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Pierre Strong Jr.

Pierre Strong Jr.
No. 20 – Cleveland Browns
Position:Running back / Kickoff returner
Personal information
Born: (1998-12-10) December 10, 1998 (age 25)
Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S.
Height:5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High school:John L. McClellan
(Little Rock, Arkansas)
College:South Dakota State (2017–2021)
NFL draft:2022 / round: 4 / pick: 127
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
  • First-team FCS All-American (2021)
  • 3× First-team All-MVFC (2019–2021)
  • MVFC Freshman of the Year (2018)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 7, 2024
Rushing yards:447
Rushing average:5.1
Rushing touchdowns:2
Receptions:18
Receiving yards:163
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Pierre Strong Jr. (born December 10, 1998) is an American professional football running back and kickoff returner for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at South Dakota State.

Early life

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Strong grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas and graduated from John L. McClellan High School.[1] As a junior, he rushed 2,248 yards and 30 touchdowns as McClellan advanced to the Class 5A state championship game. Despite his season ending injury that occurred at Little Rock McClellan's final drive of the 2016 regular game against Pulaski Academy, Strong rushed 1,423 total yards and scored 25 touchdowns during his senior year.[2] Overall, Strong had totaled 4,268 rushing yards and scored 57 touchdowns over his final two seasons in McClellan. He was named a Landers Award finalist in his senior year due to his accomplishments.[3]

Despite being offered football scholarships from very few Division 1 schools, Strong was ultimately offered a scholarship and recruitment by South Dakota State University as he made a verbal commitment in January 2017.[4]

College career

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Strong redshirted his true freshman season.[5] As a redshirt freshman, he rushed for 1,116 yards and 11 touchdowns and was named the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) Freshman of the Year.[6][7] Strong gained 1,018 yards and scored eight touchdowns on 143 carries during his redshirt sophomore season and was named first-team All-MVFC.[8] As a redshirt junior, he rushed for 707 yards in the spring 2021 season, which was delayed from the fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[9] As a redshirt senior, Strong rushed for 1,686 yards and 18 touchdowns, caught 22 passes for 150 yards, and also completed 4-of-4 pass attempts for 62 yards and four touchdowns.[10]

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
5 ft 11+3⁄8 in
(1.81 m) 		207 lb
(94 kg) 		31+7⁄8 in
(0.81 m) 		9+1⁄4 in
(0.23 m)		 4.37 s 1.51 s 2.55 s 4.25 s 6.95 s 38.0 in
(0.97 m)		 10 ft 4 in
(3.15 m)		 16 reps
Sources:[11][12]

New England Patriots

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Strong was drafted by the New England Patriots with the 127th pick in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL draft.[13] On December 12, 2022, Strong scored a three–yard rushing touchdown for his first career touchdown in a 27–13 victory over the Arizona Cardinals.[14] Strong finished his rookie season with ten carries for 100 yards and one rushing touchdown.[15]

Cleveland Browns

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On August 27, 2023, Strong was traded to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for Tyrone Wheatley Jr.[16][17]

References

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  1. ^ Davenport, Richard (February 18, 2016). "2017 Spotlight: Little Rock McClellan athlete Pierre Strong". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  2. ^ Muck, Jeremy (November 3, 2016). "McClellan loses top RB Strong". The Northwest Arkansas Times. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  3. ^ Deckelbaum, Kyle (April 30, 2022). "From McClellan to the NFL: Patriots draft Pierre Strong, Jr". KATV.com. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
  4. ^ "Pierre Strong, 2017 Running Back - Rivals.com". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
  5. ^ Zimmer, Matt (November 14, 2018). "Pierre Strong emerging as South Dakota State's newest offensive weapon". Argus Leader. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  6. ^ Holtan, Andrew (August 27, 2019). "Strong Jr. leads three-headed SDSU running attack". The Brookings Register. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  7. ^ Harkness, Jeff (December 17, 2018). "South Dakota's Darin Greenfield, South Dakota State's Pierre Strong Jr., Krockett Krolikowski Named to Post Season Honor Squads". ESPNSiouxFalls.com. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  8. ^ Ovenden, Mark (February 9, 2021). "SDSU's Pierre Strong is pre-season FCS All-American". DakotaNewsNow.com. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  9. ^ Izzo, Dom (July 26, 2021). "Bison Top Opponents in 2021; South Dakota State's Pierre Strong". The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  10. ^ Zimmer, Matt (January 12, 2022). "South Dakota State football's Pierre Strong invited to NFL Combine". Argus Leader. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
  11. ^ "Pierre Strong Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
  12. ^ "Pierre Strong Jr., South Dakota State, RB, 2022 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
  13. ^ Buchmasser, Bernd (April 30, 2022). "Patriots draft South Dakota State RB Pierre Strong in the fourth round". Pats Pulpit. SB Nation. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  14. ^ "Pierre Strong has breakout game for New England Patriots on Monday Night Football". argusleader.com. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
  15. ^ "Pierre Strong 2022 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  16. ^ "Browns agree to terms on trade to acquire RB Pierre Strong Jr. from Patriots". ClevelandBrowns.com. August 27, 2023. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
  17. ^ "Patriots Acquire OL Tyrone Wheatley Jr. in a Trade with Cleveland in Exchange for RB Pierre Strong Jr". Patriots.com. August 27, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
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