Joseph Thuney (/ˈtni/ TOO-nee; born November 18, 1992[1]) is an American professional football guard for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the NC State Wolfpack.[2] He was selected by the New England Patriots in the third round (78th overall selection) in the 2016 NFL draft.

Joe Thuney
refer to caption
Thuney with the New England Patriots in 2017
No. 62 – Kansas City Chiefs
Position:Guard
Personal information
Born: (1992-11-18) November 18, 1992 (age 32)
Centerville, Ohio, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:305 lb (138 kg)
Career information
High school:Archbishop Alter
(Kettering, Ohio)
College:NC State (2011–2015)
NFL draft:2016 / round: 3 / pick: 78
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 1, 2024
Games played:130
Games started:130
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

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His parents Mike and Beth Thuney raised him and their other three children, Monica, Eric and Megan in Centerville, Ohio.[3] There Thuney was a member of two D4 state championship teams at Archbishop Alter High School. As a Senior he was Greater Catholic League Lineman of the Year and president of his senior class.[4]

College career

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Thuney played sparingly at NC State during his freshman year. He came into his redshirt sophomore year as the projected starting center but ended up starting the season opener at right tackle, the second game at right guard and the last 10 games at left tackle.[5] In his junior year he started at left guard and at left tackle his senior year. He became the first offensive lineman for NC State to be named an All-American since Jim Ritcher in 1979.[6] He was a finalist for the Campbell Trophy, which rewards the best combination of academics, community service, and performance on the field, and he graduated from NC State cum laude in just three years. NFL reporter Matt Verderame claims that when Thuney took the Wonderlic Personnel Test he avoided answering many of the questions so he would not come off as too smart.[7]

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 4+58 in
(1.95 m)
304 lb
(138 kg)
32+14 in
(0.82 m)
9+58 in
(0.24 m)
4.95 s 1.71 s 2.84 s 4.54 s 7.47 s 28+12 in
(0.72 m)
9 ft 2 in
(2.79 m)
28 reps
All values from NFL Combine[8][9]

New England Patriots

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Thuney At The White House Following A Super Bowl Victory In 2017

Thuney was selected by the Patriots in the third round of the 2016 NFL draft with the 78th overall selection, 13 picks before the Patriots drafted his teammate, quarterback Jacoby Brissett.[10] Thuney won the starting left guard spot to start the season and remained the starter for all 16 regular-season games; according to Pro-Football-Reference.com, he played the highest number of snaps of any Patriot in 2016. He also started all three postseason games. On February 5, 2017, Thuney was part of the Patriots team that won Super Bowl LI. In the game, the Patriots defeated the Atlanta Falcons by a score of 34–28 in overtime.[11][12] The PFWA named Thuney to its 2016 All-Rookie Team at guard.[13] Thuney made it to his second straight Super Bowl when the Patriots defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC Championship Game. The Patriots failed to repeat as Super Bowl champions when they lost 41–33 to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Thuney once again started all 16 games at left guard for the Patriots in 2018, and for the third time in his three-year career, the Patriots made it to the Super Bowl. According to Mike Reiss of ESPN, that makes Thuney the first player in NFL history to start in the Super Bowl in each of his first three seasons.[14] The Patriots defeated the Los Angeles Rams 13–3 to win their second Super Bowl in three years.[15] Thuney played every offensive snap for the team and helped contain Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald.[16]

The Patriots placed the franchise tag on Thuney on March 16, 2020.[17] He signed the franchise tag on March 20, 2020.[18]

In 2020, with David Andrews out on injured reserve, Thuney was pressed into service at center for the Patriots' Week 3 game against the Las Vegas Raiders.[19]

Kansas City Chiefs

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Thuney in 2023

Thuney signed a five-year, $80 million contract with the Kansas City Chiefs on March 18, 2021.[20] Thuney continued to play left guard for the Chiefs during the 2022 NFL season. The Chiefs would go on to Super Bowl LVII where Thuney helped to hold the Philadelphia Eagles defense in check, as the offensive line gave up zero sacks and the Chiefs defeated the Eagles 38–35.[21] This was his third Super Bowl ring and first with the Chiefs. In 2023, Thuney was named First-team All-Pro. In the Divisional Round against the Buffalo Bills, Thuney had a pectoral injury that sidelined him for the rest of the playoffs. Without Thuney, the Chiefs won Super Bowl LVIII 25–22 against the San Francisco 49ers giving Thuney his fourth Super Bowl championship.[22]

