Nicholas Lachester Fairley (born January 23, 1988) 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 tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

. 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 ...

for

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a public land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama. With more than 24,600 undergraduate students and a total enrollment of more than 30,000 with 1,330 faculty members, Auburn is the second largest uni ...

, where he was recognized as an All-American and was a member of a BCS National Championship team. Fairley was drafted by the

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 ...

in the first round of the

2011 NFL Draft The 2011 NFL Draft was the 76th installment of the annual NFL Draft, where the franchises of the National Football League select newly eligible football players. Like the 2010 draft, the 2011 draft was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York C ...

. He has also played for 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 ...

and the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

Early years

Fairley was born in

Mobile, Alabama Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population within the city limits was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 195,111 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 cens ...

. He attended Williamson High School in Mobile, where he was a two-way lineman and also lettered in basketball. Regarded as a three-star prospect, he was projected as an offensive guard. He committed to Auburn, but was not able to qualify academically.

College career

Copiah-Lincoln Community College

Fairley attended Copiah-Lincoln Community College from 2007 to 2008. After being redshirted in 2007, he played in seven games in 2008. He recorded 63 tackles and seven sacks in the 2008 season.

Auburn University

Fairley transferred to

, where he played for the

Auburn Tigers football The Auburn Tigers football program represents Auburn University in the sport of American college football. Auburn competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Western Division o ...

team in 2009 and 2010. He finished the 2009 season with two starts in 13 games and recorded 28 tackles. Surprisingly quick for his size, his tendency to be flamboyant following a successful play placed him as a person of concern for officials. In 2010, he became the 2nd player from Auburn to win the

Lombardi Award The Rotary Lombardi Award is an award for college football in the United States. Awarded by the Rotary Club of Houston, Texas annually to the college football player "who best embodies the values and spirit of NFL's legendary coach Vince Lombar ...

. He was coached by Lombardi winner and former Auburn player

Tracy Rocker Tracy Quinton Rocker (born April 9, 1966) is an American football coach and former player who is the defensive line coach for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). Rocker played college football at Auburn University ...

, and became the first player to win the Lombardi and be coached by a winner of the award. During the

2011 BCS National Championship Game The 2011 Tostitos BCS National Championship Game was a college football bowl game to determine the national champion of the 2010 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) season. The finale of the 2010–2011 Bowl Championship Series was p ...

against the

Oregon Ducks The Oregon Ducks are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Oregon, located in Eugene. The Ducks compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a member of the Pac-12 Conferenc ...

, Fairley had five tackles, a sack, and a forced fumble. Three of his tackles were made behind the line of scrimmage. Fairley was selected as the defensive player of the game.

Professional career

Only four days after the

, Fairley decided to forgo his final year of eligibility, entering the

. He was initially projected to be the first pick in the draft. His measurements at the combine showed him to be 6 feet 3 7/8 inches tall and 291 pounds, somewhat less than his listing of 6-5 and 300 pounds at Auburn. After the NFL Combine, he was projected in the 8-12 range.

Detroit Lions

Fairley was drafted by the

in the first round as the 13th pick overall. He signed a 4-year contract with the Lions on July 28, 2011. The contract was for four years and worth $10 million with a $5.7 million signing bonus. In Detroit, he joined All-Pro

Ndamukong Suh Ndamukong Ngwa Suh ( , born January 6, 1987) is an American football defensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Nebraska, where he earned All-American honors, and was drafte ...

on the interior of the Detroit defensive line. Though at times his play was stout, he was troubled by inconsistency. In his second season in the NFL Fairley recorded 5.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, and 26 tackles. However, on December 12, 2012, Fairley was put 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 ...

, ending his season. Fairley's fourth season had been productive for the most part. However, on October 26, 2014, Fairley sustained a

Medial collateral ligament The medial collateral ligament (MCL), or tibial collateral ligament (TCL), is one of the four major ligaments of the knee. It is on the medial (inner) side of the knee joint in humans and other primates. Its primary function is to resist out ...

sprain against the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

St. Louis Rams

On March 13, 2015, Fairley signed a one-year, $5 million contract with the St. Louis Rams. Fairley played in 15 games for the Rams in 2015 along their defensive line rotation and recorded 29 tackles (18 solo), a split sack, a pass defended, and one fumble recovery. On December 31, 2015, Fairley was placed on injured reserve.

New Orleans Saints

On March 28, 2016, Fairley signed a one-year, $5 million contract with the

. After recording career-highs in tackles and sacks in 2016, Fairley signed a four-year, $30 million contract extension with the Saints during the 2017 off-season. On June 26, 2017, the Saints placed Fairley on the reserve/non-football-illness list regarding a lingering heart condition, ending his 2017 season. On February 5, 2018, Fairley was released by the Saints.

NFL career statistics

Personal life

Since entering the NFL, Fairley has had a number of run-ins with the law. On April 3, 2012, Fairley was arrested in Mobile, Alabama for marijuana possession. The charges were dismissed in December 2012. On May 27, 2012, Fairley was arrested by Alabama State Troopers for driving under the influence and attempting to elude police. He was also ticketed for reckless driving, having an open container of alcohol in the vehicle and no proof of insurance. On June 3, 2017, it was revealed that Fairley was diagnosed with a heart condition that could threaten his career. On December 1, 2018, Fairley was arrested on criminal menacing charges when he allegedly threatened a person with a gun.

References

External links

New Orleans Saints bioSt. Louis Rams bioDetroit Lions bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fairley, Nick 1988 births Living people All-American college football players American football defensive tackles Auburn Tigers football players Copiah-Lincoln Wolfpack football players Detroit Lions players St. Louis Rams players New Orleans Saints players Players of American football from Alabama Sportspeople from Mobile, Alabama