Keeanu Benton
 Benton with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2025 | |||||||||||||||
| No. 95 – Pittsburgh Steelers | |||||||||||||||
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| Position | Defensive tackle | ||||||||||||||
| Roster status | Active | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | July 17, 2001 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 309 lb (140 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | Joseph A. Craig (Janesville, Wisconsin) | ||||||||||||||
| College | Wisconsin (2019–2022) | ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2023: 2nd round, 49th overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of 2025 | |||||||||||||||
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Keeanu Kyrie Benton (born July 17, 2001) is an American professional football defensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Wisconsin Badgers.
Early life
Benton grew up in Janesville, Wisconsin and attended Joseph A. Craig High School, where he competed in football and wrestling.[1] As a senior, he made 75 tackles, seven tackles for loss, two sacks, and one fumble recovery.[2] Benton committed to play college football at Wisconsin over an offer from Iowa.[3]
College career
Benton played college football at Wisconsin from 2019 to 2022.[4] He played in 13 games and made six starts at nose tackle as a freshman and finished the season with 12 tackles, four tackles for loss, and two sacks.[5][6] He played in seven games and made seven starts at nose tackle during his sophomore season.[7] He was named second team All-Big Ten Conference as a junior after making 25 tackles with five tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles.[8] He was named Third-Team All-Big Ten in 2022.[9]
Statistics
| Season | Team | GP | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | Int | Yds | Avg | TD | PD | FF | FR | |||
| 2019 | Wisconsin | 8 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | Wisconsin | 7 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2021 | Wisconsin | 12 | 24 | 11 | 13 | 2.5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 2022 | Wisconsin | 12 | 36 | 20 | 16 | 4.5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 39 | 81 | 44 | 37 | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | |
Professional career
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | Wingspan | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 3+3⁄4 in (1.92 m) | 309 lb (140 kg) | 33+7⁄8 in (0.86 m) | 9+3⁄4 in (0.25 m) | 6 ft 9+1⁄2 in (2.07 m) | 5.08 s | 1.79 s | 2.95 s | 4.65 s | 7.34 s | 29.5 in (0.75 m) | 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) | 25 reps |
| All values from NFL Combine[10][11] | ||||||||||||
Benton was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second round, 49th overall, of the 2023 NFL draft.[12] On June 23, 2023, Benton signed a four-year rookie contract with the Steelers.[13] As a rookie, Benton appeared in 17 games and started nine. He finished with one sack, 36 total tackles (16 solo), two passes defended, and two forced fumbles.[14]
On December 8, 2024, Benton recorded his first NFL interception, off Cleveland Browns quarterback Jameis Winston in a 27–14 Steelers win.[15]
On August 14, 2026, the Steelers signed Benton to a four-year, $72 million contract extension with the Steelers.[16][17]
NFL career statistics
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
Regular season
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | TFL | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | PD | FF | Fum | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2023 | PIT | 17 | 9 | 36 | 16 | 20 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | PIT | 17 | 14 | 36 | 16 | 20 | 1.0 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 11.0 | 11 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | PIT | 17 | 17 | 51 | 25 | 26 | 5.5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 51 | 40 | 123 | 57 | 66 | 7.5 | 9 | 1 | 11 | 11.0 | 11 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Postseason
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | TFL | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | PD | FF | Fum | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2023 | PIT | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | PIT | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | PIT | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 3 | 2 | 13 | 4 | 9 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
References
- ↑ Barry, John (January 27, 2020). "Craig graduate Keeanu Benton bucked the odds and played key role as a true freshman at Wisconsin". Janesville Gazette. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ↑ Temple, Jesse (April 8, 2019). "Imposing, athletic and eager: Why DT Keeanu Benton could see the field at Wisconsin sooner rather than later". The Athletic. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ↑ Galloway, Jason (May 12, 2018). "Janesville Craig defensive tackle Keeanu Benton reportedly commits to Badgers". APNews.com. Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
- ↑ "Keeanu Benton | Football". Wisconsin Badgers.
- ↑ Galloway, Jason (August 5, 2019). "Badgers nose tackle Keeanu Benton working to make himself game ready as true freshman". Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ↑ Vantress, David (August 6, 2021). "Janesville Craig grad Keeanu Benton ready to dominate for Wisconsin Badgers". The Janesville Gazette. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ↑ Potrykus, Jeff (December 14, 2021). "Badgers nose tackle Keeanu Benton likely to return in 2022". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ↑ "Keeanu Benton vital to Wisconsin defensive line in final season". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. August 27, 2022. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ↑ "Big Ten Conference Unveils Football All-Conference Teams for Defense, Special Teams and Select Individual Honors". BigTen.org. Big Ten Conference. November 29, 2022. Archived from the original on November 29, 2022. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
- ↑ "Keeanu Benton Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
- ↑ "2023 NFL Draft Scout Keeanu Benton College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
- ↑ Varley, Teresa (April 28, 2023). "Steelers select Keeanu Benton in the second round". Steelers.com. Retrieved May 25, 2023.
- ↑ La Rose, Adam (June 23, 2023). "Steelers Sign Round 2 DT Keeanu Benton". Pro Football Rumors. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
- ↑ "Keeanu Benton 2023 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 14, 2024.
- ↑ Radcliffe, J. R. (December 9, 2024). "Wisconsinite Keeanu Benton, at 6-4 and 309 pounds, had one of the highlight-reel plays of the week with interception for Steelers". Yahoo Sports.
- ↑ Bailey, Jarrett. "Steelers sign DT Keeanu Benton to $72 million extension". Retrieved August 14, 2026.
- ↑ Pryor, Brooke. "Steelers' Keeanu Benton agrees to 4-year, $72M extension, sources say". ESPN. Retrieved August 14, 2026.
External links
- Keeanu Benton on X
- Career statistics from Yahoo Sports
- Pittsburgh Steelers bio
- Wisconsin Badgers bio