DeDe Dorsey (born August 1, 1984) 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 ...

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 ...

. He was signed 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 ...

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 2006. 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 ...

Lindenwood Lindenwood may refer to a place in the United States: *Lindenwood, Illinois *Lindenwood, Queens, New York *Lindenwood Cemetery, Fort Wayne, Indiana In education: * Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Missouri * Lindenwood University – Bellevil ...

. Dorsey was also a member of 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

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...

. While a member of the Colts, Dorsey won a Super Bowl ring in

Super Bowl XLI Super Bowl XLI was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Indianapolis Colts and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Chicago Bears to decide the National Football League (NFL) champio ...

over 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 ...

College career

After graduating from

Broken Arrow Senior High Broken Arrow Senior High School is the highest level of secondary education in the Broken Arrow Public Schools system, for students in tenth through twelfth grade. Combined with the Broken Arrow Freshman Academy, it is the largest high school in ...

, Dorsey began his college career as a defensive back at

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, where, in 2003, he returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown and was a second-team all- NAIA selection on defense. After his sophomore season, he transferred to

. As a junior in 2004, he was named a first-team NAIA All-American as a defensive back after he scored three defensive touchdowns, even though he was moved from defense to running back with four games left during the regular season and rushed for 842 yards and nine touchdowns. As a senior, he was named first-team NAIA All-American as a running back after rushing for 1,600 yards and 18 touchdowns. It was the first time in NAIA history that a player was named first-team NAIA All-American on defense and offense in successive seasons. In less than three seasons as a defensive player, Dorsey had seven career interceptions, returning four for touchdowns, and blocked seven field goals and nine punts.

Professional career

First stint with Bengals

Dorsey signed with the

as an

following the

2006 NFL Draft The 2006 National Football League Draft, the 71st in league history, took place in New York City, New York, at Radio City Music Hall on April 29 and April 30, 2006. For the 27th consecutive year, the draft was telecast on ESPN and ESPN2, with ad ...

. He was waived prior to the start of the 2006 season.

Indianapolis Colts

Dorsey was claimed off waivers by the

on September 3, 2006. He played in

for the Colts, helping them win, 29–17, against the

. The Colts waived Dorsey on September 1, 2007.

Second stint with Bengals

On September 25, 2007, Dorsey re-signed with the

. As the third-string running back for the Bengals in

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

, Dorsey averaged 8.7 yards per carry after rushing for 183 yards on just 21 attempts. His 45-yard scamper on a forward lateral against the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arri ...

was the Bengals' longest run from scrimmage in three seasons. On November 18, 2007, in a game against the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

, he blocked Mike Barr's punt in the third quarter and returned it 19 yards for a touchdown. The blocked punt was the Bengals' first since 1995, and its first blocked for a touchdown since 1989. Dorsey became only the third player in Bengals' history to single-handedly block a punt and recover it for a touchdown. After week 4 of the

2008 NFL season The 2008 NFL season was the 89th regular season of the National Football League, themed with the slogan "Believe in Now." Super Bowl XLIII, the league's championship game, was at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on February 1, 2009, w ...

, Dorsey was placed on

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 ...

after pulling his hamstring. He had gained only eight yards on five carries before being injured. Dorsey did, however, have a 36-yard pass reception in week 2 during a loss to the Tennessee Titans. Dorsey was released by the Bengals on September 14, 2009, after being on the inactive list for the first game of the season.

Las Vegas Locomotives

Dorsey scored two touchdowns for the Las Vegas Locomotives against the California Redwoods in the first ever game of the UFL on October 8, 2009. He rushed for 63 yards on nine carries and 3 receptions. On November 27, 2009, in the first-ever UFL Championship game, Dorsey rushed 11 times for 66 yards and scored on touchdown runs of 38 yards and 1 yard to help the Las Vegas Locomotives defeat the previously unbeaten Florida Tuskers 20-17 in overtime. Dorsey was named MVP of the game.

Detroit Lions

Dorsey signed a future contract with the

on February 9, 2010. He was released on September 4.

Second stint with Locomotives

Dorsey re-signed with the Las Vegas Locomotives on September 24, 2010. On October 5, he was named UFL Player Of The Week for week 3. Dorsey signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders on April 29, 2013. He was released on June 22, 2013.

References

External links

Indianapolis Colts bioJust Sports Stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dorsey, DeDe 1984 births Living people People from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma Players of American football from Oklahoma African-American players of American football American football running backs Lindenwood Lions football players Cincinnati Bengals players Indianapolis Colts players Las Vegas Locomotives players Detroit Lions players Nebraska Danger players Saskatchewan Roughriders players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people