No. 16 – Arizona Cardinals | |||||||||
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Position: | Cornerback | ||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||
Born: | Mays Landing, New Jersey, U.S. | April 15, 2002||||||||
Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||
Weight: | 193 lb (88 kg) | ||||||||
Career information | |||||||||
High school: | Cedar Creek (Egg Harbor City, New Jersey) | ||||||||
College: | Rutgers (2020–2023) | ||||||||
NFL draft: | 2024 / round: 2 / pick: 43 | ||||||||
Career history | |||||||||
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Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
Career NFL statistics as of Week 7, 2024 | |||||||||
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Malachi "Max" Melton (born April 15, 2002) is an American professional football cornerback for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and was selected by the Cardinals in the second round of the 2024 NFL draft.
Melton grew up in the Mays Landing section of Hamilton Township, Atlantic County, New Jersey and attended Cedar Creek High School. Melton initially committed to play college football at Purdue over offers from Rutgers and Temple. [1] He flipped his commitment to Rutgers during his senior year. [2]
Melton played in nine games with six starts during his freshman season with the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and made 21 tackles. [3] He started ten games at cornerback as a sophomore and had 28 tackles with three interceptions and six passes broken up. [4] Melton missed three games due to a suspension. [5] He was named honorable mention All-Big Ten Conference after recording 33 tackles with two tackles for loss, two interceptions, and ten passes broken up. [6]
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 | |
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5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | 187 lb (85 kg) | 32+1⁄8 in (0.82 m) | 9+1⁄8 in (0.23 m) | 4.39 s | 1.51 s | 2.56 s | 4.29 s | 6.95 s | 40.5 in (1.03 m) | 11 ft 4 in (3.45 m) | 16 reps | |
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day [7] [8] |
Melton was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the second round with the 43rd overall pick of the 2024 NFL draft. [9]
Melton's father, Gary, played football at Rutgers and his mother, Vicky, played on the women's basketball team. [10] His older brother, Bo Melton, played wide receiver at Rutgers and currently plays in the NFL for the Green Bay Packers. [3] Another brother, Gary Jr., played football at Delaware State. [11]
Gregory Edward Schiano is an American football coach. He is the head football coach at Rutgers University, a position he held from 2001 to 2011 and resumed before the 2020 season. Schiano has the most wins in program history as head football coach of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team. He also served as the head coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL) from 2012 to 2013.
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights football program represents Rutgers University in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA). Rutgers competes as a member of the Big Ten Conference. Prior to joining the Big Ten, the Scarlet Knights were a member of the American Athletic Conference from 1991 to 2013. Rutgers plays its home games at SHI Stadium, in Piscataway, New Jersey. The team is currently led by head coach Greg Schiano. The Scarlet Knights football team is notable for playing in the first collegiate football game in 1869, in which the Scarlet Knights won 6–4.
William Gay is an American professional football coach and former cornerback who is the assistant defensive backs coach for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Louisville Cardinals and was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the fifth round of the 2007 NFL draft. Gay was a member of the Super Bowl XLIII-winning team the following season and played for the Arizona Cardinals and New York Giants before becoming a coach in 2019.
Marcus Cooper Sr. is a former American football cornerback. He was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the seventh round of the 2013 NFL draft. He played college football for Rutgers University. Cooper was also a member of the Kansas City Chiefs, Arizona Cardinals, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, and New York Jets.
Cedar Creek High School is a public high school in Egg Harbor City, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The school serves students in ninth through twelfth grades as part of the Greater Egg Harbor Regional High School District and opened in September 2010. The school's colors are forest green, maroon and cream. The school mascot is the pirate.
Devin McCourty is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons with the New England Patriots. He played college football for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and was selected by the Patriots in the first round of the 2010 NFL draft. Missing only five games during his Patriots career, McCourty received two Pro Bowl selections and was also a member of three Super Bowl-winning teams. McCourty also has the most postseason starts for a defensive player. His twin brother, Jason McCourty, also played in the NFL. Since leaving the NFL in 2022, he has served as a commentator for NBC's Football Night in America.
Tyrann Devine Mathieu is an American professional football safety for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the LSU Tigers. In college he developed a reputation for causing turnovers, setting a Southeastern Conference (SEC) record with 11 career forced fumbles and earning the nickname "the Honey Badger" after the mammal of the same name. In his sophomore season, he was recognized as a consensus All-American, won the Chuck Bednarik Award as the best defensive player in college football, and was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy. Mathieu was dismissed from the LSU football program after that season due to a violation of team rules.
Duron Harmon is an American professional football safety who is a free agent. Selected by the New England Patriots in the third round of the 2013 NFL draft after playing college football at Rutgers, Harmon was nicknamed "the Closer" by fans and media for his ability to come up with late, game-sealing interceptions during his Patriots tenure. Harmon has also played for the Detroit Lions, Atlanta Falcons, and Las Vegas Raiders.
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Blessuan Austin is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He played college football at Rutgers.
Isaiah Simmons is an American professional football safety for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Clemson Tigers and was selected by the Arizona Cardinals eighth overall in the 2020 NFL draft. While at Clemson, Simmons was noted for his positional versatility as he played linebacker, defensive end, cornerback and safety.
William Hill is a former American football cornerback in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys. He also was a member of the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League (USFL). He played college football at the Rutgers University.
Marco Wilson is an American professional football cornerback for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida and was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL draft. He has also played for the New England Patriots.
Tay Gowan is an American professional football cornerback. He played college football at UCF and was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL draft.
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Miles Bokeem "Bo" Melton is an American professional football wide receiver for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Rutgers, and was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL draft.
Christian Braswell is an American professional football cornerback for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Temple and Rutgers.
Christian Izien is an American professional football safety for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and was signed by the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent after the 2023 NFL draft.
Tyreek Maddox-Williams is an American professional football linebacker for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and has also been a member of the Los Angeles Chargers and Philadelphia Eagles.
Robert Longerbeam is an American football cornerback for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights.