Kyle Philips Explained

Kyle Philips
Current Team:Tennessee Titans
Number:18
Position:Wide receiver
Birth Date:17 June 1999
Birth Place:Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Height Ft:5
Height In:11
Weight Lbs:189
High School:San Marcos
(San Marcos, California)
College:UCLA (2018–2021)
Draftyear:2022
Draftround:5
Draftpick:163
Pastteams:
Status:Active
Highlights:
Statseason:2023
Statlabel1:Receptions
Statvalue1:23
Statlabel2:Receiving yards
Statvalue2:259
Statlabel3:Receiving touchdowns
Statlabel4:Return yards
Statvalue4:98
Statlabel5:Return touchdowns
Pfr:PhilKy01

Kyle Michael Philips (born June 17, 1999[1]) is an American professional football wide receiver for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UCLA Bruins and was a first-team all-conference selection in the Pac-12 in 2021. Philips was drafted by the Titans in the fifth round of the 2022 NFL draft.

Early life

Philips grew up in San Marcos, California,[2] and attended San Marcos High School. As a junior, he had 65 receptions for 909 yards and eleven touchdowns.[3] In his senior year, Philips caught 59 passes for 1,318 yards and 10 touchdowns. He also made 59 tackles on defense in his high school career.[3]

Philips was ranked as a four-star recruit by ESPN and listed as the No. 31 recruit in California. He was recruited by Jimmie Dougherty, who was the receivers coach for UCLA at the time. He signed his National Letter of Intent on December 20, 2017,[4] becoming the first official signing for their new head coach, Chip Kelly.[4]

College career

As a freshman at the University of California, Los Angeles, Philips played in three of the first four games of the 2018 season before suffering a concussion and opting to redshirt.[5] He led the team in 2019 with 60 catches, 681 receiving yards and five touchdown receptions.[6] [7]

In 2021, he was named to the preseason watch list for the Paul Hornung Award, awarded to the most versatile player in the nation.[8] He also received preseason All-Pac-12 first-team honors. Philips had seven catches for 113 yards, including scores of 42 and 15 yards, in a loss to Fresno State.[9] The two touchdown catches tied his career high with the other occurring in 2019 against the Stanford Cardinal. At the game against Colorado on November 13, 2021, Philips caught a team-high eight passes and returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown, his second career punt return for a score.[10] [11] For the season, he was named first-team All-Pac-12 as a receiver and garnered second-team honors as a return specialist. Philips led the conference with 10 receiving touchdowns and was second in receiving yards per game with 67.2.[12] He also averaged 22.6 yards per punt return, which led the conference among players with more than one return.

After the season, Philips declared for the 2022 NFL draft. He ended his career ranked fourth in UCLA history with 163 career receptions.[13]

Statistics

SeasonTeamGPReceiving
Rec Yds TD
UCLA4 6 31 0
UCLA11 60 681 5
UCLA7 38 370 2
UCLA11 59 739 10
Career 33 163 1,821 17

Professional career

Philips was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the fifth round, 163rd overall, in the 2022 NFL draft.[14] In the 2022 season opener against the New York Giants, he led all Titans receivers with six receptions for 66 yards. He also had a 46-yard punt return to set up Tennessee's first touchdown. However, he also lost a fumble on a return.[15] In Week 2, he lost another fumble on a punt return against the Buffalo Bills.[16] Philips later suffered a hamstring injury in practice and was placed on injured reserve on October 25, 2022.[17]

On August 31, 2023, Phillips was placed on injured reserve.[18] He was activated on October 7.[19]

External links

Notes and References

  1. 1140675629714554881 . UCLAFootball . Happy Birthday, @kylephilips17! #GoBruins . June 17, 2019.
  2. News: Kyle Philips . November 14, 2021 . UCLABruins.com.
  3. News: Kyle Philips' Football Stats . November 14, 2021 . Maxpreps.com.
  4. News: Nguyen . Thuc Nhi . December 20, 2017 . WR Kyle Philips signs with UCLA football . November 14, 2021 . Orange County Register.
  5. News: Bolch . Ben . October 31, 2019 . UCLA receiver Kyle Philips has been nearly letter perfect lately . November 17, 2021 . Los Angeles Times.
  6. News: Grosbard . Adam . April 27, 2020 . 5 UCLA players who could be selected in 2021 NFL Draft . November 17, 2021 . Los Angeles Daily News.
  7. News: Maffei . John . December 9, 2020 . Former San Marcos star Kyle Philips flourishes at UCLA . November 17, 2021 . The San Diego Union-Tribune.
  8. News: Connon . Sam . July 29, 2021 . Kyle Philips earns spot on Paul Hornung Award Watch List . November 14, 2021 . si.com.
  9. News: Bolch . Ben . September 18, 2021 . No. 13 UCLA stunned by Jake Haener and Fresno State in 40–37 loss . November 14, 2021 . Los Angeles Times.
  10. Web site: Nguyen . Thuc Nhi . November 14, 2021 . UCLA must aim higher than Jimmy Kimmel bowl: Takeaways from win over Colorado . November 27, 2022 . Los Angeles Times.
  11. Web site: Kenney . Kirk . December 24, 2021 . UCLA wide receiver Kyle Philips among Bruins’ standouts for Holiday Bowl . December 27, 2022 . The San Diego Union-Tribune.
  12. News: Williams . James H. . December 7, 2021 . Kyle Philips leads UCLA’s nine All-Pac-12 football selections . December 21, 2021 . Los Angeles Daily News.
  13. News: Bolch . Ben . January 4, 2022 . Undersized UCLA receiver Kyle Philips aims big by declaring for NFL draft . January 5, 2022 . Los Angeles Times.
  14. Web site: Wyatt . Jim . April 30, 2022 . Titans Select Former UCLA WR Kyle Philips in the Fifth Round (Pick 163) of the NFL Draft . April 15, 2023 . TennesseeTitans.com.
  15. Web site: Moraitis . Mike . September 13, 2022 . Titans' Kyle Philips talks impressive Week 1, says he wasn't reliable enough . September 27, 2022 . USA Today.
  16. Web site: Estes . Gentry . September 22, 2022 . Tennessee Titans looking for a punt returner to fix early fumbles . December 27, 2022 . The Tennessean.
  17. Web site: Wyatt . Jim . October 25, 2022 . Titans Sign WR Chris Conley to 53-Man Roster, Place WR Kyle Philips on Injured Reserve . April 15, 2023 . TennesseeTitans.com.
  18. Web site: Wyatt . Jim . August 31, 2023 . Titans Make a Flurry of Roster Moves on Thursday . August 31, 2023.
  19. Web site: Wyatt, Jim . October 7, 2023 . Titans Activate WR Kyle Philips to Team's 53-Man Roster . TennesseeTitans.com.