SOUTHWEST KANSAS STORM
Player Highlight: Jyaire Stevens
Jyaire Stevens is the kind of player whose impact does not show up on a traditional indoor or arena football stat sheet. These leagues do not have Pro Football Focus tracking statistics. We don't have positional breakdowns of snap counts, pass-rush win rate, tackles for loss, or even pressures. '
If a defensive lineman or linebacker doesn't tally a sack, fumble (forced or recovered), interception, or blocked kick, their contributions typically go largely unnoticed in the long term. There is no way to discern a tackle for a gain versus a tackle for a loss, or a near miss on a sack versus a lost snap entirely. Stevens' impact on paper barely scratches the surface of the headaches he caused opposing coordinators and offensive linemen.
Let's Take a Look at His Career
Jyaire Stevens began his football career at Ketcham High School in New York. It did not take long for Stevens to set himself apart. In 2018, he was named All-USA Today First Team Defensive Honors in New York. He was also named All-Section as a Senior. He saw time at multiple positions: running back, wide receiver, linebacker, safety, and kick returner.
He not only played multiple positions, but also played multiple sports, playing center/forward for the basketball team. He didn't stop there, being named to the Honor Roll, National Honor Society, and Business Honors Society. Athleticism runs in the family, with his father playing college basketball and his uncle playing college football. Stevens would later be named the 8th player in his recruiting class for the state of New York by 24/7 Sports.
He ultimately committed to Lafayette for the 2019 season. Upon arriving, the versatile athlete was asked to settle in as an edge rusher. Now this meant that at times he was standing up as a linebacker, and at other times he was rushing the passer from a 3-point stance. He went on to see time at both positions for much of his college career.
College Career
Attending Lafayette from 2019 to 2022, playing in 34 games, Stevens managed to make his presence known. It started slow at first, playing in 9 games primarily on special teams in 2019 before COVID prevented a normal season in 2020. Finally returning in Spring 2021, he found a starting job at outside linebacker, while still seeing snaps on the defensive line when situations called for it.
Having played in 12 games and started 3, Stevens had collected 18 tackles, 1 for a loss, and 1 pass deflection. Just five months later, his impact would be impossible to ignore. He would keep his starting job at linebacker, starting 10 of the 11 games he played in. This amounted to his best season yet: 52 tackles, 7 for a loss, 1 sack, 1 pass deflection, and 1 blocked kick. Finishing with 3 or more tackles in 10 games.
It was clear Stevens was trending in the right direction heading into 2022, his fourth season with the school. However, at the end of the 2021 season, Lafayette moved on from John Garrett in November, with Defensive Coordinator Doug McFadden taking over interim duties. In 2022, they hired a new Head Coach with a new staff that brought a new defensive philosophy.
Lafayette hired Mike Saint Germain as Defensive Coordinator/Linebacker Coach, and moved former Offensive Line Coach Andrew Seumalo over to Outside Linebackers Coach. Donte Wilkins was hired to coach Defensive Line. This also meant a position change for Stevens, who went from starting 13 of his last 14 games at linebacker to starting full-time at defensive end in 2022.
Mike Saint Germain prefers to use a lot of pre-snap disguise to prevent quarterbacks from getting too comfortable with who will be dropping in coverage or rushing the passer. With Stevens being the type of player who had played linebacker the year prior, he was a natural fit for a defense looking to utilize versatility and athletic ability to their advantage.
Despite the position change and new coaching staff, Stevens didn't miss a beat: starting all 11 games, he collected 40 tackles, 7 for a loss, 2.5 sacks, 9 hurries, 2 pass deflections, 1 fumble forced, and 1 recovered. A career year for the senior. Stevens was not quite ready to jump into the pro ranks and transferred to Buffalo. He also finished with a 73.7 PFF grade overall.
University of Buffalo
Upon arriving at Buffalo, he was welcomed by a first-year defensive coordinator, Robert Wright. He spent just one season in this role, ironically Stevens' only season there, and his unit managed an impressive showing, finishing Top 25 in the nation in passing defense, defensive touchdowns, and third down defense. They also ranked in the Top 10 when looking at their total defense in conference play.
Wright had a history of developing future NFL players throughout his career in the college ranks; whether he was overseeing defense or special teams didn't matter. These days, Robert Wright is a member of the Los Angeles Rams coaching staff. The Head Coach of that team, Maurice Linguist, had coached with the Dallas Cowboys in 2020. This staff had a keen eye for identifying NFL-caliber talent.
In 2023, Stevens was again asked to play more linebacker. He saw 320 total defensive snaps, and of those, 12 of them came on the line. He saw snaps on every facet of special teams. While his defensive grade dropped, it was impacted significantly by his coverage grade, which is being determined by just 4 targets. He still had above-average grades in run defense: 66, tackles: 73.3, and pass rush: 63.1.
He finished the season with 25 tackles, 4 for a loss, 1 sack, 2 pass deflections, and 1 blocked kick. He played in 12 games and started 1. After his season with Buffalo, he declared for the 2024 NFL Draft. During Buffalo's Pro Day at 6'3 3/8, 239 pounds, Stevens ran a 4.68 40-yard dash, but what should stick out is his 1.58 10-yard split.
He went on to put up 21 reps on the bench, leapt 35 inches in the vertical, 9 feet 9 inches in the broad jump, as well as 4.61 in the 20-yard shuttle, and 7.27 in the 3-cone drill. Stevens would reiterate this performance the following two seasons, attending the 2025 Free Agent Showcase and in 2026 at the UFL Showcase. He showed above-average athleticism for his size and position even while adding weight to complete his transformation into a true defensive end.
Ultimately, his professional career really began in late 2025 when he signed with the Storm for the first time. He played in the final regular-season game and the playoff game, producing 3 tackles. He would return to Dodge City in 2026.
Championship Run
During a storybook run in 2026, Stevens played in all 12 games. Producing 60 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 2 pass deflections, 1 blocked kick, 2 fumbles forced, and 3 recovered, that still doesn't truly spell out just how important he was to the front four of the defense.
This defense did not allow a single team to top 100 yards rushing as a unit for 11 straight games. That streak only faltered in the Championship game against Tracy Brooks, the Co-Offensive Player of the Year, and Kavon Samuels, arguably the most dynamic duo of running backs in the NAL, when Salina rushed 30 times and managed just 103 yards. Salina ended up the only team to amass more than 69 rushing yards against this Storm Front.
Collectively as a unit, the Storm allowed 212 carries for 685 yards in 12 games. This breaks down to 3.17 yards per carry and 57 rushing yards per game. Stevens was a crucial part of this success. Whether it was setting the edge, chasing down runners from behind, or knifing through the line of scrimmage at the snap to bring a ball carrier down in the backfield, his impact was felt by opposing offenses on every snap.
After finishing the season with the Storm winning a championship, he was signed by the Albany Firebirds for the end of their 2026 AF1 season. Playing in a total of 1 regular-season game and 2 playoff games, Stevens had 6 tackles, 1 for a loss, 2 sacks, and 1 fumble recovery for Albany on their way to a loss to Nashville in the championship. That is actually the second season in a row that Stevens was eliminated from the AF1 playoffs by Nashville.
Stevens belongs at the next level, whether that is in the CFL, UFL, or NFL; playing outside linebacker or defensive end doesn't matter. Stevens has proven he can play at the next level given the chance.