Robert Tonyan

Robert Tonyan
refer to caption
Tonyan with the Green Bay Packers in 2021
No. 85 – Minnesota Vikings
Position:Tight end
Personal information
Born: (1994-04-30) April 30, 1994 (age 30)
McHenry, Illinois, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:240 lb (109 kg)
Career information
High school:McHenry East
(McHenry, Illinois)
College:Indiana State (2012–2016)
Undrafted:2017
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status:Practice squad
Career NFL statistics as of 2023
Receptions:148
Receiving yards:1,549
Receiving touchdowns:17
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Robert Joseph Tonyan Jr. (/tʌnjən/ TUN-yən;[1] born April 30, 1994) is an American professional football tight end for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). Tonyan played for the Green Bay Packers for five seasons from 2018 to 2022. He played college football at Indiana State, and signed with the Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent in 2017.[2] After five years with Green Bay, Tonyan played one season for the 2023 Chicago Bears. Tonyan signed with the Minnesota Vikings for the 2024 season, he appeared in 4 games before being cut.

Early life

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Tonyan attended McHenry Community High School – East Campus. He lettered twice in basketball and football. As a quarterback, he was named all-conference as a junior and senior, and set the school record with 5,000 career passing yards.[3]

College career

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Tonyan enrolled at Indiana State in 2012, and started for four years after redshirting his first year. He appeared in 11 games in 2013, starting three as a quarterback. His first career completion was a 57-yard touchdown, and he completed 35 of 102 passes for 348 yards and three touchdowns.[3] His second year, he moved to wide receiver, where he caught 54 passes for 747 yards (6th in school history)[4] and four touchdowns, including a career-high 172 yards in the last game of the season (seventh in school history).[4] In his 2015 junior season, Tonyan had 40 receptions for 601 yards (fourteenth in school history) and six touchdowns despite starting just six of 11 games, which earned him an honorable mention on the All-Missouri Valley Football Conference team. As a fifth-year senior, Tonyan had 56 receptions for 699 yards (ninth all-time) and a school-record ten touchdowns. He set several career records for the Sycamores, including 20 touchdown receptions, 21 consecutive games with a reception, two games with three receiving touchdowns, and was second all-time to Sam Logan with 150 receptions and 2,047 yards.[4]

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 4+5⁄8 in
(1.95 m) 		236 lb
(107 kg) 		32+1⁄2 in
(0.83 m) 		10+1⁄4 in
(0.26 m)		 4.58 s 1.53 s 2.60 s 4.34 s 7.12 s 35.0 in
(0.89 m)		 10 ft 5 in
(3.18 m)		 16 reps
All values from Indiana State's Pro Day[5]

Detroit Lions

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On May 12, 2017, the Detroit Lions signed Tonyan to a three-year, $1.66 million contract as an undrafted free agent.[6] His signing made him the tenth Indiana State football player to reach the NFL.[7] He was released before the season began.

Green Bay Packers

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Tonyan was signed to the practice squad of the Green Bay Packers for the final four games of the 2017 season, and was re-signed for the 2018 season.[3] He appeared in the first nine games of the season, but was targeted just once before his first NFL reception, a 54-yard touchdown from Aaron Rodgers against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 11.[8] He totaled four receptions for 77 receiving yards and one touchdown on the 2018 season.[9]

Tonyan in 2019, celebrating a touchdown with a Lambeau Leap

In 2019, the Packers tendered exclusive rights to Tonyan.[10] On December 8, 2019, Tonyan caught a 12-yard pass for a touchdown in a 20–15 win over the Washington Redskins. He totaled ten receptions for 100 receiving yards on the 2019 season.[11]

On April 24, 2020, the Packers re-signed Tonyan as an exclusive-rights free agent, putting him under contract in Green Bay for another year.[12][13] On September 20, 2020, Tonyan caught an 11-yard touchdown pass in a 42–21 win over the Lions in Week 2.[14] In a nationally televised Monday Night Football game on October 5, 2020, Tonyan caught six passes for 98 yards, including three touchdown passes, to lead the Packers over the Atlanta Falcons 30–16.[15] In the NFC Championship against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Tonyan recorded 4 catches for 22 yards and a touchdown during the 31–26 loss.[16]

The Packers placed a second-round restricted free agent tender on Tonyan on March 17, 2021.[17] On May 27, Tonyan signed his tender worth $3.4 million.[18] On October 28, 2021, Tonyan tore the ACL in his left knee during the Packers week 8 game against the Arizona Cardinals, forcing him to miss the remainder of the 2021 season.[19] He was placed on injured reserve on November 1, 2021.[20]

On March 20, 2022, Tonyan re-signed with the Packers on a one-year contract.[21]

Chicago Bears

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On March 16, 2023, Tonyan signed a one-year deal with the Chicago Bears.[22] He played in all 17 games for the Bears and caught 11 passes for 112 yards.

