Background
Edebali, the son of Petty Officer 2nd Class Jonathan Stradford, and Turkish mother, Nesrin Edebali, grew up in Hamburg, Germany and played for the Hamburg Huskies.
Edebali, the son of Petty Officer 2nd Class Jonathan Stradford, and Turkish mother, Nesrin Edebali, grew up in Hamburg, Germany and played for the Hamburg Huskies.
At age 18, he was recruited to play football in Meriden, New Hampshire, where he attended Kimball Union Academy as part of the United States of America Football International Student Program, and played high school football for two years. He attended Boston College where he redshirted his Freshman year and went on to earn a bachelor"s degree in Communications and Germanic studies in May 2013.
He played college football at Boston College. As a defensive end for the Eagles, he was a co-captain and earned All-Administrative Committee on Company-ordination second team honors as a senior. Edebali played in 49 games at Boston College, recording 166 tackles (88 solo), 11 sacks, 24.5 tackles for a loss, 15 pass defenses, four forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries.
As a senior, started all 13 games, recording 67 tackles (36 solo), 9.5 sacks, 15 tackles for a loss, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and five passes defensed and was named All-Atlantic Coast Conference second-team by the league’s coaches as well as All-Administrative Committee on Company-ordination third-team honors from the media.
Edebali was a co-captain his senior year. New Orleans Saints
On May 12, 2014, the Saints signed Edebali as an undrafted free agent.
He earned a spot on the roster based on his pass-rushing and special teams abilities during preseason. Edebali earned his first two career tackles against the Dallas Cowboys on September 28, 2014.
On October 27, 2014, Edebali notched his first two sacks along with a forced fumble in the Saints" victory against the Green Bay Packers.
Edebali finished his rookie season with the New Orleans Saints recording a total of 22 tackles, 15 of which were solo, and 7 being assisted tackles. He also recorded 2 sacks, and 1 forced fumble.