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Germaine Pratt (born May 21, 1996) is an American professional football linebacker for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at NC State, and was drafted by the Bengals in the third round of the 2019 NFL draft.

Germaine Pratt
refer to caption
Pratt with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2020
No. 57 – Cincinnati Bengals
Position:Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1996-05-21) May 21, 1996 (age 28)
High Point, North Carolina, U.S.
Height:6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:250 lb (113 kg)
Career information
High school:High Point Central
College:NC State (2014–2018)
NFL draft:2019 / round: 3 / pick: 72
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
  • First-team All-ACC (2018)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 6, 2024
Total tackles:531
Sacks:3.5
Forced fumbles:7
Fumble recoveries:5
Pass deflections:20
Interceptions:6
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

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Pratt attended High Point Central High School in High Point, North Carolina. He committed to North Carolina State University to play college football.[1]

College career

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Pratt played at NC State from 2014 to 2018.[2][3] During his career, he had 235 tackles, six sacks, four interceptions and a touchdown.[4]

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 2+12 in
(1.89 m)
240 lb
(109 kg)
31+58 in
(0.80 m)
9+18 in
(0.23 m)
4.57 s 1.58 s 2.53 s 4.45 s 32+12 in
(0.83 m)
9 ft 8 in
(2.95 m)
24 reps
All values from NFL Combine[5][6]

2019

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The Cincinnati Bengals selected Pratt in the third round (72nd overall) of the 2019 NFL draft.[7] Pratt was the eighth linebacker drafted in 2019.[8] On June 27, 2019, the Bengals signed Pratt to a four-year, $4.08 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $1.05 million.[9]

Throughout training camp, Pratt competed with Hardy Nickerson, Malik Jefferson, Deshaun Davis and Noah Dawkins for a role as the Bengals' primary backup linebacker, resulting in Pratt winning the job, and head coach Zac Taylor placing him behind starters Preston Brown, Nick Vigil, and Jordan Evans on the depth chart to begin the regular season.[10]

Pratt earned his first career start and recorded five combined tackles (four solo) during a 23 –17 loss at the Baltimore Ravens in Week 6. In Week 10, Pratt started at middle linebacker, replacing Brown, and made four combined tackles (three solo) in the Bengals' 49–13 loss against the Baltimore Ravens.

On November 12, 2019, the Cincinnati Bengals waived Preston Brown, subsequently resulting in Pratt remaining as the starter for the remainder of the season.[11] In Week 16, Pratt collected a season-high 11 combined tackles (nine solo) during a 38–35 loss at the Miami Dolphins. He finished his rookie campaign in 2019 with a total of 76 combined tackles (50 solo) in 16 games and nine starts.[12]

2020

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Defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo elected to install a base nickel defense and named Pratt and Josh Bynes as the starting linebackers.[13][14] He started in the Bengals' season-opener against the Los Angeles Chargers and made 12 combined tackles (eight solo) during a 16–13 loss.[15] He finished the season with 89 tackles (55 solo), and two pass deflections.

2021

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Pratt was once again named a starting linebacker for the 2021 season alongside Logan Wilson. In Week 8 against the New York Jets, Pratt recorded his first career interception on Jets' quarterback Mike White. In the Bengals' Week 14 win against the Denver Broncos, Pratt had a career-high 15 combined tackles (nine solo). He finished the regular season with 91 tackles and two forced fumbles. Against the Las Vegas Raiders in the Wild Card round, Pratt recorded six tackles, and recorded the game-winning interception on Derek Carr in the 26–19 win, securing the Bengals first playoff win since 1991.[16]

2022

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Pratt and Wilson returned as the team's starting linebackers for the 2022 season. In the Bengals' Week 5 loss to the Ravens, Pratt recorded his first career sack on Ravens' quarterback Lamar Jackson. The following week against the New Orleans Saints, Pratt recorded 14 tackles, one shy of his personal career high. Pratt made an interception in Week 9 against the Carolina Panthers, leading to a viral celebration by the entire Bengals defense, doing snow angels in the end zone.[17] His second interception of the season came in the fourth quarter of their Week 15 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.[18] Pratt finished the season with 99 tackles, finishing second on the team in total tackles, only behind Wilson.

