| No. 53 –Pittsburgh Steelers | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Linebacker |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | (1999-05-11)May 11, 1999 (age 25) Asheville, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Weight: | 252 lb (114 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Asheville |
| College: | Northwestern (2018–2020) Auburn (2021–2022) |
| Undrafted: | 2023 |
| Career history | |
| |
| Roster status: | Active |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Stats atPro Football Reference | |
Eku Leota (born May 11, 1999) is an American professionalfootballlinebacker for thePittsburgh Steelers of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football atNorthwestern before transferring toAuburn.
Leota grew up inAsheville, North Carolina and attendedAsheville High School.[1]
Leota began hiscollege football career at Northwestern andredshirted his true freshman season.[2] He had 2.5 sacks as a redshirt freshman. Leota was named third-teamAll-Big Ten Conference during his redshirt sophomore season.[3] He entered theNCAA transfer portal at the end of the regular season.[4]
Leota ultimately transferred to Auburn.[5] He made 23 tackles with ten tackles for loss and seven sacks in his first season with the team.[6] Leota suffered a season-ending pectoral injury in the fifth game of the Tigers' 2022 season.[7]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 252 lb (114 kg) | 33+1⁄2 in (0.85 m) | 9+1⁄2 in (0.24 m) | |||||||||
| All values fromNFL Combine[8][9] | ||||||||||||
Leota was signed by theCarolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent on April 29, 2023.[10] On August 29, 2023, he was waived for final roster cuts, but signed to the Panthers'practice squad the following day.[11][12] He was promoted to the active roster on November 13, 2023.[13]
On September 17, 2024, Leota was waived by the Panthers, and re-signed to the practice squad.[14] He was then released again on September 24.[15]
On October 1, 2024, Leota was signed to thePittsburgh Steelers practice squad.[16] He signed a reserve/future contract on January 14, 2025.[17]