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Dré Bly

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Dré Bly
refer to caption
Bly with the Broncos in 2007
Charlotte 49ers
Position:Defensive analyst
Personal information
Born: (1977-05-22) May 22, 1977 (age 47)
Chesapeake, Virginia, U.S.
Height:5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight:188 lb (85 kg)
Career information
High school:Western Branch (Chesapeake)
College:North Carolina
NFL draft:1999 / round: 2 / pick: 41
Career history
As a player:
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
As a coach:
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles:484
Sacks:5.0
Forced fumbles:20
Fumble recoveries:9
Interceptions:43
Total touchdowns:8
Stats at Pro Football Reference
College Football Hall of Fame

Donald André Bly (born May 22, 1977) is an American football coach and former player who is a defensive analyst coach for Charlotte. He played as a cornerback for 11 seasons in the NFL. He played college football for the North Carolina Tar Heels, earning All-American honors twice. Bly was selected by the St. Louis Rams in the second round of the 1999 NFL draft, and spent four seasons with the Rams, earning a Super Bowl ring with them in Super Bowl XXXIV over the Tennessee Titans. He was selected to two Pro Bowls during his four-year tenure with the Detroit Lions, and also played for the Denver Broncos and San Francisco 49ers.[1]

He most-recently served as the cornerbacks coach for the Tar Heels before his departure in 2023.[2]

Early life

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Bly was born in Portsmouth, Virginia. He graduated from Western Branch High School in Chesapeake, where he was an all-state high school football player as well as a decorated baseball player for Western Branch Bruins.

College career

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Bly attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he played for the North Carolina Tar Heels football team. In his redshirt freshman season at UNC, he led the nation with 11 interceptions. He received all-American honors, and at the time was only one of five players in NCAA history to achieve this honor as a freshman (Tony Dorsett, Herschel Walker, Bjorn Merten, and Marshall Faulk being the others).[3] Bly was the only football player in UNC and Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) history to receive consensus first-team All-America honors twice in his college career. In his sophomore year, he was one of three finalists for the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Year Award. Bly set the ACC record for career interceptions (20), which was later broken by Alphonso Smith of Wake Forest (21).[4][5] He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014.[6]

Professional career

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Pre-draft

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump
5 ft 9+7⁄8 in
(1.77 m) 		186 lb
(84 kg) 		30+1⁄8 in
(0.77 m) 		9+1⁄8 in
(0.23 m)		 4.51 s 1.58 s 2.63 s 4.09 s 7.10 s 34.5 in
(0.88 m)		 9 ft 8 in
(2.95 m)
All values from NFL Combine[7]

St. Louis Rams

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The St. Louis Rams selected Bly in the second round of the 1999 NFL draft.[8] Bly started his career in St. Louis, playing there for four years. In his 1999 rookie season, Bly was the third cornerback or nickel back on the Rams roster, behind Todd Lyght and Dexter McCleon.[9] While with the Rams, Bly won a Super Bowl ring for Super Bowl XXXIV.[10] In the 2001 season, Bly notched six interceptions and led the NFL with 150 return yards.[9] In Super Bowl XXXVI, the Rams lost to the New England Patriots, marking Bly's second Super Bowl with St. Louis.[11]

Detroit Lions

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In 2003, Bly became a free agent, left the St. Louis Rams, and signed with the Detroit Lions on a five-year contract, reportedly worth $24.5 million with a $6 million signing bonus.[12] He made the Pro Bowl in two of his seasons with the team.[13][14] Bly was the 2003 recipient of the Detroit Lions/Detroit Sports Broadcasters Association/Pro Football Writers Association's Media-Friendly "Good Guy" Award. The Good Guy Award is given yearly to the Detroit Lions player who shows consideration to, and cooperation with the media at all times during the course of the season.

On November 29, 2005, the day after Lions head coach Steve Mariucci was fired, Bly told the NFL Network that if their back-up quarterback, Jeff Garcia, had been healthy the entire season, the Lions would be in a better situation, and Mariucci would still be coaching the team. He has since apologized, albeit not to Joey Harrington, the Lions starting quarterback that season.[15]

Denver Broncos

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On March 1, 2007, Bly was traded by the Detroit Lions to the Denver Broncos for running back Tatum Bell, offensive tackle George Foster, and a 5th round draft pick. On March 28, 2007, the Denver Broncos and Bly agreed to a 5-year, $33 million contract. The contract included $18 million in bonus money and $16 million guaranteed.[16] Bly finished the 2007 season as the Broncos leader in interceptions with five.[17]

The Broncos restructured Bly's contract on February 18, 2008, to free up salary cap space and keep Bly on the team. As of December 1, Bly had a total of 98 tackles and 7 interceptions with the Broncos.[18]

The Broncos released Bly on February 17, 2009.[19]

Later career

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On May 21, 2009, Bly signed a one-year, $845,000 contract with the San Francisco 49ers.[20] On July 2, 2010, Bly re-signed with the Detroit Lions, but was released on September 4.[21][22]

