Jason Dewande Bell (born April 1, 1978) is an American former professional football player who was a

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

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) for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...

, Houston Texans and New York Giants. Bell played college football for the

UCLA Bruins The UCLA Bruins are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Los Angeles. The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Pac-12 Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) ...

Early life

Bell was born on April 1, 1978, in

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

, to parents Cortland and Geraldine Bell. He attended

Robert A. Millikan High School Robert A. Millikan Senior High School is a high school in Long Beach, California, United States, administered by the Long Beach Unified School District. It is located near the intersection of Spring Street and Palo Verde Avenue in the Los Alto ...

, where he played

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

, wide receiver and

. As a senior, he posted 70 tackles, 5 interceptions, 19 passes defensed, 26-yards average in kickoff returns, 12-yards average in punt returns, while receiving All-league and All-city honors. He finished his high school career with 196 tackles, 12 interceptions, 38 passes defensed He also practiced track, recording 10.7 seconds in the 100-meter dash, 21.89 seconds in the

200-meter dash The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slight ...

and 22-feet in the

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a ...

College career

Bell accepted a football scholarship from

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California S ...

(UCLA). As a true freshman, he played mainly on

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

for the Bruins. The next year, he started the final 5 games, posting 18 tackles and 4 passes defended. In 1998, he contributed to the team winning the Pacific-10 Conference championship, while making 38 tackles and leading the team in passes defended (14). In 1999, he was granted an additional year of eligibility due to a medical hardship, after his season was cut short from a surgery that removed bone spurs from his right heel. As a senior, he registered 42 tackles and 9 passes defended. He majored in history.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Bell was signed 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 ...

by the

after the 2001 NFL Draft, and made the roster based on his strong special teams play. As a gunner, he led the team in special teams tackles with 21. He was waived on September 1, 2002.

Houston Texans

On September 2, 2002, he was claimed off waivers by the Houston Texans and became a part of the inaugural season of the franchise. He led the team with 14 special teams tackles, even though he missed the first 3 games with a fractured right wrist. He received the

Ed Block Courage Award The Ed Block Courage Award is an annual award presented to a player from each team in the National Football League (NFL) who are voted for by their teammates as role models of inspiration, sportsmanship, and courage. Named in memory of Ed Block, a ...

at the end of the year. Bell would remain a core special teams player during his time with the Houston Texans. In 2003, he was second on the team with 15 special teams tackles, even though he was declared inactive for 3 games with a knee injury. In 2004, he registered 6 special teams tackles. On November 17, he was placed on the

injured reserve list 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 breaking his right forearm while covering a punt against the Indianapolis Colts.

New York Giants

On March 13, 2006, Bell was signed as an

unrestricted 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 ...

by the New York Giants and was moved to

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are two slightly dif ...

during the season. He also played four games with a fractured right forearm he sustained in week 12 against the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their hom ...

. Bell aggravated a back injury while working out during the offseason and was placed on the injured reserve list on July 25, 2007. He retired in

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, after having career-ending back surgery the previous year.

Personal life

After his retirement from the NFL, he transitioned into private wealth management. He joined Masters Private Client Group, where he is currently a partner, specializing in professional athletes and entertainers and their unique financial needs. He has been noted as one of the “Top 36 Football Players on Wall Street” by Business Insider. In addition to his business work, he currently works as an NFL pundit, working alongside

Osi Umenyiora Ositadimma "Osi" Umenyiora (born November 16, 1981) is a former American football defensive end. He played college football for Troy University and was drafted by the New York Giants in the second round of the 2003 NFL Draft. Umenyiora was a ...

, originally for the BBC's coverage of the league on their preview and highlights shows. As of 2022 the show has moved to ITV. Also in 2022 Bell became part of the NFL coverage on

Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It ...

, covering their live Sunday games in-studio. Bell dated

Nadine Coyle Nadine Elizabeth Louise Coyle (born 15 June 1985) is an Irish singer, actress and model. In 2002, Coyle was selected as a member of the girl group Girls Aloud, with whom she has been successful in achieving a string of 20 consecutive UK top te ...

from British-Irish girl group

Girls Aloud Girls Aloud were an pop girl group that was created through the ITV talent show '' Popstars: The Rivals'' in 2002. The group comprised singers Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. The group achieved a str ...

in 2008, and they were engaged at one point but later separated. They reunited sometime in 2013, with Nadine announcing her pregnancy in August that year. She gave birth to their daughter, Anaíya, in early 2014. The couple split in 2019 but still remain friends. On September 1, 2020, it was announced that Bell would be a contestant on season 18 of the British TV dancing contest '' Strictly Come Dancing'', the originator of the global '' Dancing with the Stars'' franchise. He was partnered with

Luba Mushtuk Luba Mushtuk (Russian: Люба Муштук; born 14 November 1989) is a Russian dancer and choreographer. Early life Mushtuk was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Career Mushtuk was four-time winner of the Italian Dance Championship and is al ...

. In week three he was in the dance-off against

Nicola Adams Nicola Virginia Adams (born 26 October 1982) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 2017 to 2019. She retired with an undefeated record and held the WBO female flyweight title in 2019. As an amateur, she became the first fe ...

and

Katya Jones Katya Jones (born Ekaterina Andreevna Sokolova; rus, Екатерина Андреевна Соколова; 12 May 1989) is a Russian dancer and choreographer. She is best-known for being a professional dancer in the competition show '' Stric ...

and lost, therefore leaving the show.

References

External links

UCLA profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Jason 1978 births Living people American football cornerbacks American football safeties Dallas Cowboys players Houston Texans players New York Giants players UCLA Bruins football players Players of American football from Long Beach, California American expatriate sportspeople in England Ed Block Courage Award recipients