Allen Bailey (born March 25, 1989) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

who is a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

for the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, incl ...

Early years

Bailey was born in

Sapelo Island Sapelo Island is a state-protected barrier island located in McIntosh County, Georgia. The island is accessible only by aircraft or boat; the primary ferry comes from the Sapelo Island Visitors Center in McIntosh County, Georgia, a seven-mil ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. He attended

McIntosh County Academy McIntosh County Academy (MCA) is the only public high school in McIntosh County, Georgia, United States. It was formerly known as Darien High School. History In 1794, the city of Darien was given a charter to build a school. In 1820, a branc ...

McIntosh County, Georgia McIntosh County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 10,975, a drop of 23.4 percent since the 2010 census. The county seat is Darien. McIntosh County is included in the Brunswick, GA ...

and played linebacker and fullback. As a senior, he played in only four games due to a stress fracture in his back and had one sack. As a junior, he had 138

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position), a position in American football and Canadian football ** Dump tackle, a forceful move in rugby of picking u ...

and three sacks. He also had 323 yards on 51 carries with four

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether Rush (gridiron football), running, Forward pass, passing, returning a Kickoff (gridiron football), kickoff or Punt (gridiron football), punt, or recovering a Turno ...

as a fullback.

College career

As a

freshman in 2007, Bailey played in all 12 games, mainly on

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

, but appeared in two games as a

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

. He finished with four tackles. As a sophomore in 2008 Bailey played in 12 games, starting four at

. He finished the season with 36 tackles and five sacks. As a junior in 2009, Bailey has 24 tackles and seven sacks.

Professional career

At the 2011 NFL Combine, Bailey had the third-highest vertical leap of any defensive lineman, at 36.5". He was drafted in the third round, with the 86th overall pick, of the

2011 NFL Draft The 2011 NFL Draft was the 76th installment of the annual NFL Draft, where the franchises of the National Football League select newly eligible football players. Like the 2010 draft, the 2011 draft was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York C ...

by the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

. Bailey recorded his first sack against the Packers in week 15. Bailey ended his 2011 season with one sack and 10 tackles. He had only five tackles in 10 games in 2012. The 2013 season was a turning point for Bailey after playing in 15 games finishing the year with 30 tackles, a sack, and two batted passes. In 2014, Bailey produced career highs in almost every defensive stat finishing with 41 combined tackles, five sacks, and two passes defended.

Kansas City Chiefs

On November 15, 2014, the Chiefs signed Bailey to a four-year, $25 million contract extension with $15 million in guaranteed, and a signing bonus of $10 million. He finished 2015 with 38 tackles, 4.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles. On October 18, 2016, Bailey was placed on injured reserve. In 2018, Bailey played in all 16 games with 13 starts, recording 38 combined tackles, a career-high six sacks, two forced fumbles, and a league-leading four fumble recoveries.

Atlanta Falcons

On July 22, 2019, Bailey signed a two-year $10.5 million deal with the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

. He played in 15 games with five starts, recording 26 tackles and one sack. On March 25, 2020, Bailey signed a one-year, $4.5 million contract extension through 2021. The Falcons released Bailey on February 18, 2021.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, Allen 1989 births Living people American football defensive tackles American football defensive ends American people of Guinean descent Sportspeople of Guinean descent Atlanta Falcons players Kansas City Chiefs players Miami Hurricanes football players People from McIntosh County, Georgia Players of American football from Georgia (U.S. state)