Damone Clark (/dəˈmoʊn/ duh-MONE;[1] born June 28, 2000) is an American professional football linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU.
 Clark with the LSU Tigers in 2019 | |||||||||
| No. 18 – Dallas Cowboys | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Linebacker | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | June 28, 2000 New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 240 lb (109 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Southern University Laboratory (Baton Rouge, Louisiana) | ||||||||
| College: | LSU (2018–2021) | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2022 / round: 5 / pick: 176 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of 2023 | |||||||||
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Early life
editClark was born and lived in New Orleans until his family was displaced by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, after which they moved to Baton Rouge.[2] He attended Southern University Laboratory School in Baton Rouge.[3] During his junior season, Clark recorded 48 tackles, five tackles for loss, and four sacks, and four interceptions.[4]
College career
editClark played in 12 games during his freshman season on special teams and as a reserve linebacker behind starter Devin White.[5] He played in all 15 of LSU's games with three starts as a sophomore and had 49 tackles and 3.5 sacks as the Tigers won the 2020 College Football Playoff National Championship.[6] Clark was chosen to wear the No. 18 jersey by the Tigers' coaching staff going into his junior season.[7] He finished the season tied for the team lead with 63 tackles.[8]
Professional career
edit| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 2+1⁄2 in (1.89 m) |
239 lb (108 kg) |
33 in (0.84 m) |
9+3⁄4 in (0.25 m) |
4.57 s | 1.55 s | 2.63 s | 7.12 s | 36.5 in (0.93 m) |
10 ft 7 in (3.23 m) | |||
| All values from NFL Combine[9][10] | ||||||||||||
Clark was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the fifth round, 176th overall, of the 2022 NFL draft.[11] On June 23, 2022, it was announced that Clark had undergone spinal fusion surgery in March and would miss part of the 2022 season.[12] He was activated off of injured reserve on October 5.[13]
NFL career statistics
edit| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
Regular season
edit| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Fumbles | Interceptions | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | FF | FR | Yds | TD | Int | Yds | TD | PD | ||
| 2022 | DAL | 10 | 5 | 47 | 29 | 18 | 0.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | DAL | 17 | 17 | 109 | 70 | 39 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Career | 27 | 22 | 156 | 99 | 57 | 0.0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
Postseason
edit| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Fumbles | Interceptions | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | FF | FR | Yds | TD | Int | Yds | TD | PD | ||
| 2022 | DAL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | DAL | 1 | 1 | 8 | 5 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Career | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
References
edit- ^ "2022 Dallas Cowboys Media Guide" (PDF). NFL.com. National Football League. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
- ^ Dellenger, Ross (January 15, 2017). "A real pick-me-up: Southern Lab LB Damone Clark commits to LSU at midfield of Tiger Stadium". NOLA.com. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
- ^ Weathers, William (December 20, 2017). "LSU lands strong-willed linebacker in Damone Clark from Southern Lab". The Advocate. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
- ^ Scarborough, Mike (January 15, 2017). "Louisiana linebacker Damone Clark commits to LSU". Rivals.com. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
- ^ Miller, Brody (November 24, 2021). "From benched to Butkus: How LSU LB Damone Clark learned to trust himself and why those around him believed all along". The Athletic. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
- ^ Miller, Brody (August 7, 2020). "The weight (and the will) Damone Clark carries into his potential breakout year". The Athletic. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
- ^ Auzenne, Josh (September 18, 2020). "JaCoby Stevens set to wear No. 7; Curry and Clark will wear No. 18". WAFB9.com. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
- ^ Mickles, Sheldon (September 30, 2021). "Veteran Damone Clark establishes his link in chain of LSU linebacker standouts". The Advocate. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
- ^ "Damone Clark Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
- ^ "2022 Draft Scout Damone Clark, LSU NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
- ^ Phillips, Rob (April 30, 2022). "Clark, Ridgeway Highlight Four 5th-Round Picks". DallasCowboys.com. Retrieved February 15, 2023.
- ^ Fisher, Mike (July 27, 2022). "Cowboys Camp: How 'Fate' - And Spine Surgery - Brought Rookie LB Damone Clark to Dallas". SI.com. Retrieved May 14, 2023.
- ^ Levine, Ben (October 5, 2022). "Minor NFL Transactions: 10/5/22". Pro Football Rumors. Retrieved June 29, 2023.