 15 receiving yards, and six returns for 141 net yards. In his final appearance of his freshman season, he had 91 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, and seven kick returns for 178 net yards against

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and w ...

2008 season

As a sophomore, Powell continued to contribute for the Cardinals. He became the third running back behind Vic Anderson and Brock Bolen. On September 26, he had 112 rushing yards and a touchdown against Connecticut. On November 22, against

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the ...

, he had 77 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown.

2009 season

As a junior, Powell led the team in rushes. He, Darius Ashley, and Vic Anderson dominated the share of carries for the Cardinals. In the season opener against

Indiana State Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified among "D/PU: Doctor ...

, he had 76 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. On October 17, against

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, he had 87 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns to go along with three receptions for 15 yards. On Halloween, against

Arkansas State Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

, he had season-highs with 93 rushing yards and 31 receiving yards.

2010 season

As a senior, Powell dominated the carries for the Cardinals. In the season opener against

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virgini ...

, he had 153 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. He followed that up with 92 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns against

Eastern Kentucky Eastern may refer to: Transportation * China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai *Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 * Eastern Air ...

. In the next game, he had 83 rushing yards, a rushing touchdown, and 21 receiving yards against

Oregon State Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering col ...

. In the following game against

, he had 157 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, 65 receiving yards, and one receiving touchdown. On October 9, against

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

, he had 204 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns. On October 15, he ran for a season-high of 209 yards and 2 touchdowns against

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state lin ...

. He followed that up with 105 rushing yards against

in the next game. On November 13, against

, he had 140 rushing yards. On November 26, against

, he had 123 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, 28 receiving yards, and two receiving touchdowns in the victory. In the final game of his collegiate career, he had 75 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown in the victory over

in the

. He was named to the All-

Big East Conference The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and ...

first-team and

All-American fourth team after rushing for 1,405 yards and 10 touchdowns in 11 games for the Cardinals. His 1,405 single season rushing yards set a new school record for second all time. Prior to the

, Powell was invited to the

2011 Senior Bowl The 2011 Senior Bowl was an all-star college football exhibition game featuring players from the 2010 college football season, and prospects for the 2011 Draft of the professional National Football League (NFL). The 62nd edition of the Senior Bo ...

College statistics

Professional career

Powell was drafted by the New York Jets in the fourth round with the 126th overall selection in the 2011 NFL Draft. He was the 14th running back to be selected that year.

2011 season

On July 29, 2011, Powell signed a 4-year rookie contract worth $3,226,500 with $400,500 guaranteed. Powell made his NFL debut on November 17, 2011, against the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquar ...

. Powell would finish the 2011 season by playing in only two games. In those two games, Powell ran for 21 yards on 13 attempts and had one reception for 7 yards.

2012 season

On November 18, 2012, Powell ran for 42 yards on 11 carries and a season-high two touchdowns against the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arr ...

, his first multiple-touchdown game of his career. On November 22, 2012, Powell ran for 40 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown against the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

. On December 2, 2012, Powell ran for 58 yards on 12 carries against the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division, an ...

. On December 9, 2012, Powell ran for a season-high 78 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown against 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 ...

. Powell scored his fourth touchdown of the season, and also had a season-high in carries. Powell finished his second professional season running for 437 yards on 110 carries and 4 touchdowns and catching 17 passes for 140 yards.

2013 season

On September 22, 2013, Powell ran for 149 yards on 27 carries and a touchdown against the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division ...

. Powell ran for a 21-yard touchdown. On September 29, Powell ran for 66 yards on 14 carries against the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...

. On December 22, 2013, Powell recorded a 39-yard run 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 ( ...

. On December 29, 2013, Powell ran for 76 yards on 21 carries against the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pl ...

. Powell also threw a pass to tight end

Jeff Cumberland Jeffrey Lionell Cumberland (born May 2, 1987) is a former American football tight end. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the New York Jets in 2010. He played college football at Illinois. Early years Cumberland was selected to the O ...

for 30 yards. Powell finished the 2013 season with 697 rushing yards on 176 carries and a touchdown and 272 receiving yards on 36 passes.

2014 season

On October 26, 2014, Powell ran for his only touchdown of the season against the

. Powell finished the 2014 season with 141 rushing yards on 33 carries and 92 receiving yards on 11 catches.

2015 season

On March 14, 2015, Powell signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the New York Jets. In Week 13, Powell had 108 scrimmage yards against the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...

. He finished the 2015 season with 313 rushing yards on 70 carries and a touchdown and 388 receiving yards on 47 catches and two touchdowns.

2016 season

On March 10, 2016, Powell signed a three-year, $11,250,000 contract with the New York Jets. On September 11, 2016, Powell ran for 41 yards on 4 carries in the season-opener 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) North division. The club's home ...

. On September 25, 2016, Powell caught 6 passes for 41 yards 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 t ...

. On October 2, Powell caught six passes for 54 yards against the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 a ...

. On October 30, 2016, he ran for 76 yards on 6 carries and a touchdown against the

. His 35-yard touchdown was the longest Jets touchdown run since

Chris Ivory Christopher Lee Ivory (born March 22, 1988) is a former American football running back. He was signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2010 and also played for the New York Jets, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Buffalo Bills. He ...

ran 71-yards in 2014 against the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Ra ...

,. On November 13, 2016, Powell caught seven passes for 52 yards and a touchdown against the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC Wes ...

. He was able to score the touchdown on a lateral trick play. On December 11, 2016, he ran for a season-high 145 yards on 29 carries and two touchdowns against 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 ...

. His two touchdowns were a 5-yard score and a 19-yard score, which was the game-winning touchdown in overtime. This was his first 100-yard game of the season, and the second of his career while he also became only the second Jets player since 1975 to rush for at least 145 yards and at least two touchdowns in a road game. Powell's 19-yard touchdown in overtime was the first rushing touchdown in overtime in team history. Overall, in the 2016 season, he finished with 722 rushing yards, three rushing touchdowns, 58 receptions, 388 receiving yards, and two receiving touchdowns. His 5.5 yards per carry ranked second in the NFL.

2017 season

During Week 4 against the

, Powell rushed for 163 yards, including one for a 75-yard touchdown, as the Jets won 23–20 in overtime. In Week 16, against the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...

, he had 145 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. Overall, in the 2017 season, he finished with a career-high 772 rushing yards, five rushing touchdowns, 23 receptions, and 170 receiving yards.

2018 season

Powell started the first seven games of the season, recording 343 rushing yards with no touchdowns along with 11 receptions for 110 yards and one touchdown. He suffered a neck injury in Week 7 and was placed on injured reserve on October 24, 2018.

2019 season

On June 7, 2019, Powell re-signed with the Jets. In the 2019 season, Powell appeared in 13 games, of which he started one, and recorded 59 carries for 229 rushing yards. In November 2019, Powell was the longest-tenured active member of the New York Jets. Powell became a free agent in 2020; he expressed a desire to stay with the team through the end of his NFL career. He left the Jets with a career total of 3,675 rushing yards with 15 touchdowns, the eighth most rushing yards in team history. After being unsigned in 2020 and 2021, Powell signed a one-day contract on April 26, 2022, to retire with the Jets.

NFL career statistics

Personal life

Powell is a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

. Powell is married and has two children.

References

External links

*
Louisville Cardinals bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Bilal 1988 births Living people African-American players of American football American football running backs Louisville Cardinals football players New York Jets players Players of American football from Lakeland, Florida 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people