| No. 20 –Dallas Cowboys | |||||||||||
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| Position: | Cornerback | ||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||
| Born: | (2001-05-05)May 5, 2001 (age 23) Riviera Beach, Florida, U.S. | ||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||||
| Weight: | 191 lb (87 kg) | ||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||
| High school: | |||||||||||
| College: | Florida (2019–2021) | ||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2022: 1st round, 23rd pick | ||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2024 | |||||||||||
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Kaiir Elam (/kaɪˈiːrˈiːləm/kai-EEREE-ləm;[1] born May 5, 2001) is an American professionalfootballcornerback for theDallas Cowboys of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football atFlorida and was drafted by theBuffalo Bills in the first round of the2022 NFL draft.
Elam grew up inRiviera Beach, Florida, and attendedThe Benjamin School, where he played basketball, football, and ran track.[2] As a senior, he recorded 71 tackles, three sacks and nine interceptions and was named the Palm Beach 5A-1A football defensive player of the year.[3] Elam was rated the fourth best high school football prospect of his class byESPN and committed to playcollege football at Florida.[4][5]
As a true freshman, Elam played in all 13 of the Gators' games and made five starts, recording 11 tackles, three interceptions and four additional passes broken up; he was named to theSoutheastern Conference (SEC) All-Freshman Team.[6][7][8][9] Elam entered his sophomore season on theJim Thorpe Award watchlist and was named preseason second-team All-SEC.[10] On January 10, 2022, Elam declared for the2022 NFL draft.[11]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Bench press | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft1+1⁄2 in (1.87 m) | 191 lb (87 kg) | 30+7⁄8 in (0.78 m) | 8+7⁄8 in (0.23 m) | 4.39 s | 1.55 s | 2.57 s | 4.21 s | 6.98 s | 37.5 in (0.95 m) | 10 reps | ||
| Sources:[12][13] | ||||||||||||
TheBuffalo Bills selected Elam in the first round (23rd overall) of the2022 NFL Draft. In order to secure the acquisition of Elam, the Buffalo Bills orchestrated a trade, agreeing to send their first (25th overall) and fourth round (140th overall) picks in the 2022 NFL Draft to theBaltimore Ravens in return for the 23rd overall pick.[14][15] Elam marks the fourth straight defensive player the Bills have selected with afirst round pick, followingGregory Rousseau in 2021.[16]
On May 13, 2022, the Buffalo Bills signed Elam to a four-year,$13.69 millioncontract that is fully guaranteed and includes asigning bonus of $7.13 million.[17]
He made his NFL debut in Week 1 against theLos Angeles Rams.[18] He recorded his first professional interception offKenny Pickett in week 5 on October 9, 2022, in the Bills 38-3 win against thePittsburgh Steelers.[19] The next week, on October 16, 2022, Elam recorded his second NFL interception offPatrick Mahomes during the Bills 24-20 win against theKansas City Chiefs. He finished his rookie season with 41 total tackles, two interceptions, and four passes defensed in 13 games.[20] On January 15, 2023, in theBills'playoff game against theDolphins in thewild card round, Elam recorded his first career playoff interception offSkylar Thompson in the 34-31 win.
On November 2, 2023, Elam was placed on injured reserve.[21] He was activated on December 27.[22]
On January 15, 2024, during theBillsplayoff game against theSteelers in thewild card round, Elam committedpass interference onDiontae Johnson, giving the Steelers the ball and a fresh set of downs at the Bills' 3 yard-line. 2 plays later, he recorded his second career playoff interception offMason Rudolph on a pass intended for Johnson in the end zone, ending the Steelers drive and preventing them from scoring their first points of the game. This interception occurred exactly one year after Elam recorded his first career playoff interception against theMiami Dolphins.
On March 12, 2025, Elam was traded to theDallas Cowboys alongside a 2025 sixth-round pick in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round pick and 2026 seventh-round pick.[23]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career High |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | TFL | Sck | Sfty | PD | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FF | FR | Yds | Avg | TD | ||
| 2022 | BUF | 13 | 6 | 41 | 29 | 12 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - |
| 2023 | BUF | 3 | 2 | 14 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | 0 | 0 | - | - | - |
| Career | 16 | 8 | 55 | 39 | 16 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | TFL | Sck | Sfty | PD | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FF | FR | Yds | Avg | TD | ||
| 2022 | BUF | 2 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - |
| 2023 | BUF | 2 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - |
| Career | 4 | 1 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Elam's father,Abram Elam, played college football at Kent State and in the NFL for seven seasons.[24] His uncle,Matt Elam, also played football at Florida and was a first round selection in the2013 NFL draft.[25] Matt Elam currently plays for theMassachusetts Pirates of theIndoor Football League (IFL).