Neil Farrell Jr. (born September 9, 1998) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

nose tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

LSU Tigers The LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers (also known as the Fighting Tigers) are the athletic teams representing Louisiana State University (LSU), a state university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU competes in Division I of the National Collegiat ...

and was selected by the

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

in the fourth round of the

2022 NFL draft The 2022 NFL draft was the 87th edition of the National Football League's annual NFL draft, draft and was held from April 28–30, 2022, at the Caesars Forum on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, Paradise next to Las Vegas. The first round ...

Early life

Farrell grew up in

Mobile, Alabama Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. After a successful vote to annex areas west of the city limits in July 2023, Mobil ...

, and attended Murphy High School. As a senior, Farrell recorded 101 tackles, 28 for a loss, 13 sacks, and 14 quarterback hurries. Farrell was rated a four-star recruit and committed to play

LSU Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

over offers from

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

USC USC may refer to: Education United States * Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, Santurce, Puerto Rico * University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina ** University of South Carolina System, a state university system of South Carolina * ...

, and

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

and signed with the team despite a late recruiting push by

Florida State Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

College career

Farrell played in the first five games of his freshman season and recorded five tackles with one quarterback hurry before suffering an injury. Farrell played in all 15 of LSU's games with three starts as a sophomore and had 46 tackles, seven tackles for loss, and three sacks as the Tigers won the

2020 College Football Playoff National Championship The 2020 College Football Playoff National Championship was a college football bowl game played on January 13, 2020 (which was the latest calendar date for the game until 2025), at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The six ...

. Farrell initially announced that he would opt-out of his senior season due to family health concerns regarding the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

pandemic, but later reversed his decision. Farrell finished the season with 25 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 1.0 sacks, and 1 forced fumble. After considering entering the

2021 NFL draft The 2021 NFL draft was the 86th National Football League draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland, Ohio from April 29 to May ...

, he decided to utilize the extra year of eligibility granted to college athletes who played in the 2020 season due to the coronavirus pandemic and return to LSU for a fifth season. Farrell finished the 2021 season with 45 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, and two sacks. After the conclusion of his college career, he played in the

2022 Senior Bowl The 2022 Senior Bowl was a college football all-star game played on February 5, 2022, at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Alabama. The game featured prospects for the 2022 NFL Draft, 2022 draft of the professional National Football League (NFL) ...

and was named the best defensive lineman for the American Team.

Professional career

Las Vegas Raiders

Farrell was selected by the

in the fourth round, 126th overall, of the

. He was placed on the non-football injury list on July 26, 2023.

Kansas City Chiefs

On August 29, 2023, Farrell was traded to 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 of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

in exchange for sixth-round selection in the

2024 NFL draft The 2024 NFL draft was the 89th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players. The draft was held at Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza in Detroit on April 25–27, 2024. The draft had an attendanc ...

. Farrell reached

Super Bowl LVIII Super Bowl LVIII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2023 NFL season, 2023 season. A rematch of Super Bowl LIV four years prior, the American Football Conference (AFC) 20 ...

where the Chiefs defeated the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the 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 ...

25-22 in

. Farrell recorded 1 tackle and 1 pass defensed in the Super Bowl. Farrell was waived by the Chiefs on August 27, 2024, and re-signed to the practice squad, but released two days later.

Miami Dolphins

On September 26, 2024, Farrell signed with the

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

practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on November 11. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 7, 2025. On May 8, 2025, Farrell was waived by the Dolphins.

References

External links

LSU Tigers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Farrell, Neil Jr. 1998 births Living people Players of American football from Mobile, Alabama American football defensive tackles LSU Tigers football players Las Vegas Raiders players Kansas City Chiefs players Miami Dolphins players