 Blackmon withUtah in 2019 | |||||||||||||||||
| No. 23 – New Orleans Saints | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Safety | ||||||||||||||||
| Roster status |  Injured reserve | ||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1998-08-24)August 24, 1998 (age 27) Layton, Utah, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 187 lb (85 kg) | ||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||
| High school | Layton | ||||||||||||||||
| College | Utah (2016–2019) | ||||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2020: 3rd round, 85th overall pick | ||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of 2025 | |||||||||||||||||
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Julian Blackmon (born August 24, 1998) is an American professionalfootballsafety for theNew Orleans Saints of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for theUtah Utes.
Blackmon attendedLayton High School inLayton, Utah.[1] He playedcornerback andwide receiver in high school. A 3-star recruit, Blackmon committed toUtah to playcollege football over offers fromIdaho,Southern Utah, andWeber State.[2][3] Blackmon also played basketball in high school.[4]
Blackmon played at Utah from 2016 to 2019. He played his first three years as a cornerback before switching tosafety for his senior season.[5][6] As a sophomore in 2017, he was named the MVP of the2017 Heart of Dallas Bowl.[7] As a senior in 2019, he was named a first-team All-American bySports Illustrated andThe Athletic. He finished his career starting 39 of 48 games, recording 158 tackles, nineinterceptions, 1.5sacks and twotouchdowns.
Former NFL executiveGil Brandt had Blackmon ranked as the 11th best safety prospect in the draft (143rd overall).[8] Kevin Hanson ofSports Illustrated ranked him as the ninth best safety prospect in the 2020 NFL Draft.[9]NFL.com analystLance Zierlein projected Blackmon to be selected in the fourth or fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft.[10]
"Anytime you see a player with as diverse a positional background as Blackmon has it's always intriguing. Him being a formercornerback isn't that big of a positive in his favor in my book though because... well... he wasn't that good of a corner. He's never going to be a physical presence at safety and his range on the back end isn't terribly impressive. Without a great feel for the safety position yet, he's kind of in no man's land."[11]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | Wonderlic | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft11+3⁄4 in (1.82 m) | 187 lb (85 kg) | 31 in (0.79 m) | 9 in (0.23 m) | 22 | ||||||||
| All values fromNFL Combine[12][13] | ||||||||||||
TheIndianapolis Colts selected Blackmon in the third round (85th overall) pick in the2020 NFL draft. Blackmon was the eighth safety drafted.[14]
| External videos | |
|---|---|
 Colts draft Julian Blackmon No. 85 |
"Really it came down to I didn’t want to lose him behind us. We thought there was a chance he would be there in the third. We were worried if he’d be there in the fourth. He’s got theACL injury. We know he probably won’t be ready until late August/early September, which means that he might not really help us until October. He’s a rangy, fast, athletic safety that can play corner and he can play in the nickel. He has a lot of value in our defense and can play a bunch of multiple spots. This is his first year playing safety and we liked him at corner, too. We feel lucky to get him. He’s a talented young man."[15]
On June 16, 2020, the Indianapolis Colts signed Blackmon to a four–year,$4.62 millioncontract that includes an initialsigning bonus of $926,436.[16]
On July 27, 2020, the Indianapolis Colts placed him on the active/non-football injury list as he was still recovering from a torn ACL.[17] On August 31, 2020, the Colts removed him from the active/NFI list and officially added him to their active roster.[18] Head coachFrank Reich named him the third free safety on the depth chart to begin the season, behind starterMalik Hooker and primary backupGeorge Odum.Khari Willis was selected as the starting strong safety withTavon Wilson as a backup.[19]
He was inactive during a 27–20 loss at theJacksonville Jaguars in Week 1 due to a knee injury.[20]On September 20, 2020, Blackmon made his professional regular season debut and recorded two solo tackles and two pass deflections during a 28–11 win against theMinnesota Vikings. Starting free safety Malik Hooker tore his achilles during the game and was subsequently placed oninjured reserve. Head coach Frank Reich appointed Blackmon as his replacement at free safety before Week 3. In Week 3, he earned his first career start, but was limited to one solo tackle as the Colts routed theNew York Jets 36–7. On October 4, 2020, Blackmon made one solo tackle, a season-high three pass deflections, and made his first career interception on a pass thrown byNick Foles to wide receiverAnthony Miller during a 19–11 win at theChicago Bears.[21] In Week 6, Blackmon made two solo tackles, broke up a pass, and intercepted a pass thrown byJoe Burrow to wide receiverTyler Boyd with less than 48 seconds left in the fourth quarter to secure the Colts' 31–27 win against theCincinnati Bengals.[22] On November 22, 2020, Blackmon collected a season-high five solo tackles and was responsible for forcing a fumble by wide receiverMarquez Valdes-Scantling that was subsequently recovered by Colts' teammateDeForest Buckner for a turnover during overtime and eventually led to a 39-yard game-winning field goal byRodrigo Blankenship as the Colts defeated theGreen Bay Packers 34–31.[23] He finished his rookie season with a total of 42 combined tackles (35 solo), six pass deflections, and one interception in 15 games and 14 starts.[24]
