Kyle Wilber
| No. 51 Dallas Cowboys | |||||||||||||||
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| Position: | Linebacker | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth: | April 26, 1989 | ||||||||||||||
| Place of birth: | Orlando, Florida | ||||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 245 lb (111 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school: | Apopka (FL) | ||||||||||||||
| College: | Wake Forest | ||||||||||||||
| NFL Draft: | 2012 / Round: 4 / Pick: 113 | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of Week 15, 2015 | |||||||||||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||||||||
Kyle Wilber (born April 26, 1989) is an American football linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Cowboys in the fourth round of the 2012 NFL Draft. He played college football at Wake Forest.
Early years
Wilber attended Apopka High School where he was a Class 6A all-state third-team selection as a senior, after finishing with 55 tackles (10 for loss), four sacks and a fumble recovery. He also practiced wrestling and weightlifting.
At Wake Forest University he was a 4-3 defensive end until his sophomore season, when there was a change in the defensive scheme and he was moved to the 3-4 Will linebacker position, appearing at that position in 5 games with 18 tackles, one sack, one fumble recovery and a blocked field goal.
The next year he began the season at defensive end before being moved back to linebacker, posting 65 tackles (third on the team), 6 sacks (led the team), 14.5 tackles for loss (led the team), one quarterback pressure, 4 passes defensed and 2 blocked kicks.
As a senior he recorded 70 tackles (second on the team), 3.5 sacks (tied for the team lead), 11.5 tackles for loss, 3 quarterback pressures, 3 forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, one pass defensed and one blocked kick. He finished his college career with 13.5 sacks (sixth in school history), 35.5 tackles (ninth in school history) for loss, 195 tackles (thirteenth in school history), 6 forced fumbles and 4 blocked kicks in 43 career games.
Professional career
Wilber was drafted in the fourth round (135th overall) of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys. He was originally intended to play the Sam linebacker position in defensive coordinator Rob Ryan's 3–4 defense. His progress was slowed after breaking his left thumb in the first preseason game and not being active until week 3 of the regular season. Because of injuries to the linebacker corps, he was also tried in a nickel role, but could not handle the assignment. He finished with 6 special teams tackles and 3 on defense.
The next year defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin was hired to change the defense to a 4-3 alignment, so he was switched back to his college position (defensive end), with the plan of using him as Demarcus Ware's backup. He added 15 pounds, but could not maintain consistent playing time even with a defensive line that lost many players to injury. Out of necessity, the team was forced to play him at sam linebacker in place of an injured Justin Durant. After tallying 11 tackles and 2 sacks in the first 10 games, the move allowed him to earn a starting position and register 31 tackles (two for loss) in the final six games of the season.[1]
In 2014, during the preseason he was tried at linebacker and defensive end.[2] In the regular season he was used mainly in a reserve pass-rusher role (only 3 starts), finishing with 27 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 3 passes defensed, one quarterback pressure and one fumble recovery. After being passed on the depth chart by rookie Anthony Hitchens, his best game came in the playoffs against the Detroit Lions, where he played 23 snaps at sam linebacker, making a key third-quarter interception and a pass deflection.[3]
In 2015, he appeared in all 16 games and started 6 contests at strongside linebacker, coming off the field in obvious passing situations. He recorded 27 tackles (one for loss), 4 quarterback pressures and 2 passes defensed. On special teams he tied for the team lead in tackles (9) with Jeff Heath and Damien Wilson and returned a blocked punt for a touchdown in the second game of the season against the Philadelphia Eagles.[4]
References
- ↑ "Justin Durant a huge loss". Retrieved February 21, 2016.
- ↑ "Kyle Wilber key to replacing Lawrence". Retrieved February 21, 2016.
- ↑ "Defensive snaps from the Cowboys' 24-20 win against Lions". Retrieved February 21, 2016.
- ↑ "Kyle Wilber can fill multiple roles". Retrieved February 21, 2016.