Melvin Terry Bullitt (born November 13, 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 ...
defensive back
In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...
. He was signed by 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 ...
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 2007 and played for the team for five seasons. 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 ...
at
Texas A&M.
High school career
Bullitt starred at
Naaman Forest High School
Naaman Forest High School is a public secondary school located in Garland, Texas, United States. Naaman Forest enrolls students in grades 9- 12 and is a part of the Garland Independent School District.
In 2009, the school was rated "academicall ...
in
Garland, Texas, where he was team MVP as a senior after totaling 78 tackles (43 solo), five pass deflections, and three interceptions. He also caught seven passes for 185 yards and a touchdown. He was teammates with
Uche Nwaneri
Uchechukwu Eberechukwu Nwaneri ( ) (March 20, 1984 – December 30, 2022) was an American football guard who played in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars. He played college football at Purdue and ...
and
Jacob Lacey
Jacob Lacey (born May 28, 1987) is a former American football cornerback. He was signed by the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent in 2009. He played college football at Oklahoma State.
Early years
Lacey was born on May 28, 1987, in C ...
.
Bullitt committed to Texas A&M at the end of his junior year.
[
]
College career
As a freshman at Texas A&M, Bullitt played in 8 games and produced 13 tackles. As a sophomore, he played in 12 games, finishing with 29 tackles, one interception, and one forced fumble. He started 10 games as a junior and compiled 59 tackles, two interceptions, and two forced fumbles. In the 2006 season, as a senior outside linebacker, he started in all 13 games had 84 tackles (26 solo), one interception, one fumble recovery, and eight pass deflections. After the season, he was named to the 2006 AT&T All-Big 12 Football First-team.[ He finished his college career with 183 tackles (80 solo), 10.5 tackles for losses, and four interceptions.
Bullitt changed positions every season. He began playing at corner, then free safety, then strong safety, and finally at outside linebacker.]
Professional career
Indianapolis Colts
2007 season
Bullitt signed with 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 ...
as an undrafted free agent. In Week 5 he started in the Colts’ dime package in a 33-14 victory over the Tampa Bay. He also saw action on defense in Week 9 against the New England
New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
as a replacement for injured Pro Bowl
The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players.
The format has changed thro ...
safety Bob Sanders
Demond "Bob" Sanders (born February 24, 1981) is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons. He played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes and was drafted by the ...
. He had his most extensive playing time in Week 17 against Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, when he entered the game in the second half after the Colts rested starters on both sides of the ball. Despite only playing the second half, he made a team-high 10 tackles.
2008 season
During the 2008 season, Bullitt made three game-saving interceptions to seal victories for the Colts. In the 31–27 comeback win over the Texans on October 5, he intercepted a pass by quarterback Sage Rosenfels
Sage Jamen Rosenfels (born March 6, 1978) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football at Iowa State. He was then drafted by the Washington Redskins in the fourth round of the 2001 NFL Draft. He played with the Miami Dolp ...
at the Indianapolis 22, with 42 seconds remaining in the game. On November 9, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger attempted to throw a touchdown pass into the end zone on the final play, but Bullitt intercepted the pass, preventing a Steelers comeback and sealing the 24–20 Colts win. The third game-saver occurred in the second matchup against the Texans on November 16, when Bullitt intercepted Rosenfels' pass at the Colts 35, with 32 seconds left in the game. In the same game, however, he missed a tackle near the line of scrimmage on running back Steve Slaton
Steve Slaton (born January 4, 1986) is a former American football running back. He played college football for West Virginia University, and earned consensus All-American honors. He was chosen by the Houston Texans in the third round of the 200 ...
, who ran 71 yards for a touchdown. The Colts still won 33–27. Overall, Bullitt started nine games during the season, recording 42 solo tackles and four interceptions.
After the season, Bullitt received recognition from ''USA Today
''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
'', which listed him on its annual "All-Joe" team.
Regarding his then-new role as a starter, Bullitt stated: "You always want to be a starter. That’s why you come to the NFL. You don’t want to come in and be a backup. You have to learn and you have to wait your time. You have to be patient, because anytime, an opportunity may come. Mine came this year, and I just wanted to go out and do the best I can and show people in the league I can play, too."[
]
2009 season
In January 2009, Bullitt was named the "emerging star" of the AFC South
The American Football Conference – Southern Division or AFC South is one of the four Division (sport), divisions of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). It was created before the 2002 NFL season, 2002 s ...
by an ESPN.com
ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN. It is owned by ESPN Internet Ventures, a division of ESPN Inc.
History
Since launching in April 1995 as ESPNET.SportsZone.com (ESPNET SportsZone), the website has developed numerous sections including: ...
blogger; seven other players representing each division of the league were named one, as well. The players were picked based on their performances in the 2008 season.
His teammates elected him as one of the two 2009 special-teams captains. He started the season as a starter, replacing the injured Bob Sanders.
He was named the "Unsung Hero of the Week" for week 3 by ''USA Today'' for his performance against the Arizona Cardinals. Bullitt forced a fumble and also prevented an airborne player from scoring a touchdown at the goal line.
Bullitt also made a crucial fourth-down stop in the 35–34 victory over the New England Patriots.
For the second straight year, Bullitt made ''USA Today's '' "All-Joe" team.
2010–2011 seasons
In October 2010, Bullitt was placed on injured reserve and missed the rest of the season.
Three weeks into the 2011 season, Bullitt was placed on injured reserve. He was released following the 2011 season on March 9, 2012.
Post-playing career
Following his retirement, Bullitt was named coach of the Legends Football League
The Extreme Football League (X League) is an American women's semi-professional tackle football league.
The league was originally founded in 2009 as the Lingerie Football League (LFL), and later rebranded as the Legends Football League in 2013.
...
's Dallas Desire
The Dallas Desire was a professional women's American football team located in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. While active, they were one of five teams of the Lingerie Football League's Western Division. The Desire was one of two new teams ad ...
for the franchise's return in 2016. His brother Terrance will be his assistant.
Melvin maintains an athletic training facility with his family in Rowlett, Texas
Rowlett (, traditionally ) is a city in Dallas and Rockwall counties in the U.S. state of Texas, and an eastern suburb of Dallas. The total population estimate is 73,270 in 2021. It is a growing, upscale community with nearly $1.5 billion in dev ...
.
Personal
During his playing career, Melvin wore the number 33 in honor of his father, Jerry Bullitt, who wore the number as a linebacker at Texas A&M. When asked about his number, Melvin stated: "I kind of feel like when I'm wearing (No. 33), a piece of my dad is with me when I'm on the field." Teammate Dominic Rhodes previously wore the same number for six seasons from 2001 to 2006 before playing the 2007 season for the Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...
. Once Rhodes returned to the Colts prior to the 2008 season, he tried to get the number back and even offered Bullitt serious money for it, but to no avail.
References
External links
COLTS CHAT: MELVIN BULLITT: November 14, 2008
Colts.com article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bullitt, Melvin
Texas A&M Aggies football players
1984 births
American football defensive backs
Indianapolis Colts players
Living people
Bullitt, Marvin
Sportspeople from the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex
Players of American football from Texas