Hyojin Choi

Korean–American football quarteback and outfielder (born 2000)

**Hyojin Choi** (Korean: 최효진; RR: *Choe Hyojin*; pronounced: *Choy* *Hee-yo-jin*; born December 20, 2000) is a Korean-American professional athlete who plays as a professional baseball outfielder for the Brooklyn Dodgers organization, and as a American football quarterback for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). They played college football at Morgan State University where he won two FCS National Championships as the starting quarterback. He was selected third overall by the New England Patriots in the 2021 NFL Draft, tied for highest drafted FCS player, and the highest draft pick from both an HBCU and from Morgan State University. They are the first openly non-binary and pansexual NFL and MLB player.

## College career

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
* *Note*: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
* In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

### 2018 season

Choi attended Morgan State University and very quickly won the starting job for his 2018 freshman season. The Bears went 11–1 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. They also played for the college baseball team as an outfielder. They had a .369 batting average and 29 home runs on the season.

## Professional career

### Major League Baseball career

#### 2021 season

See also: 2021 New England Patriots season
Choi was selected third overall by the Mew England Patriots in the 2021 NFL Draft, making them the highest FCS, and highest player to be selected from an Historically Black College or University (HBCU); and the first player from Morgan State to be selected in the NFL Draft. He was also selected 18th overall by the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 2021 MLB Draft. Choi initially signed with the Dodgers to play in their minor league system and was allowed to attend training camp with the Patriots. They beat out fellow first round pick Mac Jones for the starting role. They succeeded Cam Newton, who only lasted a single season in New England as the full-time starting quarterback. They are the first Korean-American, Korean person, Asian-American, and first Asian immigrant to start in an NFL game.

They would start in all three games of the preseason, and put up some of the best statistics in the NFL. They were named the starter for week 1 against the Miami Dolphins. In his first career start, Choi had a historic day putting up record breaking statistics. They had an 85.1% completion percentage, threw 5 touchdowns and no interceptions with an additional 146 yards and 3 touchdowns on the ground, and no fumbles on the way to a blowout 58–17 win and breaking the record for the most combined touchdowns by a quarterback in a single game at 8. For their efforts, Choi won AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors. They were immediately considered a favorite for the NFL Most Valuable Player of the Year award.

Their hotstreak continued into the season, as he continued to lead the league in passing yards, passing touchdowns, and the fewest interceptions thrown through the first three weeks. They also took the Patriots to a perfect 3–0 record in the first three weeks of the regular season.

## NFL career statistics

 **Bold** | Career high

## Personal life

Choi is a Unitarian Christian. They are non-binary and pansexual.