Linval Joseph

Linval Joseph

Joseph in the 2015 NFL season
No. 98 Minnesota Vikings
Position:	Defensive tackle
Personal information
Date of birth:	(1988-10-10) October 10, 1988
Place of birth:	Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
Height:
Weight:
Career information
High school:	Alachua (FL) Santa Fe
College:	East Carolina
NFL draft:	2010 / Round: 2 / Pick: 46
Career history
New York Giants (2010–2013) Minnesota Vikings (2014–present)
Roster status:	Active
Career highlights and awards
NFL Super Bowl Champion (XLVI) NFC Champion (2011) Pro Football Focus All-Pro (2015) NFC Defensive Player of the Week (Week 9, 2015) College First-team All-C-USA (2009) Honorable Mention All-C-USA (2008)
Career NFL statistics as of 2015
Tackles: 278 Sacks: 12.5 Forced fumbles: 3 Player stats at NFL.com

Linval Clement Joseph (born October 10, 1988) is an American football defensive tackle for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at East Carolina. He was drafted by the New York Giants in the second round, 46th overall of the 2010 NFL Draft.

Early years

Joseph was born in Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. He attended Santa Fe High School in Alachua, Florida, where he was a four-year letterman in football for the Raiders. He was an two-time All-state selection (Class AAA) as a junior and senior, as well as also an All-region choice.

In addition to football, Joseph also lettered three-times in both weightlifting and track, earning a total of 10 varsity letters. In weightlifting, Joseph recorded lifts of 415 (bench press) and 560 (squat). He captured the Florida State Weightlifting Championship as a junior with a 415-pound bench press and a 320-pound clean jerk. In track & field, Joseph was one of the state's top performers in the throwing events with personal-bests of 17.13 meters (56'2.75") in the shotput and 48.41 meters (158'10") in the discus. In 2005, he captured the district and regional titles in the shotput and the discus. He advanced to the state finals in the shot put and discus as a junior and senior; in 2006, he placed 3rd in the shotput and 2nd in the discus, and as a senior, he won the state title in the shot put. He was also timed at 5.0 seconds in the 40-yard dash.

Recruiting

Regarded as a three-star recruit by Rivals.com, Joseph was featured in the 2007 Rivals Recruiting Yearbook. He was rated as the No. 44 defensive tackle nationally and No. 59 recruit out of the state of Florida. He was considered among the region's top prospects and among the top 500 overall prospects in the country (deemed to have pro potential and ability to make an impact on a college team). He was also viewed as the No. 76 overall recruit in Florida by SuperPrep Magazine.

College career

Joseph attended East Carolina University from 2007 to 2009. During his career, he totaled 143 tackles, including 29.5 for loss and 6.5 sacks. He was named first-team All-Conference USA (C-USA) as a junior in 2009.

Freshman season (2007)

See also: 2007 East Carolina Pirates football team

As a true freshman, Joseph played in all 13 games with four starts, recording 40 overall total tackles (13 solo, 27 assists). His 8.5 tackles for a loss of 23 yards ranked fourth on the squad, while his five quarterback hurries ranked fourth. He was part of a defensive front that held four opponents to 80 rushing yards or less. He notched his first career start against No. 5 West Virginia in week 4, finishing with four total tackles. He made his collegiate debut on national television in week 1 at Virginia Tech but was not credited with any statistics in the game. His first career sack (half) came against Southern Miss for a 3-yard loss. He also recovered a fumble in that game against the Eagles. On November 10, he collected a season-high eight tackles (three solo, five assists) in the Pirates' loss at Marshall. He was named to the 2007 Conference USA All-Freshman Team by the media and coaches.

Sophomore season (2008)

See also: 2008 East Carolina Pirates football team

As a sophomore in 2008, Joseph was among East Carolina top 10 tacklers, finishing with a total of 43 stops, with eight of those coming behind the line of scrimmage for a loss of 34 yards. He played in all 14 games and opened the last nine consecutive contests on the inside of the Pirates' defensive front. He posted six or more stops in three of the last four games and was an honorable mention All-Conference USA selection by the league coaches. helping the Pirates' defensive unit hold three opponents to under 100 rushing yards and two opponents to less than 100 passing yards, while forcing a total of 33 turnovers that ranked 7th in the nation. He opened the year as a preseason All-Conference USA selection by Phil Steele, despite missing much of fall camp due to a back injury, which came after losing +70 pounds following the 2007 campaign. He made his first start of the year against Virginia on October 11 and never left the starting lineup for the remainder of the year. On December 6, he enjoyed a career-high nine-tackle performance against Tulsa in the Conference USA Championship Game, which also included a forced fumble and a batted pass. In the third quarter, he dropped Golden Hurricane quarterback David Johnson behind the line on a rush where he forced his first career fumble on a third-and-five play. He then followed with seven stops against Kentucky in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl, a career-best three resulting in lost yardage. He was also credited with a pair of blocked extra-point attempts against the Wildcats.

Junior season (2009)

See also: 2009 East Carolina Pirates football team

Following his junior season, Joseph announced his intention to forgo his remaining eligibility and enter the 2010 NFL Draft.

