# Tyrique Stevenson

Tyrique Marquis Stevenson (born May 26, 2000) is an American professional football cornerback for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs and Miami Hurricanes and was selected by the Bears in the second round of the 2023 NFL draft.

## Early life

Stevenson was born on May 26, 2000, in Miami, Florida. He attended South Dade Senior High School and transferred to Miami Southridge Senior High School for his senior year.

## College career

Stevenson began his college career at Georgia and joined the team as an early enrollee. He played in all 14 of the Bulldogs' games during his freshman season and made 13 tackles with one sack and five passes defended. Stevenson played in all 10 of Georgia's games with four starts during the team's COVID-19 shortened 2020 season and finished the year with 34 tackles and five passes broken up.
After the season, Stevenson chose to transfer to Miami. He made 43 tackles with 2.5 tackles for loss, four passes broken up, and one interception in his first season with the team.

## Professional career
### Pre-draft

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 |
| 6 ft 0+3⁄8 in (1.84 m) | 198 lb (90 kg) | 32+3⁄8 in (0.82 m) | 9+5⁄8 in (0.24 m) | 4.45 s | 1.51 s | 2.57 s | 4.41 s | 7.09 s | 38.5 in (0.98 m) | 10 ft 5 in (3.18 m) |
| All values from NFL Combine |||||||||||

### 2023 season

Stevenson was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the second round (56th overall) of the 2023 NFL draft. He was the team's starting left cornerback to start the 2023 Chicago Bears season, opposite of Jaylon Johnson. He went on to start in 16 games for the Bears during his rookie campaign, missing only one contest due to an ankle injury. Stevenson struggled heavily in the first weeks of the season, allowing a passer rating against of 140 when targeted. However, he improved in both pass and run coverage, while also contributing on special teams. Stevenson registered his first career interception off of Jared Goff of the Detroit Lions in week 11. He was the NFC Defensive Player of the Week after registering five tackles, four pass breakups, and two interceptions in a 37–17 victory over the Atlanta Falcons in week 17. Stevenson finished the season with 86 tackles and 2 forced fumbles, 4 interceptions and a team-leading 16 pass breakups.

### 2024 season

In Week 1 of the 2024 season, against the Tennessee Titans, Stevenson intercepted a pass from quarterback Will Levis and returned it 43 yards for his first NFL touchdown, which turned out to be the game-winner, in the 24–17 win. His performance earned him NFC Defensive Player of the Week.
On the final play of the Week 8 game against the Washington Commanders, Stevenson was observed taunting the crowd near the Commanders' sideline with his back to the beginning of the play, before ultimately tipping a Hail Mary pass into the hands of Commanders' wide receiver Noah Brown in the end zone to lose the game 18–15. The play was later known as the Hail Maryland. As a result, Stevenson was removed from the starting lineup the following week. In week 13 during the Thanksgiving game versus the Detroit Lions while on the sidelines, Stevenson tripped receiver Jameson Williams while he was running out of bounds. Stevenson was subsequently fined.