The Chargers signed former Patriots linebacker Kyle Van Noy on Thursday.
Here are four things to know about Los Angeles’ newest resident.
College teammate of Michael Davis
Van Noy and Davis both attended BYU, where in 2013, Davis saw time in 9 games, starting two at corner as a freshman. However, his defense-mate, Van Noy, was a more heralded player as a redshirt senior, garnering All-Independent Defensive Player of the Year honors. He’d finish the season with 70 total tackles, three sacks, and two interceptions while mostly playing linebacker. Davis even gave a clue regarding Van Noy’s impending signing when he tweeted the infamous eye emojis yesterday afternoon.
Experience inside and outside
Although he’s been signed as a rotational pass rusher for the Chargers, Van Noy has also spent time at the inside linebacker positions. It’s what the Lions drafted him to do back in 2014. After trading up five spots, Detroit drafted him to compete with veteran Ashlee Palmer for the starting strongside job. Core muscle surgery ruined his rookie campaign, and he struggled to gain a consistent foothold as a Lion. He was traded to New England in 2016, where Bill Belichick shifted him to outside linebacker and unlocked his potential as a player. Perhaps Van Noy can give third-year Kenneth Murray some tips on how to handle both responsibilities at once.
Van Noy Valor Foundation
Van Noy runs a joint foundation with his wife, former Miss Utah winner Marissa Powell, focusing on a wide range of charitable causes. Among them is reducing the stigma towards adopted children and facilitating foster care and adoptions. It’s a personal cause for Van Noy, who was adopted shortly after being born in a closed adoption, meaning that neither he nor his adoptive parents know much about his biological ones. Van Noy has frequently described being adopted as a “blessing” and not “that big of a deal,” a viewpoint that he’s tried to instill in other children like him.
California Connections
During Van Noy’s time in New England, he reluctantly revealed to a Patriots reporter that he “love[s] the warm weather” and kept a house in Santa Monica, where he and his family live during the offseason. It’s also where they’re likely to settle when Van Noy is done playing, according to him. Van Noy also spent part of his childhood in California, albeit much further north in Lodi, a wine town in the Central Valley. Perhaps a return to California was always in the cards, but it’s now been accelerated thanks to Van Noy signing on the dotted line to play for LA.