Professional career

Pre-draft

Pre-draft measurables

Ht	Wt	Arm length	Hand size	40-yd dash	10-yd split	20-yd split	20-ss	3-cone	Vert	Broad	BP
6 ft ​4 1⁄2 in	328 lb	​34 1⁄2 in	10 in	5.04 s	1.74 s	2.86 s	4.52 s	7.62 s	31.5 in	8 ft 6 in	39 reps
All values from NFL Combine and Pro Day

New York Giants

Joseph was drafted by the New York Giants in the second round (46th overall) of the 2010 NFL Draft. He signed with the Giants on July 31, 2010. Joseph played for the Giants from 2010-2013, starting 46 of 53 regular-season games. He also started all four of the Giants’ victories in their 2011 title run when they held Atlanta, Green Bay, San Francisco, and New England to an average of 14 points per game.

2010 season

Joseph was inactive in 10 games as a rookie in 2010 and only played in 6 games. On December 26, he had a season-best 5 solo stops versus the Green Bay Packers. He played his first NFL game against the Chicago Bears in week 4, and was credited with a tackle in the game. Joseph finished his first season as a Giant with 8 combined tackles, six of them solo.

2011 season

Joseph was moved into a full-time starter role in his second year, starting 15 games and playing in all 16 contests. He opened all 4 playoff games en route to Super Bowl XLVI title. On October 30, he notched his first career sack on Miami Dolphins quarterback Matt Moore. In week 13, he had a season-high 9 solo tackles in the Giants' loss to the Green Bay Packers. He had 3 tackles each in the opening 3 playoff games of run to the title.

2012 season

In 2012, Joseph started all 16 games for the Giants for the first time in his career, recording a career-high 59 tackles that ranked 5th on the team while also posting 4.0 sacks and a forced fumble. On October 21 against the Washington Redskins, he forced a fumble and recovered it, helping the Giants prevail over the Redskins 27-23. In week 8 against the Dallas Cowboys, Joseph had 2 sacks as his team's defense picked up a total of 4 sacks of Tony Romo and forcing 6 turnovers, as the New York Giants won the game 29-24.

2013 season

Started 15 games. Joseph was part of a Giants defense that ranked No. 12 in the NFL in total defense. In the Giant's week 3 loss against the Carolina Panthers, he posted a season-high 8 tackles. He missed the Philadelphia game with an injury in week 5. On December 15, he notched 7 tackles and a sack against the eventual Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks. Joseph finished his last season as a Giant with 59 tackles, 3.0 sacks and a forced fumble.

Minnesota Vikings

On March 11, 2014, Joseph signed a five-year, $31.5 million deal with the Minnesota Vikings, including a $3,000,000 signing bonus, $12,500,000 guaranteed and an average annual salary of $6,250,000. In 2015, Joseph will earn a base salary of $3,900,000 and a workout bonus of $100,000. Joseph has a cap hit of $4,600,000 while his dead money value is $6,100,000.

2014 season

Joseph was one of nine people who were shot by a gunman inside the Minneapolis nightclub 400 Soundbar on August 11, 2014. A stray bullet struck him in the calf. The Vikings characterized the injury as "minor." In Joseph's first regular season game with his new team, he was credited with five tackles and a sack in the Vikings' 34-6 victory at St. Louis to give new head coach Mike Zimmer the first win on his head coaching record.

2015 season

Joseph was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week after his performance in the Vikings 21-18 OT win over the St. Louis Rams in Week 9. Joseph was credited with 10 tackles (7 solo), 0.5 sacks, 3 tackles for loss and 2 pressures in the victory, earning a +11.4 grade from Pro Football Focus. The 10 combined tackles tied for the most by a defensive tackle in a game this season. Joseph became the first Viking defensive tackle to win the award in over a decade (the last was Kevin Williams in 2004) and first Viking defender to receive the honor since linebacker Anthony Barr in 2014. His 39 solo tackles in 2015 also currently leads the league among all defensive tackles.

Career statistics

College

Regular season statistics				Tackles					Interceptions						Fumbles
Season	Team	GP	GS	Comb	Total	Ast	Sck	Tfl	PDef	Int	Yds	Avg	Lng	TDs	FF	FR	FR YDS
2007	East Carolina	13	4	40	13	27	1.0	8.5	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0
2008	East Carolina	14	9	43	22	21	2.5	8.0	1	0	0	0.0	0	0	1	0	0
2009	East Carolina	14	14	60	22	38	3.0	13.0	1	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0
Totals		41	27	143	57	86	6.5	29.5	2	0	0	0.0	0	0	1	0	0

NFL

Year	Team	GP	COMB	TOTAL	AST	SACK	FF	FR	FR YDS	INT	IR YDS	AVG IR	LNG	TD	PD
2010	NYG	6	8	6	2	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2011	NYG	16	49	34	15	2.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4
2012	NYG	16	59	33	26	4.0	1	2	16	0	0	0	0	0	0
2013	NYG	15	59	33	26	3.0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2014	MIN	16	48	29	19	3.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
2015	MIN	12	56	42	14	0.5	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Career		69	278	176	102	12.5	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	6

Key

• GP: games played
• COMB: combined tackles
• TOTAL: total tackles
• AST: assisted tackles
• SACK: sacks
• FF: forced fumbles
• FR: fumble recoveries
• FR YDS: fumble return yards
• INT: interceptions
• IR YDS: interception return yards
• AVG IR: average interception return
• LNG: longest interception return
• TD: interceptions returned for touchdown
• PD: passes defensed

External links

• Minnesota Vikings bio
• New York Giants bio
• East Carolina Pirates bio