Photo: Jeffrey Beall, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons²

Jihad Ward

Linebacker, New York Giants · #53.

Player facts

Team: New York Giants
Position: Linebacker
Number: 53
Born: May 11, 1994 (age 32)
Birthplace: Philadelphia, PA, USA
Height: 6' 5"
Weight: 285 lbs
College: Illinois
Experience: 10 seasons
Status: Active

Stats

2026 Defense

	TOT	SOLO	AST	SACK	FF	FR	YDS	INT	YDS	AVG	TD	LNG	PD	STF	STFYDS	KB
Regular Season	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Career	200	106	94	24	3	5	14	0	0	0.0	0	0	12	13	33	0

Recent games

			Tackles				Fumbles		Interceptions
Date	Opponent	Result	TOT	SOLO	AST	SACK	FF	FR	INT	YDS	AVG	TD	LNG	PD	KB
Sun, Oct 11	@ WSH	T 27-27 OT	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0

Last 1 games. Click a game for its box score.

About

Jihad Ward ( jih-HAHD; born May 11, 1994) is an American professional football outside linebacker for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Illinois Fighting Illini and selected by the Oakland Raiders in the second round of the 2016 NFL draft. Ward has also played for the Indianapolis Colts, Baltimore Ravens, Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Giants, and Tennessee Titans.

From Wikipedia’s article on Jihad Ward, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.¹

Background

Early life

Ward attended Edward W. Bok Technical High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He didn't play football until his sophomore year. He began as a wide receiver and safety, before being converted into a stand up defensive end as a junior.

He received second-team All-City (2010) and first-team All-City (2011) honors. He also practiced basketball.

College career

Ward attended Globe Institute of Technology for two years to improve his grades. In 2013, he played in 7 games, making 26 tackles (3 for loss) and 2 sacks.

In 2014, he transferred to the University of Illinois. He was named a starter at defensive end in the fourth game of the season. He posted 51 tackles, 3 sacks, 4 fumble recoveries (led the conference), 2 forced fumbles, and one pass defended.

As a senior, he started all 12 games, playing both at defensive end and defensive tackle. He registered 53 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 2 passes defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. Against the University of Iowa, he had a career-high 11 tackles, including nine solo.

In his last two years, he had 104 tackles, 5.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, and three passes defensed.

Personal life

Ward is Muslim. He has said that his name, Jihad, which is popular where he was raised in Philadelphia, has been misunderstood due to the negative connotations associated with the term, which has been used to describe Islamic violence against non-Muslims.

From Wikipedia’s article on Jihad Ward, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article.¹