On July 17, 2024, Thuney was placed on the Active/Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list.[23] He was activated off of the list on July 28, 2024.[24]

Regular season statistics

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Legend
First Team All-Pro
Second Team All-Pro
Committed zero penalties (Year)
Won the Super Bowl
No type penalty
Bold Career high
Year Team Games Offense
GP GS Snaps Pct Holding False Start Decl/Pen Acpt/Pen
2016 NE 16 16 1,114 100% 6 3 1 9
2017 NE 16 16 1,134 100% 2 0 0 3
2018 NE 16 16 1,119 100% 4 2 0 6
2019 NE 16 16 1,140 99% Committed no penalties
2020 NE 16 16 979 97% 3 0 0 3
2021 KC 17 17 1,185 99% 4 3 1 7
2022 KC 15 15 999 98% 1 1 0 2
2023 KC 17 17 1,087 97% 0 1 0 2
Career 129 129 8,767 - 20 10 2 32

References

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  1. ^ "Joe Thuney". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  2. ^ "Thuney stands out on NC State's offensive line | News & Observer". Archived from the original on June 2, 2016.
  3. ^ Hartman, Marcus (February 6, 2019). "Thuney family celebrates another Super Bowl victory". Journal-News.com. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  4. ^ "Joe Thuney". Patriots.com. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  5. ^ "Joe Thuney - 2015 - Football - NC State University Athletics".
  6. ^ "Joe Thuney | New England Patriots". Archived from the original on May 1, 2016.
  7. ^ Jordan Heck (July 30, 2019). "Patriots player avoided Wonderlic questions so he wouldn't 'scare teams off' with his intelligence". Sporting News.
  8. ^ "Combine Player Profiles – Joe Thuney". National Football League. Retrieved February 14, 2017.
  9. ^ "Joe Thuney Draft Profile". NFLDraftScout.com. The Sports Xchange. Retrieved February 14, 2017..
  10. ^ "2016 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  11. ^ "Super Bowl LI - New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons - February 5th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  12. ^ Mason, Chris (January 29, 2017). "Patriots notebook: Rookie guard Joe Thuney plays it cool". BostonHerald.com.
  13. ^ Hill, Rich (January 17, 2017). "Patriots LG Joe Thuney named to PFWA 2016 All Rookie Team". PatsPulpit.com.
  14. ^ https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/patriots’-joe-thuney-will-be-first-player-to-start-3-super-bowls-in-first-3-seasons/ar-BBSN9yX?li=BBnbcA1 [dead link]
  15. ^ Shpigel, Ben (February 4, 2019). "Patriots Win in Lowest-Scoring Super Bowl Ever". The New York Times. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
  16. ^ Sullivan, Tyler (February 11, 2019). "Joe Thuney dominated Aaron Donald on Patriots' TD drive". 247sports.com. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  17. ^ "Patriots Designate OL Joe Thuney as Franchise Player". Patriots.com. March 16, 2020. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  18. ^ Reiss, Mike (March 19, 2020). "Patriots guard Joe Thuney signs franchise tender". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
  19. ^ Jaillet, Danny (September 28, 2020). "Patriots OL Joe Thuney showed his value by changing positions". patriotswire.com. Retrieved September 28, 2020.
  20. ^ Shook, Nick (March 15, 2021). "Chiefs signing former Patriots OL Joe Thuney to 5-year, $80M deal". NFL.com. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  21. ^ Trotter, Jim (February 13, 2023). "Chiefs' offensive linemen 'handled business' against Eagles' vaunted defensive front after week of doubts". National Football League. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  22. ^ Maaddi, Rob (February 12, 2024). "Patrick Mahomes rallies the Chiefs to second straight Super Bowl title, 25–22 over 49ers in overtime". AP News. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  23. ^ Foote, Jordan (July 17, 2024). "Chiefs Announce Slew of Roster, Injury Moves to Begin Training Camp". SI.com. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  24. ^ Bush, Jared (July 28, 2024). "Chiefs OL Joe Thuney passes physical; removed from PUP list". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
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