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Nakobe Rashod Dean (born December 13, 2000) is an American professional football linebacker for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia, winning the 2021 Butkus Award before being selected by the Eagles in the third round of the 2022 NFL draft.
Early life
Dean played high school football at Horn Lake High School. As a senior, he won the High School Butkus Award. As a five-star recruit, Dean committed to Georgia after receiving offers from Ole Miss and Alabama.
College career
As a true freshman for the Georgia Bulldogs football team, Dean recorded 25 total tackles despite battling injuries. In 2021, he won the Butkus Award given annually to college football's best linebacker and finished the season as a key member of the team that won the 2022 College Football Playoff National Championship. On January 15, 2022, Dean declared for the 2022 NFL draft.
College statistics
| Season | GP | Tackles | Sacks | Interceptions | Fumbles | Scoring | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solo | Ast | Comb | TFL | Sck | Yds | Int | Yds | PD | FR | Yds | FF | TD | ||
| 2019 | 14 | 14 | 11 | 25 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2020 | 10 | 39 | 32 | 71 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | 15 | 36 | 36 | 72 | 10.5 | 6 | 47 | 2 | 50 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| Career | 39 | 89 | 79 | 168 | 14.5 | 7.5 | 56 | 2 | 50 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
Professional career
Dean was invited to the 2022 NFL Scouting Combine. He performed limited positional drills due to an injury (a torn pectoral muscle) that he suffered while training for the NFL Draft.
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 11+1⁄4 in (1.81 m) | 229 lb (104 kg) | 31+7⁄8 in (0.81 m) | 9+1⁄8 in (0.23 m) | |||||||||
| All values from NFL Combine | ||||||||||||
Dean was selected in the third round (83rd overall) of the 2022 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles. His draft-day slide was considered surprising, but NFL analyst Ian Rapoport pointed out that teams were reportedly concerned about Dean's size, and his decision to opt against getting surgery to repair his pectoral injury. Dean appeared in all 17 games as a rookie and mainly played on special teams. Dean's rookie season ended with a trip to Super Bowl LVII where the Eagles lost 38–35 to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Dean entered the 2023 season as the Eagles starting middle linebacker. He suffered a foot injury in Week 1 and was placed on injured reserve on September 12, 2023. He was activated on October 14, but placed back on injured reserve on November 16 with a Lisfranc injury.
Personal life
Dean is a member of Omega Psi Phi fraternity and was initiated while at Georgia. Dean's older brother, Nikolas, played tight end at Ole Miss. In 2022, Dean was named the Arthur Ashe Jr. Male Sports Scholar of the Year by Diverse: Issues In Higher Education.