No. 51 – Buffalo Bills | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Position: | Defensive tackle | ||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||
Born: | Ottawa, Ontario, Canada | June 8, 1994||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||
Weight: | 325 lb (147 kg) | ||||||||
Career information | |||||||||
High school: | St. Peter Catholic (Orleans, Ontario, Canada) Red Lion Christian Academy (Bear, Delaware, U.S.) | ||||||||
College: | UCLA | ||||||||
CFL Draft: | 2017 / Round: 3 / Pick: 26 | ||||||||
Undrafted: | 2017 | ||||||||
Career history | |||||||||
| |||||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
Career NFL statistics as of Week 5, 2023 | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR |
Eli Ankou (born June 8, 1994) is a Canadian professional football defensive tackle for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at UCLA. Ankou grew up in Canada and played high school football for the St. Peter Catholic High School Knights in Orleans, Ontario, but played his senior season at Red Lion Christian Academy in Bear, Delaware. [1]
Ankou attended St. Peter Catholic High School and Red Lion Christian Academy, where he played as a strong side defensive end. He accepted a football scholarship from UCLA. [2]
As a true freshman, he didn't appear in any games. As a sophomore, he missed most of the season with an injury. He appeared in 3 games as a backup, making one tackle. [2]
As a junior, he appeared in all 13 games as backup, posting 5 tackles (1 for loss). [2]
As a senior, he became a starter after Eddie Vanderdoes was lost for the season with a right knee injury. He appeared in 13 games with 11 starts, registering 47 tackles (ninth on the team), 5 tackles for loss (tied for fourth on the team). He had 7 tackles against the University of Colorado. He made 6 tackles against Stanford University. He finished his career with 38 games (19 starts), 91 tackles (8 for loss), 1.5 sacks, three passes defensed and one fumble recovery. [3]
Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
6 ft 3+1⁄8 in (1.91 m) | 331 lb (150 kg) | 32+1⁄4 in (0.82 m) | 10+1⁄8 in (0.26 m) | 5.21 s | 1.76 s | 3.00 s | 4.84 s | 8.15 s | 30.0 in (0.76 m) | 9 ft 7 in (2.92 m) | 31 reps | |
All values from Pro Day [4] [5] |
Ankou was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Houston Texans after the 2017 NFL Draft on May 12. [6] He was waived by the Texans on September 2, 2017. [7]
On September 3, 2017, Ankou was claimed off waivers by the Jacksonville Jaguars. [8]
In 2017, he appeared in nine games as a backup, posting 15 tackles (one for loss), 1.5 sacks and two quarterback pressures. In 2018, he appeared in two games as a backup and had four tackles. On September 1, 2019, Ankou was waived by the Jaguars and re-signed to the practice squad on September 3. [9]
Ankou was signed by the Cleveland Browns off the Jaguars' practice squad on October 22, 2019. [10] Ankou appeared in 9 games with 2 starts, tallying 7 tackles (one for loss). He was waived by the Browns on September 6, 2020. [11]
On September 7, 2020, Ankou was claimed off waivers by the Indianapolis Colts. [12] He was declared inactive during the first 5 weeks of the season. He was waived on October 17. [13]
On October 19, 2020, Ankou was claimed off waivers by the Texans and placed on the exempt/commissioner permission list. [14] On October 26, he was activated from the exempt/commissioner permission list.
On November 2, 2020, Ankou was traded to the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for a 7th round draft pick (#245-Andrew Stueber) in the 2022 NFL Draft. [15] He was acquired to provide depth after the release of defensive tackle Dontari Poe and to help improve a defensive line that was struggling to stop the run. He appeared in 7 games as a backup, tallying 5 tackles and one quarterback pressure. He wasn't re-signed after the season.
On May 17, 2021, Ankou signed with the Atlanta Falcons. [16] He was waived on June 17, 2021. [17]
On June 22, 2021, Ankou signed with the Buffalo Bills. [18] He was waived on August 15. [19]
On August 18, 2021, Ankou signed with the Falcons. [20] He was waived on August 31, 2021. [21]
On October 5, 2021, Ankou was signed to the Pittsburgh Steelers practice squad. [22] He was released on October 12. [23]
On October 26, 2021, Ankou was signed to the Tennessee Titans practice squad. [24] On November 1, 2021, Ankou was released from the practice squad. [25]
On November 16, 2021, Ankou was signed to the Bills' practice squad. He played in six games, recording 10 tackles and one sack. [26] He signed with the Bills on February 7, 2022. [27] He was released on August 30, 2022. [28] He was re-signed to the practice squad on October 3, 2022. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 23, 2023. [29]
On August 29, 2023, Ankou was waived by the Bills and re-signed to the practice squad. [30] [31]
On October 4, 2023, Ankou was signed by the Falcons off the Bills practice squad. [32] He was released by the Falcons on October 24, 2023.
