David Irons Jr. (born October 9, 1982) 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 was drafted by 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 ...

in the sixth round of the 2007 NFL Draft. 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 ...

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

. Irons also played for the

Florida Tuskers Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to th ...

and

Sacramento Mountain Lions The Sacramento Mountain Lions was a professional 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 rect ...

. He is the older brother of former

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

and Auburn teammate

Kenny Irons Kenny Irons (born September 15, 1983) is a former American football running back. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Auburn. He is the brother of former Atlanta Falc ...

College career

Butler Community College

Irons began his college career at

Butler Community College Butler Community College (BCC) is a public community college in El Dorado, Kansas. Campus There are a number of branch campuses throughout the area, in Andover, Council Grove, Marion, McConnell, Rose Hill, and a number of distance-learning ...

in 2001 but was unable to play that season due to a knee injury and resulting surgery. In the 2002 season, he recorded 45 tackles and two interceptions. In 2003, he helped lead the BCC Grizzlies to an NJCAA National Championship with 59 tackles, three interceptions, and nine pass breakups.

Auburn

After moving on to Auburn in 2004, David again injured his knee in pre-season practice and did not play in the Tigers'

undefeated season A perfect season is a sports season, including any requisite playoff portion, in which a team remains and finishes undefeated and untied. The feat is extremely rare at the professional level of any team sport, and has occurred more commonly at the ...

. He was able to return and start in eleven games in 2005 and was named to the AP All- SEC Second-team with 48 tackles (36 solo, 12 assists) and 11 pass break-ups. Due to his knee injuries, Irons applied for and was granted an additional year of eligibility by the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

. He had already graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

, but began coursework towards a master's degree in the fall semester of 2006 to maintain his eligibility. Prior to the 2006 season, David was named to the Coaches All-SEC First-team and the

Jim Thorpe Award The Jim Thorpe Award, named in memory of multi-sport athlete Jim Thorpe, has been awarded to the top defensive back in college football since 1986. It is voted on by the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame. In 2017, the award became sponsored by Paycom ...

Preseason Watch List. Irons finished the regular season with 39 tackles (22 solo, 17 assists), 11 pass break-ups and two interceptions and was named to the Coaches All-SEC Second-team.

Professional career

Atlanta Falcons

In 2008, Irons was placed on season-ending

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

with a knee injury. He was waived on July 28, 2009.

Personal

His brother

, was a teammate at Auburn and was selected in the 2nd round (49th overall) of the 2007 draft by 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 ...

. He is the nephew of

Gerald Irons Gerald D. Irons Sr. (May 2, 1947 – April 1, 2021) was an American professional football player who played ten seasons in the National Football League (NFL). His youngest son Grant Irons played for the Oakland Raiders. Eldest son Gerald, Jr. pl ...

and

Leroy Jackson Leroy or Le Roy may refer to: People * Leroy (name), a given name and surname * Leroy (musician), American musician * Leroy (sailor), French sailor Places United States * Leroy, Alabama * Le Roy, Illinois * Le Roy, Iowa * Le Roy, Kansas * L ...

and he is the cousin of

Grant Irons Grant Michael Irons (born July 7, 1979) is a former American football defensive end. He played in 43 career games for the University of Notre Dame, making 26 starts at numerous positions on defense. He started playing for the Buffalo Bills in ...

Jarrett Irons Jarrett Irons is a former American football player. A native of The Woodlands, Texas, Irons played college football as a linebacker at the University of Michigan from 1993 to 1996. He was a team co-captain of the 1995 and 1996 teams and was s ...

and

Paul Irons Paul Irons (born December 23, 1983) is a former American football tight end for Team Michigan of the All American Football League. Irons previously played in the National Football League for the Cleveland Browns and in college for Florida Stat ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Irons, David 1982 births Living people People from Dacula, Georgia Sportspeople from the Atlanta metropolitan area Players of American football from Camden, New Jersey African-American players of American football American football cornerbacks Butler Grizzlies football players Auburn Tigers football players Atlanta Falcons players Florida Tuskers players Sacramento Mountain Lions players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people Irons family (American football)