Position: Defensive end Undrafted: 2016 Total tackles: 8 Height 1.98 m Parents Chauncey Heath, Kim Heath | College: Michigan State Roster status: Active Weight 118 kg High school Mount Healthy High School | |
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Date of birth: (1993-06-18) June 18, 1993 (age 23) Current team Houston Texans (#93 / Defensive end) Similar Ufomba Kamalu, Brennan Scarlett, D J Reader, Keith Mumphery, Christian Covington | ||
Watch as joel heath talks derrick henry michigan state s defense what he s learned about himself
Joel Heath (born June 18, 1993) is an American football defensive end for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan State.
Contents
- Watch as joel heath talks derrick henry michigan state s defense what he s learned about himself
- Michigan state dt joel heath i will step up and be more vocal
- Early years
- College career
- Professional career
- References
Michigan state dt joel heath i will step up and be more vocal
Early years
Heath was a three-year starter at Mount Healthy High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he played defensive end and tight end. He recorded 41 tackles and 6.5 sacks his junior year in 2009. He committed to Michigan State on July 1, 2010. He totaled five sacks his senior season in 2010 and helped Mount Healthy win its first playoff game in school history.
He earned Associated Press (AP) First Team All-Ohio (Division II) honors twice and First Team AP Southwest All-District accolades twice. He was named the AP All-Ohio Division II Co-Defensive Player of the Year, AP Southwest All-District Defensive Player of the Year and Fort Ancient Valley Conference Co-Athlete of the Year his senior season in 2010. He also earned First Team All-Conference honors twice. He was named to the Cincinnati Enquirer’s All-Area (Division II-VI) Team his junior season.
He was part of the Ohio All-Stars team that took part in the June 2011 Big 33 Classic in Hershey, Pennsylvania. He was rated the country's 26th best defensive end in the class of 2011 by Scout.com and Ohio's 49th best senior in the class of 2011 by Rivals.com. He was also named to the All-Midwest Team of both SuperPrep and PrepStar.
College career
Heath played for the Michigan State Spartans of Michigan State University from 2012 to 2015 and was a three-year letterman from 2013 to 2015. He was redshirted in 2011.
He began his Michigan State career as a defensive end, playing in five games in 2012 and nine games in 2013, recording three quarterback hurries and a pass breakup the latter year. He converted to defensive tackle during bowl practices in 2013. He played in 13 games, starting 12, as a defensive tackle in 2014, accumulating 29 tackles and 2.5 sacks while also leading the team's defensive tackles with five tackles for loss. He recorded three tackles, half a sack and a half a tackle for loss in the January 2015 Cotton Bowl Classic. He started 12 games at defensive tackle in 2015, totaling two sacks and 31 tackles, including 5.5 for tackles for loss. He missed two games due to injury. He had three tackles in the December 2015 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Cotton Bowl. He was named Honorable Mention All-Big Ten by the media in 2015.
Heath played in 39 games, starting 24, during his college career. He recorded career totals of 4.5 sacks, two pass breakups, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and 60 tackles, including 10.5 tackles for loss. He graduated from Michigan State in December 2015 with a bachelor's degree in interdisciplinary studies in social science.
Professional career
Heath was rated the 30th best defensive tackle in the 2016 NFL Draft by NFLDraftScout.com. Lance Zierlein of NFL.com said that "Heath has intriguing size that could appeal to defenses running multiple fronts" while also stating that "Heath's lack of pass rush or dominant run stopping tape could hurt his cause on draft weekend."
Heath signed with the Houston Texans in May 2016 after going undrafted in the 2016 NFL Draft. He chose the Texans over four other teams that he had received contract offers from. He made his NFL debut on September 22 against the New England Patriots, recording one tackle assist. He played in 12 games, starting 6, in 2016 and recorded 5 solo tackles, 3 tackle assists and 2.0 sacks. Both of his sacks came in the Week 17 game against the Tennessee Titans. He also played in both of the team's playoff games, recording two solo tackles in the first game.