Josiah Harden
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No. 94 Arizona Cardinals | |||||||||
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| Defensive End | |||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||
| Date of birth: October 28, 1998 (age 24) | |||||||||
| Place of birth: Pittsburgh, PA | |||||||||
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Career information | |||||||||
| High school: Central Catholic High School, Pittsburgh, PA | |||||||||
| College: North Carolina | |||||||||
| NFL Draft: 2021 / Round: 1 / Pick: 7 | |||||||||
| Debuted in 2021 for the Arizona Cardinals | |||||||||
Career history
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| Roster status: Active | |||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
Career NFL statistics as of Week 1, 2022 | |||||||||
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Josiah Harden is an American football Defensive End for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for North Carolina.
Contents
Early Life
Harden was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, but his parents moved to Cleveland, Ohio when he was still an infant. Harden often got into trouble in the streets, and so his parents sent him to live with his maternal grandparents back in Pittsburgh when he was 13. Harden's grandparents were devout Catholics, and had major influence on the young teen changing his ways. When high school rolled around, Harden requested to his grandparents that he be allowed to attend Central Catholic High School, an all-boys school where he could focus more on studies at a prestigious prep school, rather than attending local Carrick High School, which graded out as one of the worst testing schools in the area. His grandfather proudly obliged, paying the tuition.
Harden didn't play any sports during his freshman year, but a spring growth spurt entering his sophomore year caught the eye of the ice hockey coach. Harden was discouraged at first, since he had no idea how to skate, and there weren't a ton of professional black hockey players he could look up to, but his physicality could be matched by none, and he quickly caught on as a 2nd line defenseman on JV, and then moved up to varsity in time for the playoffs. Harden performed admirably in a game filled with injuries for the Central Catholic Vikings, earning significant minutes as a 2nd-line defenseman. The Central Catholic varsity football coach was in attendance, and while the Vikings lost on the ice, they won big in the gridiron department that day.
Harden quickly earned reps with the first team defense as an outside linebacker, but in their preseason scrimmage, injury again forced him into a new spot - defensive end. Harden hauled down the opposing quarterback four times, earning the starting spot heading into the regular season. He never looked back, and set school records in sacks on the field, and weight lifting records off.
Harden was serious about where he wanted to attend school, but with his grandfather having paid for his high school tuition, he wanted to earn an athletic scholarship so that his family didn't have to take a financial burden for him to go to school. He also decided he wanted to continue his faith studies. As one of the elite recruits in the nation, Harden could pretty much have his pick of the litter of scholarships.
College Career
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Josiah Harden DE |
Pittsburgh, PA | Central Catholic High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 249 lb (113 kg) | ||
Skill: Potential:
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| Overall recruiting rankings: | ||||||
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Harden chose to attend the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, earning a major in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, and a minor in Christianity and Culture.
College statistics
| Season | Defense | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Tackles | Int | Sacks | FF | FR | TD | Safeties | |||||
| 2017 | 12 | 12 | 30 | 0 | 8.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 2018 | 12 | 12 | 21 | 0 | 11.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 2019 | 12 | 12 | 20 | 0 | 6.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||
| 2020 | 12 | 12 | 25 | 0 | 10.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| NCAA Career Totals | 48 | 48 | 96 | 0 | 35.5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||
Professional Career
Pre-draft
| Ht | Wt | 40-yd dash | Shuttle | 3-cone | Vert | Broad | BP | Wonderlic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 3 in | 249 lb | 4.72 s | 4.33 s | 7.00 s | 30.5 in | N/A ft N/A in | 30 reps | N/A |
| All values from NFL Combine | ||||||||
Harden graded out well at the 2021 Combine, and was expected to be one of the top defensive players available in the 2021 NFLHC Draft.
The Arizona Cardinals selected him with the 7th overall pick of the draft.
Arizona Cardinals (2021 - Present)
Harden came in as a rookie as one of the most talented players on the whole Cardinals roster. He would join 1st-year defensive end Omar McManus as the team's top pass rushing candidates, and the two exploded off of each other, McManus notching 9.0 sacks, and Harden setting the franchise record for sacks in a season with 10.0.
Regular season
| Year | Team | Sheets | Tackles | TFL | Int | Sacks | FF | FR | TD | Safeties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | ARI | 10 | 26 | 4 | 0 | 10.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | ARI | 11 | 35 | 7 | 0 | 12.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 21 | 61 | 11 | 0 | 22.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Personal Life
While Harden's college degrees had roots in Christianity, some question his ways. His ex-girlfriend whom he dated throughout college took to Instagram in an attempt to knock him down a peg the night following his NFLHC draft selection. Accompanying a tasteful picture of her facing away from the sunset on an Atlantic beach, the caption "Sometimes we forget to live for the moment, and not for the future. Today, I am single for the first time in a little over three years. On this beach a year ago we talked about the future - where I was promised the little rocks below me were no match for the shining rock he had planned for me. Yesterday was supposed to be one of the biggest days of our lives, where we found out we'd be moving post graduation. This morning, that all changed. You claimed to be a devout Catholic, a self-proclaimed intellect. Today, I found out you have four kids with three different sluts, maybe more of each. So tonight, I'm living for the moment, I'm turning my back to this day, and I'm looking into the darkness for what lies ahead. Hopefully there's a bit more darkness headed your way, too." Harden responded directly to the post with a series of expletives too harsh for this wiki.
A few months later, Harden found out his ex was now dating former UNC teammate Max Laws, a quarterback with the Miami Dolphins. Harden again took to social media in a fit of expletives directed at the couple, before deleting his Instagram and Facebook and setting his Twitter handle to private. It is rumored his agency firm now runs any and all of his official social media accounts.
