David Dontay Thornton (born November 1, 1978) is a former outside linebacker for the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

and Tennessee Titans of the National Football League. In 2012 Thornton joined the Colts as the director of player engagement.

College career

Thornton 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 the University of North Carolina where he was teammates with Julius Peppers, and

Ryan Sims Ryan O'Neal Sims (born May 4, 1980) is a former American Football defensive tackle. Sims' professional career began in 2002 with the Kansas City Chiefs, for whom he played through the end of the 2006 season. He has also been a member of the Tampa ...

. Originally a

walk-on Walk On may refer to: Music * ''Walk On'', a 1994 album by Boston, and its title song Albums * ''Walk On'' (Boston album), 1994 * ''Walk On'' (John Hiatt album), 1995 * ''Walk On'' (Randy Johnston album), 1992 *''Walk On'', a 2007 album by ...

, Thornton's play eventually earned him a scholarship. In his senior year, Thornton was named second-team All-ACC and team MVP.

Professional career

Indianapolis Colts

Thornton was drafted in the fourth round in the

2002 NFL Draft The 2002 NFL draft was the 67th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually sinc ...

by the

. Thornton best season came in 2003 when he led the Colts with 145 tackles and made two interceptions. In the 2005 season Thornton made 83 tackles and two

quarterback sack In gridiron football, a sack occurs when the quarterback (or another offensive player acting as a passer) is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before throwing a forward pass, when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in th ...

Tennessee Titans

He became an unrestricted free agent and signed a five-year deal with the Titans on March 13, 200

After missing the 2010 season due to a hip injury, he retired on August 5, 2011.

NFL career statistics

Personal life

In 2012, he became the director of player engagement with the Colts.

References

1978 births Living people People from Goldsboro, North Carolina Players of American football from North Carolina American football outside linebackers North Carolina Tar Heels football players Indianapolis Colts players Tennessee Titans players Ed Block Courage Award recipients {{Linebacker-1970s-stub