Javon Hargrave

Javon DeAndre Hargrave (born February 7, 1993) is an American football defensive tackle for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL).

He played college football for the South Carolina State Bulldogs.

Hargrave began attending South Carolina State University in 2011 where he redshirted as a true freshman.

He was ranked as the 11th best defensive tackle prospect in the draft by NFLDraftScout.com.

As a redshirt freshman with the Bulldogs in 2012, he finished with 45 tackles and 4.5 tackles for a loss.

The following season, he collected 12.5 tackles for a loss and 3.5 sacks.

On October 25, 2014, he tied an Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) record after finishing with a total of 6 sacks against Bethune-Cookman.

He finished third among the FCS with 16 sacks as a junior in 2014 and was named a first-team All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC).

In the 2015 season opener he made 6 solo tackles, 4.5 tackles for losses, and 2.5 sacks in a 35–7 victory against Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

On September 16, 2015, he made 3 tackles and 2.5 tackles for a loss in a 36–0 shutout of Florida A&M.

On October 3, 2015, he had a season-high 10 tackles and a sack in a loss to Furman.

On October 24, 2015, Hargrave had one of his best games of the season, finishing with 6 solo tackles, 8 total tackles, 4 tackles for losses, forced a fumble, and had a season-high 3 sacks against Delaware State.

In Week 11, he again had a season-high 3 sacks, 7 tackles, and 4 tackles for losses in a victory over Norfolk State.

In his last career collegiate game he made a total of 4 tackles, 2 sacks, and a forced fumble in a win over Savannah State.

He finished his last season with South Carolina State with 45 solo tackles, 59 total tackles, 22 tackles for losses, 13.5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles.

For the second consecutive season he was named a First-team All-MEAC.

He was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the third round of the 2016 NFL draft.

On January 23, 2016, Hargrave participated in the 2016 East–West Shrine Game and raised his draft stock with a good performance.

Hargrave was invited to the NFL Scouting Combine and participated in all workouts and positional drills.

At South Carolina State's Pro Day, he stood on his combine numbers and only did positional drills.

Representatives and scouts from 23 NFL teams attended his Pro Day and four defensive line coaches from the Cincinnati Bengals, Pittsburgh Steelers, Philadelphia Eagles, and Tennessee Titans also came to watch Hargrave, along with 14 other prospects.

Although analysts and scouts gave him positive reviews for his motor, playmaking ability, quick footwork, athleticism, and strength they also criticized him for his short arms, stocky frame, small hands, lack of instincts, and also considered him a raw talent.

At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Hargrave was projected by many analysts as a third or fourth round selection.

The Steelers selected Hargrave in the third round (89th overall) of the 2016 NFL draft.

On June 10, 2016, the Steelers signed him to a four-year, $3.114 million rookie contract with a $693,000 signing bonus.

Hargrave was the last player of the Steelers' 2016 draft class to sign a contract with the Steelers.

After competing with fellow nose tackle Daniel McCullers in training camp and the preseason, Hargrave won the starting job as the starting nose tackle to begin the 2016 season.

He made his professional regular season debut during Steelers' season-opener at the Washington Redskins and helped them win 38–16.

The following game, Hargrave made his first career start and recorded his first career tackle in a 24–16 victory over the Bengals.

On November 20, 2016, Hargrave scored his first career NFL touchdown after Ryan Shazier stripped Cleveland Browns quarterback Josh McCown.

During the Steelers' victory he recorded his first career sack on McCown and also finished with a tackle.

The next game, Hargrave earned a season-high five combined tackles in the Steelers' 28–7 victory over the Indianapolis Colts.

On December 4, 2016, he suffered a concussion during a victory over the New York Giants and was inactive the following game against the Buffalo Bills.

He finished the 2016 season with 27 combined tackle (18 solo), two sacks, and one touchdown in 13 starts and 15 games.

The Steelers received a playoff berth after finishing atop the American Football Conference (AFC) North with an 11–5 record.

On January 8, 2017, Hargrave started his first career playoff game and recorded one tackle, as the Steelers routed the Miami Dolphins 30–12 in the AFC Wild Card Round.

After defeating the Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional Round, the Steelers went on to face the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship.

Hargrave made five combined tackles as the Steelers lost 17–36 to the eventual Super Bowl LI Champions.

Hargrave returned as the starting nose tackle to start the 2017 season after winning the job over Daniel McCullers and Roy Philon.

He started the Steelers' season-opener against the Browns and made three solo tackles and sacked DeShone Kizer in the Steelers' 21–18 victory.