 Chinn with theWashington Commanders in 2024 | |||||||||||||||||
| No. 11 –Las Vegas Raiders | |||||||||||||||||
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| Position: | Safety | ||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
| Born: | (1998-02-26)February 26, 1998 (age 27) Fishers, Indiana, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 220 lb (100 kg) | ||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||
| High school: | Fishers (Fishers) | ||||||||||||||||
| College: | Southern Illinois (2016–2019) | ||||||||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2020: 2nd round, 64th pick | ||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of 2024 | |||||||||||||||||
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Jeremy Chinn (born February 26, 1998) is an American professionalfootballsafety for theLas Vegas Raiders of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for theSouthern Illinois Salukis and was selected by theCarolina Panthers in the second round of the2020 NFL draft. Chinn has also played for theWashington Commanders.
Chinn attendedFishers High School inFishers, Indiana. He played cornerback andrunning back for the Tigersfootball team.[1]
Chinn played at Southern Illinois from 2016 to 2019.[2][3] He played both safety and cornerback.[4] In 2016, Chinn was named to theMissouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) All-Newcomer Team,[5] and theFootball Championship Subdivision (FCS) FreshmanAll-American first-team.[6] In 2017, he was named to the All-MVFC second-team.[7] In 2018 and 2019, he was named to the All-MVFC first-team.[8][9] Chinn was also named a consensus FCS All-American in 2019.[10] During his career, he started 27 of 38 games, recording 243 tackles, 13interceptions, and one sack.[11][12]
On January 25, 2020, Chinn participated in the2020 Senior Bowl and played underDetroit Lions' head coachMatt Patricia on the North as they defeated the South 34–17.[13] He was able to increase his profile and was overall seen to be impressive, but considered as raw.[13] He attended theNFL Scouting Combine and his 30 on the Wonderlic continued to impress teams, along with his affable personality. He was a sudden unexpected rising prospect in the 2020 NFL draft and was projected to possibly be a late first-round pick.[14]
| External videos | |
|---|---|
 NFL Combine workout: Jeremy Chinn | |
| NFL Draft Profile: Jeremy Chinn |
NFL analystDaniel Jeremiah ranked Chinn as the third best safety prospect (48th overall) in the draft.[15] Former NFL executiveGil Brandt had Chinn ranked as the fifth best safety prospect (66th overall).[16] Kevin Hanson ofSports Illustrated had him as the fifth best safety in the draft.[17] Steven Ruiz ofUSA Today had Chinn as the sixth best safety available in the draft.[18] He was ranked fifth among all safeties (50th overall) by the Draft Network.[13] NFL draft analystLance Zierlein projected Chinn to be selected in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. NFL draft analysts projected him to be a second or third round pick at the latest.[19]
"Chinn is a fun player to study. He lined up all over the field inSIU’s scheme. He has an outstanding blend of size, speed and instincts. He is at his best when he’s in the box as a down safety/nickel linebacker. He has tremendous range to make plays sideline to sideline. He can locate and play the ball naturally (see:[1] the high-point INT vs.UMass). He does have a little tightness when he’s in space, but he recovers quickly. He is a very firm/reliable tackler. Overall, I believe Chinn is ideally suited to play WLB at the next level. He is exactly what teams are looking for in today’s NFL."[13]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | Wonderlic | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 221 lb (100 kg) | 32+1⁄8 in (0.82 m) | 9+5⁄8 in (0.24 m) | 4.45 s | 1.53 s | 2.58 s | 41.0 in (1.04 m) | 11 ft 6 in (3.51 m) | 20 reps | 30 | ||
| All values fromNFL Combine[20][21] | ||||||||||||
