Darius Mikail Hillary (born April 5, 1993) 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 ...
cornerback
A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...
. 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
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
.
College career
At Wisconsin, Hillary appeared in 54 games, which tied a school record, while starting in 40 consecutive games to finish his college career. As a senior in 2015, Hillary started all 13 games, recording 44 tackles, six passes defensed, and two fumble recoveries, earning All-Big Ten honorable mention.
Professional career
Cincinnati Bengals
Hillary signed with the
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...
as an undrafted free agent on April 30, 2016. He was waived on September 3, 2016 and was signed to the practice squad the next day. He was released on October 1, 2016.
Cleveland Browns
On October 18, 2016, Hillary was signed to the
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
' practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on October 21, 2016. He was waived three days later and re-signed to the practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Browns on January 2, 2017.
On September 3, 2017, Hillary was waived by the Browns and was re-signed to the practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on November 8, 2017. He was waived by the Browns on December 16, 2017.
Oakland Raiders
On December 27, 2017, Hillary was signed to the
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...
' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Raiders on January 2, 2018. He was waived by the Raiders on May 7, 2018.
Washington Redskins
On August 18, 2018, Hillary was signed by the
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...
, but was waived on August 25.
Cincinnati Bengals (second stint)
On August 28, 2018, Hillary was signed by the Cincinnati Bengals, only to be waived two days later.
New Orleans Saints
On October 2, 2018, Hillary was signed to the
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...
' practice squad. He was released on October 17, 2018.
Arizona Hotshots
On January 8, 2019, Hillary signed with the
Arizona Hotshots
The Arizona Hotshots were a professional American football franchise based in Tempe, Arizona, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF), which played one season from February 2019 to April 2019. They played their h ...
of the
Alliance of American Football
The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan are ...
. He was placed on injured reserve on January 30. He was waived from injured reserve on March 19.
Atlanta Legends
Hillary signed with the
Atlanta Legends
The Atlanta Legends were a professional American football franchise based in Atlanta, Georgia, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF), which played one season from February 2019 to April 2019. They played their h ...
of the AAF on March 25, 2019, while on the team's rights list. He was activated to the roster on March 26. The league ceased operations in April 2019.
St. Louis BattleHawks
Hillary was selected by the
St. Louis BattleHawks
The St. Louis BattleHawks are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. The team was founded by Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment and is an owned-and-operated member of the new XFL owned by Dwayne Johnson’s Alpha A ...
in the XFL Supplemental Draft, and went on to play all 5 games, producing 17 tackles and 3 passes defended, as well as one quarterback hit on a corner blitz. He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.
References
External links
Wisconsin Badgers bioCleveland Browns bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hillary, Darius
1993 births
Living people
Players of American football from Cincinnati
American football cornerbacks
Wisconsin Badgers football players
Cincinnati Bengals players
Cleveland Browns players
Oakland Raiders players
Washington Redskins players
Arizona Hotshots players
Atlanta Legends players
New Orleans Saints players
St. Louis BattleHawks players