Keanu Neal

At 28 years old, Keanu Neal has this physical status:

Keanu Neal, (born July 26, 1995) is an American football safety for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League. (NFL)

He played college football at the University of Florida.

Early years

Neal attended South Sumter High School in Bushnell, Florida. He started playing as a linebacker before being switched to safety. He had 151 tackles, 4 interceptions, one of which he returned 20 yards for a touchdown, five pass deflections, and one offensive touchdown as a goal-line fullback as a junior. He was named All-conference and All-state Distinguished Awards.

He had over 70 tackles and four interceptions as a senior. Under head coach Will Muschamp, he committed to the University of Florida to play college football.

Personal life

After actor Keanu Reeves, Keanu Neal was named. Clinton Hart, his brother, was a quarterback for the Baltimore Colis. Neal's mentor is former Seattle Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor Mike Neal. To show reverence, Neal wears a numbered Chancellor jersey in his locker.

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College career

He appeared in all 12 games as a reserve player, mainly on special teams as a true freshman in 2013. He had five special teams tackles.

He appeared in ten games at home as a sophomore in 2014 and had eight starts at safety. In his fifth game against the University of Georgia, he was hurt and was forced to miss the next two games. He had 45 tackles and three interceptions. He had 10 tackles, one forced fumble, and one fumbled during his football return against the University of Alabama in a 45-yard appearance. Against the University of Missouri, he had ten tackles. Against East Carolina University, he had 8 tackles.

Under new head coach Jim McElwain, he started 11 of 12 games at safety as a junior in 2015. Due to an injury, he missed the first two games of the season. He had 96 tackles (third on the team), 51 solo tackles (led the team), 3.5 tackles for loss, one interception, and two sacks. He has 14 tackles against the University of Tennessee and Louisiana State University. At the end of the season, he declared himself for the 2016 NFL Draft.

Professional career

In the first round (17th overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft, the Atlanta Falcons selected Neal. In 2016, he was the second safety pick out in the country behind West Virginia's Karl Joseph (12th overall). The Atlanta Falcons signed Neal to a fully guaranteed four-year, $10.73 million deal, which also includes a signing bonus of $6 million.

He was preparing for the position as the starting point of good security after the Falcons refused to re-sign William Moore during training camp, but he was keen to see if the job was still open. He competed for the position against Kemal Ishmael and Charles Godfrey. After suffering from a knee injury, Neal scored five solo tackles before leaving the Falcons' 17-6 loss at the Miami Dolphins in the second quarter. At a 17-yard reception, Neal sustained a knee injury after suffering a stiff arm while attempting to tackle Dolphins running back Arian Foster. For the first two regular season games, the injury required surgery and sidelined him. Neal is a strong safety coach, and head coach Dan Quinn named him the best safety to start the regular season, as well as free safety Ricardo Allen.

During Atlanta's 45-32 victory, he made his professional regular season debut and first appearance in the Atlanta Falcons' Week 3 matchup against the New Orleans Saints, with four combined tackles and a pass deflection. After a three-yard gain, Mark Ingram II made his first tackle on the Saints' first offensive snap and tackled running back Mark Ingram II. During a 26-24 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, Neal recorded a season-high 11 combined tackles (five solo) in addition to a pass deflection. In Week 10, he made a season-high nine solo tackles and gave up a pass. During their 41-13 victory over the San Francisco 49ers, Neal tied his season-high with 11 combined tackles (five solo) and had a season-high two pass deflections. He made 105 total tackles (72 solo), nine passes blocked, five fortified fumbles, and one fumble recovery in 14 games and 14 starts in his rookie season in 2016.

The Atlanta Falcons finished first in the NFC South with an 11–5 record, while simultaneously clinching the top seed in the NFC and a first round bye in the playoffs. During the Falcons' 36–20 victory over the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Divisional Round on January 13, 2017, Neal played his first appearance in playoffs and led both teams with 11 combined tackles (one solo). The Falcons defeated the Green Bay Packers 44-21 in the NFC Championship the following week. During the Falcons' 34–28 overtime loss to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI, Neal collected 13 combined tackles (nine solo) on February 6, 2017. After the Falcons' defense suffered a fourth quarter failure and let the Patriots recover from a 19-point deficit in the fourth quarter, defensive coordinator Richard Smith was fired.

Marquand Manuel, the Falcons' defensive coordinator, retained Neal and Allen as the starting safety pair for the regular season. During a 23–7 loss to the New England Patriots, Neal collected a season-high ten combined tackles (six solo) and deflected a pass. In Atlanta's 20-17 loss to the Carolina Panthers in Week 9, he made eight combined tackles and forced two fumbles. In the Falcons' 23–13 loss to the New Orleans Saints on December 24, 2016, he tied his season-high with ten combined tackles (eight solo) and a pass deflection. Neal's first interception appearance against the Carolina Panthers was made on Wednesday, when he made five combined tackles, deflected a pass, and made his first career interception off a pass by quarterback Cam Newton. He finished the 2017 season with 116 combined tackles (83 solo), six pass deflections, three forked fumbles, three forced fumbles, and three intercepted interceptions, as well as an interception in 16 games and 16 starts. He came in second in tackles for the Falcons, behind linebacker Deion Jones, and finished second in tackles in safeties behind Reshad Jones.

The Atlanta Falcons finished third in the NFC South with a 10–6 record. They earned a wild card spot but they were disqualified from the playoffs after being defeated 15–10 by the eventual Super Bowl LII Champions, the Philadelphia Eagles, in the NFC Divisional Round. Neal's loss was six combined tackles, and they had 14 total in both playoff games. Neal was named as a substitute for safety Malcolm Jenkins in Super Bowl LII with the Eagles on January 22, 2018.

Neal left the game early in the season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles due to a knee injury. He returned to the game only to find it again on a non-contact play. Neal tore his ACL on Monday, and he will miss the remainder of the season. On September 10, 2018, he was put on injured reserve.

The Falcons tried the fifth-year deal on Neal's deal on April 24, 2019. Neal's third preseason game against the Washington Redskins saw an illegal helmet-to-helmet collision that ended Reed's season before it began. Neal was fined $28,075 by the NFL for his attack on Reed. In Week 3, Neal sustained a torn Achilles tendon shortly before halftime, bringing his season to a close end for the second year in a row. On September 24, 2019, he was put on injured reserve.

Neal led the team with 11 tackles (10 solo) and sacked Matthew Stafford once during the 23-22 loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 7. Neal's first interception of the season came off a pass kick against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 16 against the Dallas Cowboys.

Neal reunited with defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, who was his head coach with the Falcons, on April 14, 2021, on April 14, 2021. During planned team activities in May, he was switched to a weakside linebacker.

Neal signed a one-year, $1.272 million deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on April 6, 2022, bringing back to solid security.

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