A former Clemson standout, DJ Reader has spent ten NFL seasons as one of the league's most consistent run-stuffing defensive tackles.
DJ Reader has built a decade-long career as a high-effort, run-stopping interior defensive lineman since Houston drafted him in 2016. The Clemson product has moved through Cincinnati and Detroit on the strength of steady, unglamorous play in the trenches, and now heads into a new chapter with a fresh multi-year deal.
Path to the league
Reader played 46 games at Clemson, mostly in a reserve role behind a loaded defensive line, finishing with 145 tackles, 9 tackles for loss and 5 sacks. He was also a two-sport athlete, lettering in football and baseball in the same academic year. The Houston Texans took him in the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft.
Career highlights
Reader spent four seasons in Houston before signing a four-year, $53 million deal with Cincinnati in 2020, where he totaled 123 tackles, three sacks and seven pass breakups over four seasons. He has never made a Pro Bowl or All-Pro team, but he is widely regarded as one of the best run defenders at his position, spending 2024-2025 with the Detroit Lions.
2025 season recap
Reader played all 17 games for Detroit in 2025 for the first time since 2018, logging 578 defensive snaps, his highest total since 2019. He finished with 28 tackles but did not record a sack. He signed a two-year, $12.5 million deal with a new team in 2026 that can max out at $15.5 million with incentives.
Sources
- Wikipedia: D.J. Reader
- Pro Football Reference: D.J. Reader
Statistics
2025 season and career2025 Season · Defense
17 games played▶Defense · career
| Year | Team | GP | TOT | SOLO | SACK | INT | FF | FR | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | lions | 17 | 28 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | lions | 15 | 23 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2023 | bengals | 14 | 34 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2022 | bengals | 11 | 27 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 2021 | bengals | 15 | 43 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | bengals | 5 | 19 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2019 | texans | 15 | 52 | 28 | 2.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | texans | 16 | 33 | 23 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | texans | 14 | 47 | 23 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | texans | 16 | 22 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Defensive Tackle
- Group
- defense
- College
- Clemson
- Hometown
- Greensboro, NC, USA
- Age
- 32
- Status
- active
