Vontaze Burfict Vontaze DeLeon Burfict , Jr . ( born September 24 , 1990 ) is an American football linebacker for the Cincinnati Bengals . He attended Arizona State University . Burfict was considered the most highly ranked football prospect Arizona State ever signed to a letter of intent , but had an up - and - down career for the Sun Devils . An All - American in 2010 , Burfict was projected an early first round pick for the 2012 NFL Draft . However , a mediocre junior season and poor pre - draft workout performances deteriorated his draft stock . Burfict eventually went undrafted in the 2012 NFL Draft , but was later signed by the Bengals . He went on to have a productive rookie season , starting 14 games and leading the team in tackles . High school career . Burfict attended Centennial High School in Corona , California , where he was part of an undefeated Huskies team that won a CIF title , a state championship with the help of quarterback Taylor Martinez , and was ranked No . 2 in the nation by " USA Today " in 2008 . That year , Burfict led the Huskies with 159 tackles , two quarterback sack s , two interceptions and two fumble recoveries . Burfict participated in the US Army All - American Bowl and was the third - leading tackler for the West team . He also earned numerous All - American honors , including " Parade " . As a junior , Burfict collected a team - high 130 tackles and added four sacks , two interceptions and one fumble recovery . He helped anchor a linebackers unit that included fellow Sun Devils Shelly Lyons and Brandon Magee . Corona Centennial finished the 2007 season as No . 24 on " USA Today ‘ s " Top 25 . Burfict missed almost all of his sophomore season due to academic problems . Considered a five - star recruit by " Rivals . com " and " Scout . com " , Burfict was listed as the No . 1 inside linebacker prospect in the nation . College career . Burfict originally committed to play for the USC Trojans , but eventually switched to Arizona State on National Signing Day . He joined ASU ' s 2009 class that included three of his high school teammates . By July 2009 , he struggled to meet admission standard based on the NCAA eligibility sliding scale and still had one summer school class to complete . Sun Devils coach Dennis Erickson , who compared Burfict to Ray Lewis , expected him to be academically eligible for enrollment . Burfict did qualify on time for the 2010 football season . By midseason , Burfict ranked second in the team with 30 tackles despite starting only three of six games , and had five tackles for a loss , two sacks and three pass break - ups . " ESPN " named him Arizona State ' s midseason defensive MVP . In a road game against Georgia on September 26 , Burfict collected a season - high 11 tackles ( three solo ) and one and half tackles for loss . He led the Sun Devils in tackles in five games over the course of the season . By the end of the year , he had collected 69 tackles , seven tackles for loss , and a pair of sacks , and was named a Freshman All - American by " College Football News " , and by the Football Writers Association of America . He was also honored as the Pacific - 10 Conference Defensive Freshman of the Year . At the start of his sophomore season , Burfict was named First - Team Preseason All - American by " The Sporting News " . He was also named to the watch lists of the 2010 Rotary Lombardi Award and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy . On October 6 , 2010 , Burfict was benched by Arizona State head coach Dennis Erickson . The reason given was Burfict ' s unusually high number of personal foul penalties . In a game against Stanford , Burfict was called for grabbing the facemask of Doug Baldwin , and — after complaining to the referee — charged with a personal foul for unsportsmanlike conduct that gave Stanford a first down at the ASU 7 . Two plays later , Stanford scored what turned out to be the winning touchdown . Burfict finished the 2010 season with a team leading 90 tackles , 8 . 5 for a loss , and two forced fumbles . " The Sporting News " selected him to their All - American team , as well as Pacific - 10 Defensive MVP . Burfict is ASU ' s first 1st team All - American since Terrell Suggs . With senior cornerback Omar Bolden lost for the season to a knee injury , Burfict was expected to take over as the leader of the Sun Devils defense in 2011 , but eventually had a rather inconsistent junior season . Burfict decided to forgo his senior year at Arizona State and entered the 2012 NFL Draft . Professional career . 2012 NFL Draft . When he entered his junior season , Burfict was regarded as one of the best linebackers available in the 2012 NFL Draft , projected to go as high as the No . 5 pick . Problems on and off the field at Arizona State , however , caused his draft stock to plummet . In October 2011 , " Sports Illustrated " ′ s Tony Pauline still ranked him as the No . 20 prospect on his midseason draft board , but noted that he has been " a loose cannon on and off the field , which has raised red flags . " Burfict entered the NFL Combine rated as the No . 3 inside linebacker , behind Luke Kuechly and Dont ' a Hightower , but his " disappointing " performance — including a 5 . 09 sec in the 40 - yard dash , slowest among linebackers — caused some analysts to project him as a third day ( Rd . 4 - 7 ) draft pick . NFL scouts also faulted him for his interview process , in which he blamed the ASU coaching staff for his mediocre junior season . Later it was also reported that Burfict tested positive for marijuana at the combine . At the ASU pro day on March 16 , Burfict had an " average " performance by his own estimation . According to SI ' s Tony Pauline , Burfict " looked poorly conditioned and out - of - place in drills " . In their draft coverage , SI . com projected him as 7th round to undrafted . Burfict eventually went undrafted , but was signed by the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent . Cincinnati Bengals . An undrafted rookie , Burfict managed to make the Cincinnati Bengals ' roster . He played in all 16 games and started 14 of those , finishing the seasons as the Bengals ' top tackler with 127 combined tackles , including 18 tackles in their final game of the year against the Baltimore Ravens . When Burfict was on field , the Bengals defense allowed 2 . 4 yards fewer per play compared to 4 . 5 when he was off the field . Personal . Burfict was born in South Los Angeles . His father , a gang member and convicted cocaine dealer , was incarcerated most of the time and never had a relationship with his son . His mother , a city transit bus driver , initially raised Burfict and his older half - brother DaShan Miller ( b . 1986 ) on her own , but eventually re - married and moved to Corona . Like Burfict , DaShan Miller was a football player at Corona Centennial High School , and later played college football at UTEP and Akron . Miller was eligible for the 2010 NFL Draft but was not selected by any team .