Tyvon A. Branch (born December 11, 1986) 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 ...

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 ...

. He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the fourth round (100th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft and has also played for 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 ...

and Arizona Cardinals. He played college football at

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Professional career

Oakland Raiders

The Oakland Raiders selected Branch in the fourth round (100th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft. The Raiders chose to draft Branch not only by his skills as a corner, but also his importance as a return specialist, due to the departure of all-time return leader Chris Carr. During his rookie season on September 14, 2008, Branch intercepted

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 ...

Damon Huard Damon Paul Huard (born July 9, 1973) is a former American football quarterback. He is the director of community relations and fundraising for the University of Washington football program, his alma mater. Huard was signed by the Cincinnati Ben ...

for his first career interception. Branch earned his first career start in the 2009 season opener on September 14 in a Monday night game against the San Diego Chargers, but was placed on season-ending injured reserve on November 5 with a shoulder injury. He went on to have a breakout season for the Raiders in 2009 as the starting strong safety in all 16 games, finishing with 98 unassisted tackles and 26 assists, two forced fumbles, and a sack. He had his best game of the year in a win over the heavily favored Bengals with 12 tackles and a forced fumble. During the 2010 NFL season, he again started in all 16 games for an 8-8 team, recording 81 unassisted tackles and 23 assists. In March 2012, the Raiders placed a franchise tag on Branch. On July 14, 2012, Branch signed a four-year, $26.6 million contract with the Raiders. On November 9, Branch was fined $15,750 for unnecessary roughness against the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The cl ...

Kansas City Chiefs

On March 10, 2015, Branch signed a one-year contract with the

Arizona Cardinals

On March 9, 2016, Branch signed a two-year contract with the Arizona Cardinals worth $8 million with $5 million guaranteed until 2018. He was placed on injured reserve on October 4, 2016 with a groin injury. He was activated off injured reserve on December 2, 2016 prior to Week 13. He was placed back on injured reserve on December 13, 2016 after re-injuring his groin. Branch entered the 2017 as the Cardinals' starting strong safety. During

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against the Seattle Seahawks on November 9, 2017, Branch suffered a torn ACL, ending his 2017 season.

NFL career statistics

References

External links

Kansas City Chiefs bioOakland Raiders bioTyvon Branch profile on ESPN.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Branch, Tyvon 1986 births Living people Players of American football from Syracuse, New York American football cornerbacks American football safeties American football return specialists UConn Huskies football players Oakland Raiders players Kansas City Chiefs players Arizona Cardinals players Ed Block Courage Award recipients