Kevin Zeitler is an American football guard for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He currently wears the number 70 jersey.
He played college football for the University of Wisconsin-Madison and earned consensus All-American honors. He was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft, and he has also played for the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants.
Even though “not a nifty or nimble lineman”, Zeitler was described as “a solid prospect with the ability to be used in a power running offense.”
Projected to be a second-round selection, Zeitler was ranked No. 4 among guards available in the 2012 NFL Draft by Sports Illustrated.
Zeitler himself expected to be a second-rounder, having scheduled a draft party for Day 2 of the Draft, before being surprised by the Bengals’ late first-round selection.
Zeitler was the eighth UW offensive lineman taken in the first round of an NFL draft since 1976, after Dennis Lick, Ray Snell, Paul Gruber, Aaron Gibson, Chris McIntosh, Joe Thomas, and Gabe Carimi.
On March 9, 2017, Zeitler signed a five-year, $60 million contract with the Cleveland Browns, making him the highest-paid guard in the NFL.
On March 13, 2019, the Browns traded Zeitler and Jabrill Peppers to the New York Giants, along with their first and third-round (originally acquired from the New England Patriots) picks in the 2019 NFL Draft, in exchange for Odell Beckham Jr. and Olivier Vernon.
On March 10, 2021, the Giants released Zeitler. On March 18, 2021, Zeitler signed a three-year $22.5 million contract with the Baltimore Ravens.