Minnesota Vikings

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On May 16, 2024, Tonyan signed with the Minnesota Vikings.[23] He was released on August 27, and re-signed to the practice squad.[24][25] He was promoted to the active roster on October 3. After playing in four games, recording no statistics, he was released from the team on October 22, in favor of signing linebacker Bo Richter. He was subsequently re-signed to the practice squad.[26]

NFL career statistics

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Legend
Led the league (for tight ends)
Bold Career high

Regular season

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Year Team Games Receiving Fumbles
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Fum Lost
2018 GB 16 1 4 77 19.3 54T 1 0 0
2019 GB 11 1 10 100 10.0 28 1 0 0
2020 GB 16 8 52 586 11.3 45 11 0 0
2021 GB 8 5 18 204 11.3 33 2 0 0
2022 GB 17 3 53 470 8.9 24 2 0 0
2023 CHI 17 6 11 112 10.2 24 0 0 0
2024 MIN 4 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
Total 89 24 148 1,549 10.5 54T 17 0 0
Source: pro-football-reference.com

Postseason

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Year Team Games Receiving Fumbles
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Fum Lost
2019 GB 2 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
2020 GB 2 0 8 82 10.3 33 1 0 0
Total 4 0 8 82 10.3 33 1 0 0
Source: pro-football-reference.com

References

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  1. ^ Howe, Matt (October 22, 2020). "Robert Tonyan reveals correct pronunciation of last name". 247Sports.com. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  2. ^ Styf, Jon (August 14, 2018). "McHenry grad Tonyan trying to grab Packers' attention in training camp". Northwest Herald. Archived from the original on September 15, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  3. ^ a b c "Robert Tonyan". packers.com. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  4. ^ a b c Indiana State Sycamores Media Guide (PDF). 2017. p. 100. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 22, 2020. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  5. ^ "Robert Tonyan Jr., DS #43 WR, Indiana State". DraftScout.com. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  6. ^ "Robert Tonyan Jr. Contract Details". Spotrac.com. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  7. ^ "Indiana St. Players/Alumni". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  8. ^ Jones, Brian (November 15, 2018). "Robert Tonyan scores first NFL TD vs. Seahawks". 24/7 Sports. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  9. ^ "Robert Tonyan 2018 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
  10. ^ Western, Evan (March 9, 2019). "Packers begin tendering exclusive-rights free agents by keeping TE Robert Tonyan". Acme Packing Company. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  11. ^ "Robert Tonyan 2019 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
  12. ^ "Packers tender all 5 exclusive rights free agents". USA Today. March 17, 2020.
  13. ^ "Packers' Robert Tonyan: Signs tender". cbssports.com. April 25, 2020.
  14. ^ "Detroit Lions at Green Bay Packers – September 20th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  15. ^ Shook, Nick (October 6, 2020). "Packers TE Robert Tonyan introduces himself to NFL with 3-touchdown outburst". National Football League.
  16. ^ "NFC Championship – Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Green Bay Packers – January 24th, 2021". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  17. ^ Williams, Charean (March 17, 2021). "Darious Williams only one of 26 RFAs in NFL to receive first-round tender". NBCSports.com. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
  18. ^ "Packers' Robert Tonyan: Signs RFA tender". cbssports.com. May 27, 2021. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  19. ^ "Packers TE Robert Tonyan suffers season-ending ACL tear". October 29, 2021.
  20. ^ "Packers activate WR Allen Lazard from reserve/COVID-19 list". packers.com. Retrieved November 1, 2021.
  21. ^ "Sources: Packers TE Tonyan stays on 1-year deal". ESPN. March 19, 2022. Retrieved March 20, 2022.
  22. ^ Hajduk, Gabby (March 17, 2023). "Tonyan's pride in hometown fuels return to Chicago". Chicago Bears. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
  23. ^ "Vikings Sign Tight End Robert Tonyan". Vikings.com. May 16, 2024. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
  24. ^ Peters, Craig (August 27, 2024). "Vikings Utilize Reserve Lists During Roster Cuts: T.J. Hockenson on Reserve/PUP". Vikings.com. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
  25. ^ Peters, Craig (August 28, 2024). "Vikings Sign 17 Players to 2024 Practice Squad". Vikings.com. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
  26. ^ Grindley, Wyatt (October 22, 2024). "Vikings Releasing TE Robert Tonyan, Signing OLB Bo Richter". NFLTradeRumors.co. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
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