Nathaniel Jasper "Tank" Dell Jr. (born October 29, 1999) is an American professional football wide receiver for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama A&M, Independence Community College, and Houston.

Tank Dell
refer to caption
Dell in 2024
No. 3 – Houston Texans
Position:Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1999-10-29) October 29, 1999 (age 25)
Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S.
Height:5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Weight:165 lb (75 kg)
Career information
High school:Mainland (Daytona Beach)
College:
NFL draft:2023 / round: 3 / pick: 69
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 6, 2024
Receptions:67
Receiving yards:903
Receiving touchdowns:8
Stats at Pro Football Reference

College career

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Dell attended Mainland High School in Daytona Beach, Florida.[1] He had originally committed to Florida International University (FIU) to play college football but attended Alabama A&M University instead.[2][3] After one year at Alabama A&M in which he had 12 receptions for 364 yards and three touchdowns, he transferred to Independence Community College.[4] In his lone year at Independence, he had 52 receptions for 766 yards and eight touchdowns.[5][1]

Dell transferred to the University of Houston in 2020.[6] In his first year at Houston, he led the team with 29 receptions for 428 yards and three touchdowns over eight games.[7] In 2021, he again led the team with 90 receptions for 1,329 yards with 12 touchdowns.[8][9] He returned to Houston as the number one receiver in 2022, during which he made 100 receptions for 1,398 receiving yards and 17 receiving touchdowns in only 13 games played.

College statistics

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Season Team GP Receiving
Rec Yds Avg TD
2018 Alabama A&M 4 12 364 30.3 3
2019 Independence CC 10 52 766 14.7 8
2020 Houston 8 29 428 14.8 3
2021 Houston 14 90 1,329 14.8 12
2022 Houston 13 109 1,398 12.8 17
Career 49 292 4,285 14.7 43

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split Broad jump
5 ft 8+38 in
(1.74 m)
165 lb
(75 kg)
30+12 in
(0.77 m)
8+58 in
(0.22 m)
4.49 s 1.49 s 2.57 s 10 ft 1 in
(3.07 m)
All values from NFL Combine[10][11]

Dell was drafted by the Houston Texans in the third round, 69th overall, of the 2023 NFL draft.[12]

In Week 11 against the Arizona Cardinals, Dell caught a career-high eight passes for a career-high 149 yards, and one touchdown.[13] In Week 13 against the Denver Broncos, Dell suffered a fractured fibula and was ruled out for the rest of the season. He went under surgery to repair the fibula the next day.[14][15] He finished the season with 47 catches for 709 yards and seven touchdowns, which was among the rookie leaders at the time of the injury.[16]

NFL career statistics

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Legend
Bold Career high

Regular season

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Year Team Games Receiving Rushing Fumbles
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Att Yds Avg Lng TD Fum Lost
2023 HOU 11 8 47 709 15.1 68 7 11 51 4.6 13 0 1 0
2024 HOU 1 1 3 40 13.3 23 0 2 19 9.5 17 0 0 0
Career 12 9 50 749 15.0 68 7 13 70 5.4 13 0 1 0

Personal life

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On April 27, 2024, Dell sustained minor injuries from a shooting in Sanford, Florida. He was released from the hospital the next day.[17]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Mainland product, JUCO bounceback Tank Dell seeks immediate impact at Houston". Daytona Beach News-Journal. December 18, 2019. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
  2. ^ Briggs, Tim (August 8, 2017). "Mainland receiver Nathaniel Dell commits to FIU". Observer Local News. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  3. ^ Long, A. Stacy (October 27, 2018). "Alabama A&M freshman Dell rings loudly in ASU's ears". Montgomery Advertiser. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  4. ^ Boyle, Chris (December 1, 2019). "Mainland product Tank Dell ready to sign with FBS program after productive JUCO season". Daytona Beach News-Journal Online. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  5. ^ Hays, Chris (December 21, 2019). "Mainland's Nathaniel Dell pushes for more exposure, earns Houston scholarship". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  6. ^ Duarte, Joseph (December 9, 2019). "WR Nathaniel Dell pledges to UH". Chron.com. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  7. ^ Duarte, Joseph (September 29, 2021). "Small receiver, big impact: Nathaniel Dell thriving for UH". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  8. ^ Duarte, Joseph (August 11, 2022). "UH's inside man: Full-time move to slot could mean even bigger season for receiver Nathaniel Dell". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  9. ^ Duarte, Joseph (April 13, 2022). "What's a guy gotta do? UH receiver Nathaniel Dell motivated to boost national profile". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  10. ^ "Tank Dell Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
  11. ^ "2023 NFL Draft Scout Nathaniel Dell College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
  12. ^ "Texans Trade Up to 69th Pick For Houston WR Tank Dell | 2023 NFL Draft". HoustonTexans.com. April 28, 2023. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  13. ^ Criswell, Josh (November 19, 2023). "Tank Dell makes Texans history in pivotal win over Cardinals". Chron.com. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
  14. ^ Alexander, Jonathan (December 4, 2023). "Texans' Tank Dell has successful surgery on fractured fibula, ending his promising rookie season". houstonchronicle.com. Retrieved December 5, 2023.
  15. ^ Rieken, Kristie (December 3, 2023). "Texans rookie WR Tank Dell has broken left fibula and will miss rest of season, AP source says". apnews.com. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
  16. ^ "Tank Dell 2023 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved July 19, 2024.
  17. ^ Bien-Aime, DJ (April 28, 2024). "Texans WR Dell has minor wound from shooting". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
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