TheCarolina Panthers selected Chinn in the second round (64th overall) of the2020 NFL Draft.[22] The Carolina Panthers orchestrated a trade in order to secure Chinn, agreeing to trade their second (69th overall) and fifth round picks (148th overall) in the 2020 NFL Draft to theSeattle Seahawks in exchange for their second round pick (64th overall) in 2020.[23] Chinn was the fifth safety drafted in 2020 and also became the highest draft pick from Southern Illinois since1984. He also became the fifth highest pick in theNFL Draft hailing from Southern Illinois and the highest drafted safety from his alma mater.[24]
| External videos | |
|---|---|
| Panthers draft Chinn 64th overall |
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On June 21, 2020, the Carolina Panthers signed Chinn to a four–year,$5.24 millionrookiecontract that includes an initialsigning bonus of $1.37 million.[25]
Throughouttraining camp, Chinn competed againstJuston Burris andMyles Hartsfield to be the starting strong safety after it was vacant following the departure ofEric Reid. Defensive coordinatorPhil Snow had Chinn take reps and learn multiple positions throughout training camp, including as an extra defensive back in nickel and dime packages and at linebacker.[26] Head coachMatt Rhule named Chinn the strong safety to begin 2020, alongside free safetyTre Boston.[27] He was also listed as an option at strongside linebacker alongsideJermaine Carter.[28]
On September 13, 2020, Chinn started in his professional regular season debut and made eight combined tackles (seven solo) in the Panthers' 30–34 home-opening lost to theLas Vegas Raiders. On October 18, 2020, Chinn made five combined tackles (four solo), a season-high two pass deflections, and had his first career interception on a pass attempt byNick Foles intended for tight endDemetrius Harris during a 23–16 loss to theChicago Bears.[29] He was named Defensive Rookie of the Month in October after posting 30 tackles, four passes defensed, and an interception.[30] He was inactive for the Panthers' Week 9 loss at theKansas City Chiefs due to a knee injury. On November 29, 2020, Chinn collected a season-high 13 combined tackles (seven solo) and returned two fumble recoveries for touchdowns in a 28–27 loss at theMinnesota Vikings in Week 12. In the third quarter, defensive endZach Kerr forced a fumble by Vikings' quarterbackKirk Cousins that Chinn recovered and returned 17–yards for a touchdown. The first play of the Vikings' following series, Chinn andBravvion Roy forced a fumble by running backDalvin Cook that was subsequently recovered by Chinn and was returned 28–yards for his second touchdown.[31]Chinn was named the Defensive Rookie of the Month for his performance in November.[32] He was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team.[33] He finished hisrookie season in2020 with 116 combined tackles (78 solo), five pass deflections, one interception, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, two touchdowns, and a sack in 15 games and 15 starts.
Defensive coordinatorPhil Snow named Chinn the starting free safety, alongside Justin Burris to begin 2021.[34] On November 21, 2021, Chinn collected a season-high 13 combined tackles (eight solo) during a 21–29 loss to theAtlanta Falcons. He was inactive for the Panthers' regular season finale at theTampa Bay Buccaneers after rolling his ankle in practice.[35] He finished with 107 combined tackles (75 solo), five pass deflections, one fumble recovery, one sack, and one interception in 16 games and 16 starts.[36] He earned a career-high overall grade of 71.4 fromPro Football Focus in 2021. He received a coverage grade of 74.3 from PFF.[37]
On September 25, 2022, Chinn had eight combined tackles (six solo), a season-high two pass deflections, and one sack during a 22–14 win against theNew Orleans Saints. The following week, Chinn played six snaps before exiting the Panthers' 16–26 loss to theArizona Cardinals after injuring his hamstring in the first quarter.[38] On October 5, 2022, the Carolina Panthers officially placed Chinn oninjured reserve due to hishamstring injury.[39] On October 10, 2022, theCarolina Panthers fired head coachMatt Rhule after starting the season 1–4. Secondary coachSteve Wilkes was named interim head coach for the rest of the2022 NFL season.[40] On November 19, 2022, Chinn was activated from injured reserve after missing six consecutive games (Weeks 5–10).[41] In Week 15, he racked up a season-high 14 combined tackles (11 solo) and deflected a pass in a 16–24 loss against thePittsburgh Steelers. He finished the season with 70 combined tackles (51 solo), six pass deflections, and one sack in 11 games and 11 starts.[42] He received an overall grade of 54.9 from Pro Football Focus, which ranked 79th among 89 qualifying safeties.[43]
