Derrick Binet Mayes (born January 28, 1974 in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

) 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 wi ...

wide receiver who played five seasons in the

National Football League 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 ...

(NFL). He played college football at Notre Dame and was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the second round of the 1996 NFL Draft. Mayes also played for the Seattle Seahawks, and was briefly a member of the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The ...

Early years

After playing

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

at North Central High School in Indianapolis, Mayes played college football at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic university, Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend, Indiana, South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin fo ...

from 1992 to 1995. He held the school record for career touchdown receptions until the record was broken by

Jeff Samardzija Jeffrey Alan Samardzija (; born January 23, 1985), nicknamed "Shark", is an American professional former baseball pitcher. He played college baseball and football for the University of Notre Dame, and was recognized as a two-time All-American w ...

Professional career

Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers selected Mayes in the second round (56th overall) of the 1996 NFL Draft. He caught six passes in his rookie season, and roomed with fellow receiver

Andre Rison Andre Previn Rison (born March 18, 1967) is a former American football wide receiver who played professionally for the National Football League's Indianapolis Colts, Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars, Green Bay Packers ...

once Rison joined the team mid-season. He was part of the Packers' Super Bowl XXXI winning team. In 1997, Mayes took on a bit of a punt returning role as well as expanding his time on offense. Mayes had arguably his best game as a Packer in 1998, catching three touchdowns in a game against the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

. Before the 1999 season, Mayes was traded to the Seattle Seahawks for a seventh-round draft pick.

Seattle Seahawks

In Mayes' first season in Seattle, he caught a career-high 62 passes for 829 yards and 10 touchdowns. In 2000, Mayes only caught 29 passes and one touchdown. On March 1, 2001, Mayes was cut by the Seahawks.

Kansas City Chiefs

Mayes was signed by the

on July 10, 2001, but was released during final roster cutdowns later that year.

Post-career life

Mayes graduated from Notre Dame with a communications degree. He now does video work, speaks to high school athletes, and runs former Notre Dame coach Lou Holtz's foundation. He also starred in '' Ultimate Hustler'', a "hip-hop ''

Celebrity Apprentice ''The Celebrity Apprentice'' is an American television reality competition series. It was a variation of ''The Apprentice'' series, hosted by then real estate developer (later 45th president of the United States) Donald Trump from 2008 to 2015, an ...

''," in 2005.

References

1974 births Living people Players of American football from Indianapolis American football wide receivers Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players Green Bay Packers players Seattle Seahawks players {{widereceiver-1970s-stub