He entered training camp slated to be the starting free safety following the departure of Malik Hooker.[25] Defensive coordinatorMatt Eberflus selected Blackmon to begin the season as the starting free safety and paired him with strong safetyKhari Willis.[26]
On September 26, 2021, Blackmon collected a season-high 11 solo tackles during a 16–25 loss at theTennessee Titans. On October 20, 2021, the Colts announced that Blackmon had suffered a torn Achilles during practice and would have to undergo surgery and miss the remainder of the season.[27] On October 23, 2021, the Colts officially placed him oninjured reserve for the rest of the season.[28] He finished the season with 34 combined tackles (27 solo) and one pass deflection in six games and six starts.[29]
FormerLas Vegas Raiders' defensive coordinatorGus Bradley accepted the same position with the Colts afterMatt Eberflus accepted a head coaching position with theChicago Bears. During training camp, Blackmon competed to be a starting safety againstRodney McLeod,Armani Watts, and rookieNick Cross.[30] Head coach Frank Reich named him the starting free safety and paired him with strong safety Nick Cross.[31]
He was sidelined for three consecutive games (Weeks 4–6) after injuring his ankle.[20] On November 6, 2022, he made four combined tackles (two solo) and recorded the first sack of his career onMac Jones as the Colts were routed 3–26 at theNew England Patriots. On November 7, 2022, the Colts announced their decision to fire head coachFrank Reich after a disappointing 3–5–1 start. FormerIndianapolis Colts' centerJeff Saturday was unexpectedly appointed to interim head coach.[32] On December 22, 2022, Blackmon made four combined tackles (two solo), a pass deflection, and returned an interception thrown byKirk Cousins to wide receiverJalen Reagor for a 17–yard touchdown to mark the first touchdown of his career during a 36–39 overtime loss at theMinnesota Vikings.[33] The following week, he collected a season-high nine combined tackles (five solo) as the Colts were routed 3–20 by theLos Angeles Chargers in Week 16. He finished the2022 NFL season with a total of 50 combined tackles (36 solo), two pass deflections, one interception, one fumble recovery, one sack, and a touchdown in 14 games and 11 starts.[34]
On February 14, 2023, theIndianapolis Colts announced the hiring ofPhiladelphia Eagles' offensive coordinatorShane Steichen as their head coach. Steichen retainedGus Bradley as the defensive coordinator.[35][36] Blackmon entered training camp as thede facto starting free safety following the departures of Rodney McLeod and Armani Watts. Head coach Shane Steichen named him the starting free safety to begin the season and paired him with strong safetyRodney Thomas II.[37]
On September 24, 2023, Blackmon collected a career-high 12 combined tackles (six solo) during a 22–19 overtime victory at theBaltimore Ravens. In Week 5, he recorded five combined tackles (four solo), broke up a pass, and sealed the game with an interception on a pass thrown byRyan Tannehill to wide receiverDeAndre Hopkins in the closing seconds in the fourth quarter of a 23–16 win against theTennessee Titans. On November 12, 2023, Blackmon recorded four solo tackles, two pass deflections, and had the first of two late fourth quarter interceptions by himself and fellow safety Rodney Thomas II to secure a 10–6 win at theNew England Patriots. In Week 15, he made two solo tackles, a pass deflection, recovered a fumble, and intercepted a pass attempt byMitchell Trubisky to wide receiverGeorge Pickens as the Colts defeated thePittsburgh Steelers 13–30. In Week 16, he made one solo tackle before exiting in the second quarter of a 10-29 loss at theAtlanta Falcons after injuring his shoulder. On December 26, 2023, the Colts officially placed him on injured reserve due to his shoulder injury and he remained inactive for the last two games (Weeks 17–18) of the season.[38] He finished the season with a career-high 88 combined tackles (65 solo), a team-high eight passes defensed, a career-high four interceptions, and two fumble recoveries in 15 games and 15 starts.[39] He received an overall grade of 68.3 from Pro Football Focus in 2023, ranking 38th among 95 qualifying safeties.[40][41]
On April 2, 2024, the Indianapolis Colts re-signed Blackmon to a one–year, $3.70 million contract extension that includes $3.19 million guaranteed and an initial signing bonus of $1.86 million.[42] Blackmon returned as the starting free safety and was again paired with starting strong safety Nick Cross.[43]
On September 8, 2024, Blackmon started in the Indianapolis Colts' home-opener against theHouston Texans and collected a career-high 13 combined tackles (ten solo) during a 27–29 loss. He was inactive during a 10–16 loss at theGreen Bay Packers in Week 2 due to a shoulder injury.[20] In Week 6, he made three solo tackles, a pass deflection, and had a key interception off a pass byWill Levis to wide receiverCalvin Ridley with less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter to help secure a 20–17 victory at theTennessee Titans. On January 5, 2025, Blackmon recorded five solo tackles, deflected a pass, and intercepted a pass thrown byMac Jones to wide receiverBrian Thomas Jr. as the Colts defeated theJacksonville Jaguars in overtime 26–23.[44] He finished the season with 86 combined tackles (62 solo), four pass deflections, three interceptions, a fumble recovery, and was credited with half a sack in 16 games and 16 starts.[45] He received an overall grade of 69.3 fromPro Football Focus, which ranked 48th among 170 qualifying safeties.
On July 23, 2025, Blackmon signed a one-year, $5.5 million contract with theNew Orleans Saints.[46] He was named a starting safety in Week 1, but suffered a torn labrum in the game and was placed on season-ending injured reserve.
In February 2024, Blackmon announced his engagement to his girlfriend Tyra Gilmore.[47] They got married on July 12, 2024.[48]