Derrick Jerome Martin (born May 16, 1985) 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

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...

in the sixth round of the

2006 NFL Draft The 2006 National Football League Draft, the 71st in league history, took place in New York City, New York, at Radio City Music Hall on April 29 and April 30, 2006. For the 27th consecutive year, the draft was telecast on ESPN and ESPN2, with add ...

. He played college football at

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...

. He has also played for the Green Bay Packers, New York Giants, New England Patriots, and Chicago Bears. With the Packers, he won

Super Bowl XLV Super Bowl XLV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...

over the Pittsburgh Steelers and the following year with the Giants, he won Super Bowl XLVI over the Patriots.

Early years

Martin attended Thomas Jefferson High School in Denver, CO where he led his team to the quarter final stage of the 2001 state playoffs and also the 2002 state semifinals. Martin also excelled at basketball where he was team captain. He was named Gatorade player of the year as a senior.

College career

Martin was recruited to play football for the Wyoming Cowboys by head coach Joe Glenn and his coaching staff. As a Wyoming Cowboy he became an immediate contributor as a defensive back his freshman season, recovering a blocked punt and running it into the end zone for a touchdown in the season opener against Montana State. Martin earned Second-team All-Conference honors as a sophomore, and helped lead the Wyoming Cowboys to a win over a heavily favored UCLA team by a score of 24-21 in the Las Vegas Bowl. At the end of Martin’s junior season of 2005, he made the decision to enter the NFL Draft. Martin played in a total of 30 games, making 24 starts and finishing his college career with 134 tackles and six interceptions.

Professional career

Baltimore Ravens

Martin was selected by the

in the sixth round (208th overall) in the

. He was the first ever player to be selected by the Ravens out of the University of Wyoming. In his rookie season he played in eight games posting four tackles. He made his NFL debut versus 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. ...

on October 15. In the 2007 season, he made 32 tackles.

Green Bay Packers

On September 5, 2009, Martin was traded to the Green Bay Packers for tackle

Tony Moll Tony Moll (born August 23, 1983) is a retired American football Guard (American football), guard and offensive tackle of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted in the fifth round of the 2006 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. He play ...

. He was the Packers' Special Team ace in the 2009 season, and was one of the Packers two Special Teams captains (along with linebacker

Desmond Bishop Desmond Lamont Bishop (born July 24, 1984) is a former American football linebacker that is currently the defensive coordinator at Edison High School in Stockton, California. He played college football for the University of California, Berkel ...

) in Green Bay's playoff loss at

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. Martin was placed on injured reserve when he sustained a knee injury against the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

on October 10, 2010. Martin also recorded an interception, which he returned 15 yards that season. On March 2, 2011, Martin was released by the Packers.

New York Giants

Derrick Martin signed with the New York Giants on August 15, 2011. He got his second Super Bowl championship in a row when the Giants defeated the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI. Following the season, he became 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 ...

New England Patriots

On August 4, 2012, Martin signed with the New England Patriots. Martin was released by the Patriots on August 31, 2012 during final cuts, and was re-signed by the Patriots on October 31, 2012.

Chicago Bears

On August 11, 2013, Martin signed with the Chicago Bears but was released on August 25. He was brought back by the Bears on November 13 after

Charles Tillman Charles Anthony Tillman (born February 23, 1981), nicknamed Peanut,Donnelly, MikeCharles Tillman - Not Your Typical 'Peanut'(January 18, 2007), nflplayers.com, Retrieved on July 25, 2007. is an American former professional football player who ...

was placed on injured reserve. Martin appeared in seven games in 2013 for the Bears, recording a tackle on defense and six on special teams. Martin was a free agent after 2013, but on February 24, 2014, he signed a one-year deal with Chicago. He was waived on May 28, 2014.

Home invasion

On January 20, 2013, Martin's home was invaded while he was out with his team at the AFC Championship game where the

defeated the Patriots 28-13; two masked men back forced their way into Martin's home in

Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

and held his wife Alexa Martin, and their three children at gunpoint. The police did not get a good enough description of the suspects to pursue a case. Police spokeswoman Cassidee Carlson said the suspects took some valuables, but wouldn't go into further detail about what was taken.

References

External links

New York Giants bioGreen Bay Packers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Derrick 1985 births Living people People from Westminster, Colorado Players of American football from Colorado American football cornerbacks American football safeties Wyoming Cowboys football players Baltimore Ravens players Green Bay Packers players New York Giants players New England Patriots players Chicago Bears players