Selected by the Cardinals in the third round (100th overall) of the 2022 NFL Draft out of Cincinnati.
2022:Â Appeared in 13 games (four starts) and amassed 17 tackles (11 solo), 3.0 sacks, three passes defensed, five QB hits, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery ... made NFL debut vs. Phi (10/9), seeing action on both defense and special teams ... had one tackle, a TFL, a QB hit and registered his first career sack @ Sea (10/16);Â ... played in Cardinals win vs. NO (10/20)Â ... made one tackle @ MIN (10/30)Â ... recorded one tackle and one QB hit vs. SEA (11/6); sacked Seahawks QB Geno Smith for a seven-yard loss on a 3rd-n-12 play from the SEA 17 yard line in the 3rd quarter; on the next play Seattle P Michael Dickson fumbled the snap which was recovered by AZ S Chris Banjo in the end zone for a TD ... finished with five tackles, his second career sack, first career forced fumble, a TFL and one pass defensed in the Cardinals win @ LAR (11/13)Â ... had two tackles vs. SF (11/21)Â ... recorded one tackle, one TFL and one pass defensed vs. LAC (11/27) ... totaled three tackles vs. NE (12/12) ... registered one solo tackle, his third career sack, one QB hit and his first career fumble recovery @ Den (12/18) ... recorded four tackles and one pass defensed vs. TB (12/25) ... made two tackles @ ATL (1/1/23) ... totaled two solo tackles and one TFL in season finale @ SF (1/8/23).Â
Played four seasons (2018-21) at Cincinnati where he appeared in 48 games and totaled 119 tackles, 24.5 tackles for loss, 13.5 sacks, 12 passes defensed, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery … his four seasons with the Bearcats represented the most successful four-year span in school history, as the team posted a 44-7 record … two-time first-team All-AAC selection ... as a senior in 2021, earned first-team All-AAC honors for the second-straight season, totaling 34 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and five passes defensed despite facing consistent double teams each week ... played a significant role as Cincinnati won a school record 13 games, finished the season as the country's #4 team and made its first-ever appearance in the College Football Playoff … helped the Bearcats defense rank No. 1 nationally in pass efficiency allowed (100.47), fourth in opponent completions (53.5 percent), third in INTs (18), fifth in TD passes allowed (10) and third in passing yards allowed (168.3) ... as a junior in 2020, was one of the anchors for a front seven which led the AAC in rushing, scoring, pass efficiency and total defense … named a semifinalist for the 2020 Bednarik Award and was rated by Pro Football Focus as one of the top edge defenders in the FBS … recorded a team-best 10.5 tackles for a loss and 7.0 sacks on his way to first-team All-AAC honors … also added 31 tackles and five passes defensed … key member of a defense which ranked in the NCAA top-15 in five categories, including tied for No. 3 in both INTs (16) and team passing efficiency defense (101.26) ... as a sophomore in 2019, started all 14 games at defensive end and totaled 36 tackles, 7.0 tackles for a loss and 4.0 sacks … also ranked second on the team with eight QB hurries while adding two passes defensed, a forced fumble and fumble recovery ... played in 10 games as a true freshman in 2018 and finished the season with seven tackles.
First name is pronounced "MY-jay" … attended Raines (Jacksonville, FL) High School for three years before transferring to Camden County (Kingsland, GA) High School for his senior season … as a senior at Camden in 2017, was named All-Region 1-7A first team as a defensive lineman after totaling 39 tackles, 3.0 sacks, an INT (returned for a TD) and seven QB hurries … played three years at Raines and was tabbed as an All-Gateway Conference selection in 2016 after totaling 40 tackles, five tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks in just nine games.
