Robert "Rocky" Eugene Bernard, Jr. (born April 19, 1979) 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 ...

defensive tackle who was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fifth round of the 2002 NFL Draft. He played college football at

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

Professional career

Seattle Seahawks

Bernard was drafted by the Seahawks in the fifth round of the 2002 NFL Draft. Bernard was mostly used as a backup in his first three seasons in the league before becoming the starting right defensive tackle in 2005, earning 8.5 sacks with two more in the NFC Championship 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. ...

. Bernard amassed a total of forty-two tackles in the 2005 season. On August 30, 2008, 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 ...

suspended Bernard for the Seahawks' 2008 season opener for violating the league's personal conduct policy. Bernard was arrested in April on investigation of domestic violence. He allegedly punched his ex-girlfriend in the forehead. He lost $235,000 in salary for the suspension.

New York Giants

On February 28, 2009, Bernard signed a four-year, $16 million contract with the New York Giants. The deal contains $6.9 million guaranteed, including a $5 million signing bonus and his first-year base salary. Bernard was released on July 28, 2011. He was re-signed by the Giants on August 4. He earned a Super Bowl ring when the Giants defeated the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI. Following the season, he became an unrestricted free agent.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bernard, Rocky 1979 births Living people American football defensive tackles New York Giants players People from Baytown, Texas Players of American football from Texas Seattle Seahawks players Sportspeople from Harris County, Texas Texas A&M Aggies football players