Yetur Akkub Gross-Matos (born February 26, 1998) is an American professional football defensive end. He was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft, and has also played for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Penn State Nittany Lions.
Early life Gross-Matos was born in Atlantic City, New Jersey but grew up in Fredericksburg, Virginia. When Gross-Matos was two years old, his biological father died after a boating accident while trying to rescue Yetur from drowning. When he was 10, his brother died from a lightning strike while they were playing baseball.
Gross-Matos attended Chancellor High School in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. During his high school career, he had 37 sacks. He committed to Pennsylvania State University to play college football.
College career As a true freshman in 2017, Gross-Matos played in all 13 games and had 17 tackles and 1.5 sacks. As a sophomore in 2018, he started all 13 games and had 54 tackles and eight sacks. After a junior year with 14 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks, Gross-Matos decided to forgo his senior year and declared for the 2020 NFL draft.
College statistics + Season Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles Solo Asst Tot TFL Yds Sack Yds Int PD FF FR2017 13 5 12 17 2 8 1.5 7 0 0 0 02018 13 36 18 54 20 88 8 58 0 1 2 12019 12 24 16 40 15 85 9.5 76 0 1 0 1Total 38 65 46 111 37 181 19 141 0 2 2 2
Professional career
Carolina Panthers Gross-Matos was selected by the Carolina Panthers with the 38th overall pick in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft. He was the second defensive end taken behind Chase Young.
In Week 4 against the Arizona Cardinals, Gross-Matos recorded his first career sack, a strip sack on Kyler Murray which was recovered by the Panthers, during the 31–21 win. On October 16, 2020, he was placed on injured reserve after suffering an ankle injury in Week 5. He was activated on November 7, prior to Week 9. He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the team on November 30, and activated on December 10.
On October 24, 2023, Gross-Matos was placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury. He was activated on December 2. He appeared in 12 games in the 2023 season, recording 4.5 sacks and 36 tackles.
San Francisco 49ers On March 14, 2024, Gross-Matos signed a two-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers. On November 16, he was activated from injured reserve. On December 8, Gross-Matos had arguably the best game of his career against the Chicago Bears, recording four tackles and three sacks. He was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance.
On November 1, 2025, Gross-Matos was placed on injured reserve due to a hip injury. On December 22, Gross-Matos was activated from injured reserve ahead of the team's Week 16 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts.
NFL career statistics Legend Bold Career high
Regular season Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD FF Fum FR Yds TD 2020 CAR 12 7 24 9 15 2.5 2 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2021 CAR 14 2 28 18 10 3.5 5 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 2022 CAR 17 17 54 18 36 2.5 5 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 1 4 -2 0 2023 CAR 12 6 36 19 17 4.5 7 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2024 SF 11 0 19 14 5 4.0 6 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2025 SF 8 0 8 3 5 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 Career 74 32 169 81 88 17.0 25 0 0 0.0 0 0 2 2 1 4 -2 0
Postseason Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD FF Fum FR Yds TD 2025 SF 2 0 2 0 2 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Career 2 0 2 0 2 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
References
External links
San Francisco 49ers bio Penn State Nittany Lions bio