Tyrus Thompson (born November 17, 1991) 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 ...
offensive tackle. He played
college football at
Oklahoma. He was drafted by the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansio ...
in the sixth round of the
2015 NFL Draft
The 2015 NFL Draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park, from April 30 to May 2. The previo ...
.
Early years
Thompson attended
Pflugerville High School in
Pflugerville, Texas
Pflugerville ( ) is a city in Travis County, Texas, United States, with a small portion in Williamson County. The population was 65,191 at the 2020 census. Pflugerville is a suburb of Austin and part of the Austin–Round Rock–San Ma ...
, where he was a two-sport star in both football and track. He was regarded as a four-star recruit and was ranked as the No. 18
offensive tackle in the nation by
Scout.com,
Rivals.com
Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel.
History
Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heck ...
and
ESPN.com. Overall, he was considered the No. 164 overall player by ''Rivals'' and No. 133 by
PrepStar
''PrepStar College Recruiting'', known also as ''PrepStar'', is an online magazine at www.prepstar.com, which was established in 1982. It provides information on the top football and basketball prospects in the United States. The online magazin ...
. Also a standout in
track & field
Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...
, Thompson was one of the state's top performers in the throwing events with personal-bests of 16.96 meters (55-6.25) in the
shot put
The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...
and 42.58 meters (139-7) in the
discus.
College career
Thompson attended the
University of Oklahoma
, mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State"
, type = Public research university
, established =
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $2.7billion (2021)
, pr ...
and played college football under head coach
Bob Stoops
Robert Anthony Stoops (born September 9, 1960) is an American football coach. He was the head football coach at the University of Oklahoma from 1999 through the 2016 season, and on an interim basis during the 2021 Alamo Bowl. He led the Oklahom ...
.
Professional career
Thompson was projected to be selected in the fourth or fifth round by the majority of scouts and NFL draft experts.
Minnesota Vikings
Thompson was drafted by the Vikings in the sixth round, 185th overall, in the
2015 NFL Draft
The 2015 NFL Draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park, from April 30 to May 2. The previo ...
. He was placed on injured reserve on September 6, 2015. He was released on September 18, 2015.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Thompson was signed to the Jaguars' practice squad on September 18, 2015.
Detroit Lions
Thompson signed with the Lions on November 10, 2016. He was released on May 9, 2016.
New Orleans Saints
On May 16, 2016, Thompson signed with the Saints. He was placed on injured reserve on September 4, 2016. He was released on October 10, 2016.
Carolina Panthers
On November 29, 2016, Thompson was signed to the Panthers' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Panthers on January 2, 2017. He was waived on August 12, 2017.
Seattle Seahawks
On August 21, 2017, Thompson signed with 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 ...
. His contract expired on January 4, 2018.
Personal life
Thompson is the son of Raymond and Yolanda Thompson. He was born in
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
while his father was stationed abroad as a
paratrooper
A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during Wor ...
in the
U.S. Army. He chose his jersey number in honor of the year his mother was born. He has two siblings Kaela Thompson and Breya Thompson.
References
External links
Oklahoma Sooners bio
1991 births
Living people
People from Pasadena, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
American football offensive tackles
Oklahoma Sooners football players
Minnesota Vikings players
Jacksonville Jaguars players
Detroit Lions players
New Orleans Saints players
Carolina Panthers players
Seattle Seahawks players
Sportspeople from Harris County, Texas
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