2023

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On March 14, 2023, Pratt signed a three-year, $20.25 million contract extension with the Bengals.[19][20] In the Bengals' Week 1 game against the Cleveland Browns, Pratt recorded his second career sack and force a fumble in the 24–3 loss.[21] Pratt made an interception in Week 5 against the Arizona Cardinals, but suffered a minor shoulder injury while bringing the ball in.[22] During the third quarter of the Bengals' Week 8 game against the San Francisco 49ers, Pratt picked off 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy's end zone pass, a crucial turnover for the Bengals who went on to win 31–17.[23] Pratt finished the season with a career-high 118 tackles, finishing second on the team in total tackles, only behind Wilson.

NFL career statistics

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Legend
Bold Career high

Regular season statistics

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Year Team Games Tackles Fumbles Interceptions
GP GS Comb Solo Ast Sack FF FR Yds TD PD Int Yds Avg Lng TD
2019 CIN 16 9 76 50 26 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0
2020 CIN 16 15 89 55 34 0.0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0.0 0 0
2021 CIN 15 15 91 57 34 0.5 2 2 0 0 2 1 4 4.0 4 0
2022 CIN 15 15 99 50 49 1.0 1 1 -8 0 10 2 3 2.5 3 0
2023 CIN 17 17 118 63 55 2.0 2 0 0 0 3 2 9 4.5 9 0
Career 74 66 473 275 198 3.5 5 3 -8 0 17 5 16 3.7 9 0

Playoffs statistics

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Year Team Games Tackles Fumbles Interceptions
GP GS Comb Solo Ast Sack FF FR Yds TD PD Int Yds Avg Lng TD
2021 CIN 4 4 29 20 9 0.0 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 2.0 2 0
2022 CIN 3 3 20 12 8 0.0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0.0 0 0
Career 7 7 49 32 17 0.0 0 0 0 0 4 1 2 1.0 2 0

References

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  1. ^ Reynolds, David. "High Point Central's Pratt commits to N.C. State". Greensboro News and Record.
  2. ^ NC State's next breakout defensive star? Look for the hoodie
  3. ^ "NC State's Pratt thriving in final season with Pack, hoping play pays off for family". WRALSportsFan.com. October 8, 2018.
  4. ^ Staff Report. "Wolfpack's Pratt to skip Gator Bowl". Technician.
  5. ^ "NFL Draft Prospect Profile - Germaine Pratt". nfl.com. March 1, 2019. Retrieved March 1, 2019.
  6. ^ "North Carolina State OLB Germaine Pratt : 2019 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". NFLDraftScout.com. Retrieved May 12, 2019.
  7. ^ "Bengals select Germaine Pratt with the 72nd overall pick". CincyJungle.com. April 26, 2019.
  8. ^ "2019 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
  9. ^ "Spotrac.com: Germain Pratt contract". Spotrac.com. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
  10. ^ "Ourlads.com: Cincinnati Bengals Depth Chart: 09/02/2019". Ourlads.com. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  11. ^ "Bengals cut veteran linebacker Preston Brown". stripehype.com. November 12, 2019. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  12. ^ "Pro Football Reference: Germain Pratt (2019)". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  13. ^ "Film Room: What to know about the Bengals defense in 2020". cincyjungle.com. September 11, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  14. ^ "Cincinnati Bengals Bengals projected depth chart". cincinnati.com. September 5, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  15. ^ "Pro Football Reference: Germain Pratt (2020)". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  16. ^ Polacek, Scott. "Joe Burrow, Bengals Snap NFL Playoff Drought with Win Over Derek Carr, Raiders". Bleacher Report. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  17. ^ "Bengals Notebook: Saturday Meeting Fired Up Mixon; Remember The Defense (And Celebrations)". www.bengals.com. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
  18. ^ "Bengals' Germaine Pratt: Nabs late INT". CBSSports.com. December 21, 2022. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
  19. ^ Hobson, Geoff (March 13, 2023). "Bengals Extend Germaine Pratt: "We're Close ... I Want To Win"". Bengals.com. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  20. ^ "Bengals Re-Sign Germaine Pratt". Bengals.com. March 14, 2023. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
  21. ^ "Reactions: Cincinnati recovers Jerome Ford fumble during first quarter in Cleveland". Yahoo Sports. September 10, 2023. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
  22. ^ "Record-setting day for Chase leads Bengals past Cardinals". Dayton-daily-news. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
  23. ^ "Bengals' Germaine Pratt: Picks off Purdy in Week 8 win". CBSSports.com. October 31, 2023. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
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