NFL career statistics

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Year Team GP Tackles Fumbles Interceptions
Cmb Solo Ast Sck FF FR Yds TD Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD
1999 STL 16 19 16 3 0.0 0 0 0 0 3 53 17.6 53 1 8
2000 STL 16 43 39 4 1.0 0 1 0 0 3 44 14.6 22 0 10
2001 STL 16 29 27 2 0.0 1 1 15 0 6 150 25.0 93 2 9
2002 STL 16 59 54 5 1.0 4 2 33 1 2 0 0.0 0 0 20
2003 DET 14 55 47 8 1.0 5 3 113 1 6 89 14.8 48 1 15
2004 DET 13 38 32 6 0.0 0 0 0 0 4 107 26.8 55 1 19
2005 DET 12 42 38 4 0.0 3 1 0 0 6 54 9.0 28 0 15
2006 DET 16 57 49 8 0.0 4 1 5 0 3 13 4.3 8 0 18
2007 DEN 16 51 41 10 1.0 0 0 0 0 5 71 14.2 37 0 14
2008 DEN 16 62 54 8 0.0 1 0 0 0 2 5 2.5 5 0 8
2009 SF 16 29 26 3 1.0 2 3 3 0 3 66 22.0 31 0 13
Career 167 484 423 61 5.0 20 12 169 2 43 652 15.2 93 5 149

Coaching career

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In October 2018, Bly was named the defensive backs coach for the San Diego Fleet of the Alliance of American Football.[23] However, in December, he joined the North Carolina Tar Heels coaching staff as their cornerbacks coach.[24] He and North Carolina mutually parted ways on January 11, 2023. He was hired by the Detroit Lions as their cornerbacks coach on February 2, 2023.[25]

Personal life

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Bly and his wife, Kristyn, have four sons, Trey, Jordan, AJ, and Emanuel, and a daughter, Peyton.[26] Trey was a cornerback for UNC-Charlotte. Jordan currently plays wide receiver for Old Dominion. Bly also has an older sister Donna Mitchell, who is a high school teacher. His nephew, Josh Downs, plays for the Indianapolis Colts. In 2017, Bly was voted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame.[27]

References

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  1. ^ LaCanfora, Jason [@JasonLaCanfora] (November 21, 2011). "Former Pro Bowl CB Dre' Bly is retiring, according to his agent, Kennard McGuire. Former Super Bowl winner was most recently with Detroit" (Tweet). Retrieved November 21, 2011 – via Twitter.
  2. ^ Hale, David (January 11, 2023). "Ex-UNC football star Dre Bly out as Tar Heels' CB coach". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  3. ^ "Dré Bly". Detroit Lions. Archived from the original on April 7, 2005. Retrieved April 20, 2005.
  4. ^ "Eight Tar Heels Named To ACC Top 50 List". tarheelblue.cstv.com. July 23, 2002. Archived from the original on December 10, 2007. Retrieved November 20, 2008.
  5. ^ "Wake Forest Closes Season with 23-10 win over Vanderbilt". wakeforestsports.cstv.com. November 29, 2008. Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved November 30, 2008.
  6. ^ "NFF Proudly Announces Impressive 2014 College Football Hall of Fame Class". National Football Foundation. May 22, 2014. Retrieved May 22, 2014.
  7. ^ "*Dre" Bly". DraftScout.com. Archived from the original on September 11, 2012.
  8. ^ "1999 NFL Draft Listing". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Gosselin, Rick (October 20, 2020). "State Your Case: Dre Bly, the forgotten defensive playmaker". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020..
  10. ^ "Super Bowl XXXIV - St. Louis Rams vs. Tennessee Titans - January 30th, 2000". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  11. ^ "Super Bowl XXXVI - St. Louis Rams vs. New England Patriots - February 3rd, 2002". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  12. ^ Lage, Larry (March 1, 2003). "Lions Sign Cornerback Dre' Bly". Associated Press. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  13. ^ "2003 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  14. ^ "2004 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  15. ^ "Garcia to start for Lions as CB Bly apologizes". ESPN.com. Associated Press. November 30, 2005. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  16. ^ Smith, Michael (March 28, 2007). "Broncos sign Bly to five-year, $33M contract". ESPN.com. Associated Press. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  17. ^ "2007 Denver Broncos Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  18. ^ Williamson, Bill (February 19, 2008). "Elam remains unsigned priority". The Denver Post. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  19. ^ "CB Bly leads list of seven released Broncos". ESPN.com. Associated Press. February 18, 2009. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  20. ^ Johnes, Lindsay H.; Klis, Mike (May 21, 2009). "Cornerback Bly signs with the 49ers". The Denver Post. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  21. ^ "Bly signs two-year contract to return to Lions". ESPN.com. Associated Press. July 2, 2010. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  22. ^ "Dre Bly among Lions cuts". NBC Sports. September 4, 2010. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  23. ^ Krasovic, Tom (October 11, 2018). "San Diego Fleet hires former SDSU and Rams star". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  24. ^ Alexander, Jonathan (December 11, 2018). "New coach Dré Bly, a former star cornerback, remembers his UNC 'rude boy' days (it's a mindset)". The News & Observer. Retrieved December 12, 2018.
  25. ^ Reisman, Jeremy (February 2, 2023). "Detroit Lions hire Dre Bly as cornerbacks coach". Pride Of Detroit. Retrieved February 2, 2023.
  26. ^ "Dre' Bly". Denver Broncos.[dead link]
  27. ^ "Dre' Bly, Beth Anders voted into Virginia Sports Hall of Fame". The Virginian-Pilot. January 18, 2017. Archived from the original on February 5, 2018.
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