Ezekiel Turner (born June 9, 1996) 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 ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

for the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). 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

Washington Huskies The Washington Huskies are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Washington, located in Seattle. The school competes at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) N ...

as a

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

and was signed by 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. The ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

following the

2018 NFL draft The 2018 NFL draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington southwest of Dallas; it was ...

. Turner was named to the

PFWA All-Rookie Team Following each National Football League (NFL) season, the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA) compiles an honorary All-Rookie Team to recognize that season's most outstanding rookies at each position as adjudged by sportswriters of the PFWA. T ...

as a special teamer in the

2018 NFL season The 2018 NFL season was the 99th season of the National Football League (NFL) and the 53rd of the Super Bowl era. The season began on September 6, 2018, with the NFL Kickoff Game with the defending Super Bowl LII champion 2018 Philadelphia Eag ...

College career

Turner enrolled at the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

in January 2015 and played as a

for the Washington Huskies his remaining college career. He was named Huskies

Special Teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

Player of the Week four different times in his college career and selected as the co-winner of the Special Teams MVP in the 2016 season. Turner played 12 of 13 games and started one game in his sophomore season. His first start was against

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

, where he had a total of seven

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position) A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent ...

. Tuner played in 13 of 14 games during his junior season in 2016. He had a tackle for loss and had an

interception In Ball game, ball-playing Competitive sport, competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for ...

in the

2016 Pac-12 Football Championship Game The 2016 Pac-12 Football Championship Game was played on Friday, December 2, 2016 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California to determine the champion of the Pac-12 Conference in football for the 2016 season. It was the sixth football champ ...

vs. the Colorado Buffaloes. He was selected as the co-winner of the Special Teams MVP award following his junior season after totaling 23 total tackles, 2.5 tackles for a loss and one forced

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful h ...

. Turner played all 13 games and started three games during his senior season in 2017. He totaled five tackles, including one tackle for a loss, in his season opener against the

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

. Turner totaled six tackles and a 41-yard interception return against the

Washington State Cougars The Washington State Cougars (known informally as the Cougs) are the sport, athletic teams that represent Washington State University. Located in Pullman, Washington, WSU is a member of the Pac-12 Conference in NCAA Division I. The athletic pr ...

in the 110th Annual

Apple Cup The Apple Cup is an American college football rivalry game between the University of Washington Huskies and Washington State University Cougars, the two largest universities in the state of Washington. Both were members of the Pac-12 Conferen ...

and was named special teams player of the week.

College statistics

''Source'':

Professional career

Arizona Cardinals

Turner signed with the

as an undrafted free agent on April 30, 2018. He played in all 16 games, finished third in the league with 16 total special teams tackles, and was named to the Pro Football Writers of America All-Rookie Team as a special teamer. On September 13, 2020, in the season opener, Turner blocked a punt against

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 ...

' punter Mitch Wishnowsky in the first-quarter. Turner's teammate Dennis Gardeck recovered and advanced the ball five yards to the 49ers' 10-yard line. On December 20, 2020, in Week 15, Turner blocked a punt against

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

' punter Cameron Johnston in the first-quarter. The ball bounced out of bounds at the Eagles' 6-yard line, which ended the Eagles' drive on a

turnover on downs In gridiron football, a turnover on downs occurs when a team's offense has used all its downs but has not advanced the ball enough to earn another set of downs. The resulting turnover gives possession of the ball to the team on defense. Backgro ...

. In the fourth-quarter, on fourth-and-2, Turner caught a 26-yard reception from his punter

Andy Lee Andy Lee may refer to: __NOTOC__ Sportspeople * Andy Lee (American football) (born 1982), American football punter * Andy Lee (boxer) (born 1984), Irish boxer * Andy Lee (footballer, born 1982), English footballer for Bradford City * Andy Lee (footb ...

on a successful

fake punt Fake or fakes may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Fake'' (1927 film), a silent British drama film * ''The Fake'' (1953 film), a British film * ''Fake'' (2003 film), a Thai movie * ''Fake'', a 2010 film featuring F ...

resulting in a first-down for the Cardinals. The Cardinals placed a

restricted free agent A restricted free agent (RFA) is a type of free agent in some sports leagues, such as the National Football League (NFL), National Hockey League (NHL), and National Basketball Association (NBA). Such players have special restrictions on the term ...

tender on Turner on March 15, 2021. He signed the one-year contract on April 19. He was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

on October 13, 2021, with a shoulder injury. He was activated on January 17, 2022. On March 18, 2022, Turner re-signed with the Cardinals. On March 15, 2023, Turner signed a one-year contract extension with the Cardinals.

San Francisco 49ers

On March 20, 2024, Turner signed with the

. He was released on August 14.

Houston Texans

On August 28, 2024, Turner was signed to the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team plays its home games at N ...

practice squad. He was released on October 1.

Seattle Seahawks

On October 8, 2024, Turner was signed to 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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

practice squad. He was released on October 25.

Detroit Lions

On November 6, 2024, Turner was signed to the

practice squad, and promoted to the active roster on November 16.

Professional statistics

Regular season

References

External links

San Francisco 49ers bio

Washington Huskies
{{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, Ezekiel 1996 births Living people American football linebackers American football safeties Arizona Cardinals players Houston Texans players 21st-century American sportsmen People from Pasadena, Maryland Players of American football from Anne Arundel County, Maryland San Francisco 49ers players Washington Huskies football players Seattle Seahawks players Detroit Lions players