On October 25, 2023, Ankou was signed to the Bills practice squad. [33] He signed a reserve/future contract on January 23, 2024.
Ankou is an Ojibwe of the Dokis First Nation through his mother Nicole Bellefeuille, while his father Adolphe is originally from the West African nation of Togo. [34] [35] He has been in a relationship with American racing cyclist Shayna Powless since 2013, after the couple met at UCLA: [36] as of 2021 the couple were engaged. [37]
Stefan Charles is a professional Canadian football defensive tackle who is a free agent. He was most recently a member of the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played CIS football with the Regina Rams.
Andrew Brown is an American football defensive tackle who is a free agent. He played college football at Virginia. Brown was a two-time High School All-American at Oscar F. Smith High School in Chesapeake, Virginia. He has been a member of the Cincinnati Bengals, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts,Tennessee Titans, Los Angeles Chargers, Arizona Cardinals, Chicago Bears and Buffalo Bills.
Cassius Lee Marsh Sr. is an American football outside linebacker who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at UCLA. He has also played for the New England Patriots, San Francisco 49ers, Arizona Cardinals, Jacksonville Jaguars, Indianapolis Colts, Pittsburgh Steelers and Chicago Bears.
Caraun Reid is a former American football defensive tackle. He was selected by the Detroit Lions in the fifth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at Princeton. He has also been a member of the San Diego Chargers, Washington Redskins, Indianapolis Colts, Dallas Cowboys, Arizona Cardinals, Jacksonville Jaguars, Carolina Panthers, Tennessee Titans, Los Angeles Chargers, and DC Defenders.
Efe Obada is a Nigerian-British gridiron football defensive end for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He was raised in the Netherlands and England and was the first player to go straight from a European football league to the NFL. Obada has been a member of the London Warriors, Dallas Cowboys, Kansas City Chiefs, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, and Buffalo Bills.
Jamil Douglas is an American football guard who is a free agent. He played college football at Arizona State. He has also been a member of the Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, Atlanta Falcons, Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans, Buffalo Bills, and Washington Football Team.
Garrison Smith is a former American football defensive tackle. He played college football at Georgia. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Miami Dolphins in 2014, and has also played for the New Orleans Saints, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, Atlanta Falcons, and Arizona Cardinals.
Lafayette E. Pitts is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He played college football at Pittsburgh, and was signed by the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent in 2016.
Vincent Taylor is an American football defensive tackle who is a free agent. He played college football at Oklahoma State. Taylor has played professionally for the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills, Cleveland Browns, and Houston Texans.
Alfred Joseph Ivie IV is an American football defensive tackle who is a free agent. He played college football at the University of Florida.
Breon Borders is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He played college football at Duke. He has been a member of 12 different NFL teams.
Gregory Mabin is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He played college football at Iowa and was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in 2017.
Daniel Ross is an American football defensive tackle for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was signed by the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent after the 2017 NFL Draft. He played college football at Northeast Mississippi.
Justin Zimmer is an American football defensive tackle who is a free agent. He played college football at Ferris State. Professionally, he has played for the New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns, Buffalo Bills, and the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL), in addition to the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League (CFL).
Christopher Jon Slayton is an American football defensive end who is a free agent. He played college football at Syracuse.
Nathan Michael Hall is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He played football at Northwestern University.
Anthony Rush is an American football nose tackle who is a free agent. After playing college football for UAB, he was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles as an undrafted free agent in 2019. He also played for the Oakland Raiders, Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers.
Albert Huggins Jr. is an American football nose tackle for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for Clemson, he was signed by the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent in 2019. He also played for the New England Patriots, Philadelphia Eagles, Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans Saints.
Nicholas-Devon L Thurman is an American football defensive end for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Houston.
Jalen Dalton is an American football defensive end for the San Antonio Brahmas of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football at North Carolina and was signed by the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent in 2019. He has also spent time with the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons.