# Willie Gay

Willie Gay Jr. (born February 15, 1998) is an American professional football linebacker for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Mississippi State. He was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs with the 63rd overall selection in the 2020 NFL draft.

## Early life

Gay attended Starkville High School in Starkville, Mississippi. At Starkville High School, he won the 2015 6A State Championship. He played in the 2017 U.S. Army All-American Bowl. He committed to Mississippi State University to play college football.

## College career

Gay played at Mississippi State from 2017 to 2019. As a junior in 2019, he played in only five games and missed eight due to suspension. After the season, he entered the 2020 NFL draft, forgoing his senior season. During his career, he had 99 tackles, six sacks, three interceptions and a touchdown.

## Professional career

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 1+1⁄8 in (1.86 m) | 243 lb (110 kg) | 32+5⁄8 in (0.83 m) | 10+1⁄2 in (0.27 m) | 4.45 s | 1.55 s | 2.60 s | 4.30 s | 7.08 s | 39.5 in (1.00 m) | 11 ft 4 in (3.45 m) | 21 reps |
| All values from NFL Combine ||||||||||||

### Kansas City Chiefs

Gay was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the second round with the 63rd overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft, which was previously acquired by the Chiefs in a 2019 trade that sent Dee Ford to the San Francisco 49ers. In Week 5 against the Las Vegas Raiders, Gay recorded his first career sack. On February 6, 2021, Gay was placed on injured reserve, forcing him to miss Super Bowl LV. Without Gay, the Chiefs lost the Super Bowl 31-9 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Gay was placed on injured reserve on September 2, 2021. He was activated on October 9.
On September 19, 2022, Gay was suspended for four games for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy due to his arrest in January 2022. Gay went on to help the Chiefs win Super Bowl LVII against the Philadelphia Eagles 38–35. Gay recorded eight tackles in the Super Bowl.
In 2023, Gay had 58 tackles, one sack, one forced fumble, three fumble recoveries, one interception, and four passes defended. Gay helped the Chiefs reach Super Bowl LVIII where they defeated the San Francisco 49ers 25-22 to win their second straight championship. Gay recorded 4 tackles in the game.

### New Orleans Saints

On March 13, 2024, Gay signed a one-year contract with the New Orleans Saints.

## NFL career statistics

Legend :
| | Won the Super Bowl |
| Bold | Career high |

### Regular season

| Year | Team | Games | Games | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Interceptions | Interceptions | Interceptions | Interceptions | Interceptions | Interceptions | Fumbles | Fumbles | Fumbles | Fumbles |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | Comb | Solo | Ast | Sck | PD | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FF | FR | Yds | TD |
| 2020 | KC | 16 | 8 | 39 | 29 | 10 | 1.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | KC | 12 | 11 | 48 | 26 | 22 | 0.5 | 4 | 2 | 14 | 7.0 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | KC | 13 | 13 | 88 | 51 | 37 | 2.5 | 8 | 1 | 47 | 47.0 | 47 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | KC | 16 | 15 | 58 | 44 | 14 | 1.0 | 4 | 1 | 24 | 24.0 | 24 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Career | Career | 57 | 47 | 233 | 150 | 83 | 5.0 | 19 | 4 | 85 | 21.3 | 47 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 |

### Playoffs

| Year | Team | Games | Games | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Interceptions | Interceptions | Interceptions | Interceptions | Interceptions | Interceptions | Fumbles | Fumbles | Fumbles | Fumbles |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | Comb | Total | Ast | Sck | PD | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FF | FR | Yds | TD |
| 2020 | KC | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| 2021 | KC | 3 | 3 | 11 | 7 | 4 | 0.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | KC | 3 | 3 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | KC | 3 | 3 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | Career | 9 | 9 | 29 | 19 | 11 | 0.5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

## Legal trouble

Gay was arrested on January 19, 2022, for misdemeanor criminal destruction of property less than $1,000. He reportedly went to see his son at his son's mother's house. The two got into an argument and Gay damaged a vacuum cleaner, a humidifier, and a cellphone screen protector, as well as a wall and door.