Chinn entered training camp without a solidified role afterVonn Bell was signed to be the starting strong safety.Ejiro Evero was hired as the defensive coordinator and opted for a base3-4 defense. Chinn took reps at multiple positions as a linebacker and safety or a fifth or sixth defensive back innickel anddime packages.[44] Head coachFrank Reich named Vonn Bell andXavier Woods the starting safeties with Chinn listed on the depth chart as the first teamnickelback, but playing as a hybrid safety/linebacker.[45][46]
On September 10, 2023, Chinn started in the Carolina Panthers' season-opener at nickelback and collected a season-high seven combined tackles (three solo) during a 10–24 loss at theAtlanta Falcons. In Week 4, he racked up a season-high six solo tackles and sackedKirk Cousins during a 13–21 loss to theMinnesota Vikings. On October 15, 2023, Chinn exited in the first quarter of the Carolina Panthers' 21–42 loss at theMiami Dolphins due to a injury to his quadriceps. On October 24, 2023, the Carolina Panthers placed Chinn on injured reserve after it was discovered he had sustained a significant quad injury, but would not require surgery. He was inactive for the next five games (Weeks 8–12).[47] He was activated on December 2.[48] In his last season with the Panthers he finished with 30 combined tackles (18 solo), one pass deflection, and one sack in only 12 games and eight starts.
On March 12, 2024, theWashington Commanders signed Chinn to a one–year, $4.10 million contract that includes $3.49 million guaranteed and an initialsigning bonus of $2.37 million.[25][49] Chinn stated he also received a higher valued contract offer from thePittsburgh Steelers, but ultimately chose Washington to play underDan Quinn andJoe Whitt Jr. He was also reunited with former Panthers' linebackerFrankie Luvu.[50]
He entered training camp as the projected strong safety, replacingKamren Curl who departed infree agency. Head coach Dan Quinn selected Chinn to open the season as the starting strong safety, alongside free safetyQuan Martin.[51]
On November 10, 2024, he tied his season-high of 13 combined tackles (seven solo), made one pass deflection, and intercepted a pass thrown byRussell Wilson intended forGeorge Pickens during a 28–27 loss to thePittsburgh Steelers.[52] The following week, Chinn recorded a season-high ten solo tackles (13 combined) and had his third consecutive game with 13 tackles as the Commanders were defeated 18–26 in Week 11 at thePhiladelphia Eagles. He started in all 17 games in 2024 and had a career-high 117 combined tackles (73 solo), five pass deflections, a career-high two sacks, one interception, two fumble recoveries, and one forced fumble.[53] This marked his first full season playing all 17 games.[54] He received an overall grade of 65.2 fromPro Football Focus.[55]
With 32 seconds remaining in theDivisional round game, Chinn had the game-sealing interception onDetroit Lions quarterback,Jared Goff, that guaranteed the Commanders' 45–31 victory and advanced the team to theNFC Championship Game.[56]
On March 13, 2025, theLas Vegas Raiders signed Chinn on a two–year, $16.25 million contract that includes $12.25 million guaranteed upon signing and an initial signing bonus of $4.00 million.[57][58]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Comb | Solo | Ast | Sck | Sfty | PD | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2020 | CAR | 15 | 15 | 116 | 67 | 49 | 1.0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 45 | 2 |
| 2021 | CAR | 16 | 16 | 107 | 75 | 32 | 1.0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 16 | 0 |
| 2022 | CAR | 11 | 11 | 70 | 51 | 19 | 1.0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | CAR | 12 | 8 | 30 | 18 | 12 | 1.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | WAS | 17 | 17 | 117 | 73 | 43 | 1.0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 70 | 66 | 428 | 277 | 151 | 5.0 | 0 | 22 | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 61 | 2 | |
Chinn's uncle isPro Football Hall of Fame safetySteve Atwater, who played for theDenver Broncos in the 1990s.[59]