Danny DeWayne McCray (born March 10, 1988) is a former
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 ...
free safety
Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their dut ...
and
special teamer
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 ...
. He was signed by the
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
as an
undrafted 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 ...
in 2010. 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 ...
at
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...
. He also played for the
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
. In 2021, he competed as a contestant on
season 41 of ''
Survivor'', where he placed sixth overall.
Early years
McCray attended
Westfield High School Westfield High School may refer to:
* The Westfield School, Perry, Georgia
* Westfield High School (Westfield, Indiana)
* Westfield High School (Massachusetts), Westfield, Massachusetts
* Westfield Technical Academy, Westfield, Massachusetts
* West ...
and in 2004 helped the
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
team to a second-place finish at the Class 5A state championship. He earned first-team all-district honors as a senior in 2005.
He went on to play at
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...
(LSU) contributing mostly in
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 ...
and as a backup both at
safety
Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk.
Meanings
There are ...
and
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 ...
. For his career, he played in 52 games with 13 starts and recorded 196 tackles, including seven tackles for losses and three sacks.
Professional career
Dallas Cowboys (first stint)
McCray was signed by the
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
in 2010 as an
undrafted 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 ...
, based on the recommendation of special teams coach
Joe DeCamillis
Joe DeCamillis (born June 29, 1965) is an American football coach. DeCamillis was formerly the special teams coordinator in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams for two seasons. Before that, he coached for the Chicago Bear ...
. The team assigned him uniform #40, previously worn by special teams star
Bill Bates
William Frederick Bates (born June 6, 1961) is a former American football safety who played for fifteen seasons in the National Football League, all of which were spent with the Dallas Cowboys. A fan favorite, he was a Pro Bowl selection in 19 ...
. As a rookie, he had 28 special teams tackles, the third-most in team history since 1988 and the most by any Cowboys player since
Jim Schwantz
James William Schwantz (born January 23, 1970) is an American politician currently serving as the Mayor of Palatine, Illinois. He is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League for the Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys, and ...
's team-record 32 in 1996.
The next year, he led the team again in special teams tackles (19), becoming the first Cowboys player to do it consecutively since Bates did it in 1989–1990. He also emerged as the unit leader, becoming a team captain by his third year.
After two seasons of playing in defensive packages as a hybrid linebacker and safety, in 2012 he got his first career start at
strong safety
Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their dut ...
against the
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
, replacing
Barry Church
Barry Michael Church (born February 11, 1988) is a former American football strong safety. He played college football at the University of Toledo and signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2010. Church has also played for t ...
who suffered a season-ending Achilles tendon injury. Although he started ten games and finished second on the team in tackles (87), as the season wore on, he struggled in pass coverage and his special teams play suffered dropping to second in tackles (18), eventually losing his starting position and playing time in the last two games of the season.
In 2013, after the Cowboys improved their depth at safety, he accepted a reduced salary to remain with the team and avoid being waived. McCray didn’t see as much time on the defense as he did in the previous year, with the intention of focusing on special teams. New special teams coordinator
Rich Bisaccia
Richard Bisaccia (born June 3, 1960) is an American football coach who is the special teams coordinator for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as an assistant coach for the Dallas Cowboys, San Diego ...
changed his role, which affected his tackle production, finishing sixth on the team with eight.
Chicago Bears
On March 18, 2014, McCray signed a one-year contract with the Chicago Bears, reuniting with special teams assistant Joe DeCamillis. He ranked fourth on the team with ten special teams tackles and his best game came against the
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...
, registering ten tackles on defense.
Dallas Cowboys (second stint)
On May 14, 2015, McCray was re-signed by the Cowboys. In the second game against the Philadelphia Eagles, he blocked a punt that was returned for a touchdown. He posted four special teams tackles but wasn't retained after the season.
''Survivor''
In 2020, McCray was cast on the
41st season of the American reality competition series ''
Survivor''. Due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, production of the season was delayed until 2021. When production resumed, McCray and 17 other contestants were flown to
Fiji
Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
to participate in season 41 of the show.
Initially, McCray was placed on the Luvu tribe. After the merge, he formed an alliance with fellow Luvu alum Deshawn Radden, former Ua tribe member Shan Smith, and former Yase tribe member Liana Wallace. The alliance was tight at first, but on Day 19, McCray and Radden decided to vote Smith out of the game. The next day, McCray began reflecting on the auto-accident death of his father exactly 25 years earlier. According to McCray, his time in Fiji being on ''Survivor'' is what enabled him to finally let go of all the negativity he had suffered as a result of his father's passing.
On Day 21, the three remaining in McCray's alliance wanted to target Ricard Foyé, but the rest of the tribe decided to eliminate Wallace. After Foyé won immunity on Day 23, McCray and Radden suddenly became the targets. That night, the first vote ended in a tie between the two. Upon the second vote, McCray was unanimously voted out, making him the sixth member of the jury.
At the final Tribal Council on Day 26, McCray voted for Radden to win the game, but he was the only juror to do so, as
Erika Casupanan
Erika Tinio Casupanan (born July 20, 1989) is a Canadians, Canadian communications professional known for being the Sole Survivor on the Survivor 41, 41st season of the United States, American reality TV competition series ''Survivor (American TV ...
earned the other seven jury votes to win Sole Survivor.
''The Challenge''
In 2022, McCray competed on the
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...
series ''
The Challenge: USA'' where he finished as the male winner of the season, taking home $245,500. As a result of winning, McCray also qualified for the upcoming series ''The Challenge: World Championship'' on
Paramount+
Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to:
Entertainment and music companies
* Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS. The following busin ...
.
Filmography
Television
References
External links
LSU Tigers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:McCray, Danny
1988 births
Living people
Players of American football from Houston
American football cornerbacks
American football safeties
LSU Tigers football players
Dallas Cowboys players
Chicago Bears players
Survivor (American TV series) contestants
The Challenge (TV series) contestants