Emmett Joseph Cleary (born April 27, 1990) 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 ...

offensive tackle of 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 ...

(NFL). He played college football at Boston College, and signed with the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent in 2013. He has also played for 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 ...

, Oakland Raiders, Cincinnati Bengals, New York Giants,

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...

, and Detroit Lions. Cleary retired from football in 2018 to pursue medicine at USC Keck. He graduated in 2022 and is currently training in Orthopedic Surgery residency at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.

Early years

Cleary was born in Tokyo, Japan, but moved to the United States where he first learned football. He graduated from St. Viator High School, where he was called "The Asian Sensation" by students. As a senior, he was a two-way player at offensive tackle and

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is ...

. He received honorable-mention All-state, two-time All-East Suburban Catholic Conference, Daily Herald Northwest Suburban All-Area and ESCC Co-Offensive Lineman of the Year honors. He was named an Illinois State Scholar and a National Merit finalist.

College career

Cleary accepted a football scholarship from Boston College. As a

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Entertainment * ''Red Shirts'' (film), a 1952 film about Anita Garibaldi by Franco Rossi * Redshirt (stock character), originally derived from ''Star Trek'', a stock character who dies soon after ...

freshman, he was a backup at offensive tackle and appeared in 12 games. As a sophomore, he began the season as a backup until starter Rich Lapham was injured, which contributed to establishing himself the starter at

right tackle Tackle is a playing position in gridiron football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a tackle played on both offense and defense. In the modern system of specialized units, ...

for the last five games. As a junior, he started all 12 games at

. As a senior, he switched sides with John Wetzel and was named the starter at

left tackle Tackle is a playing position in gridiron football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a tackle played on both offense and defense. In the modern system of specialized units, o ...

Professional career - Football

Indianapolis Colts

Cleary was signed 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 ...

by the Indianapolis Colts after the

2013 NFL Draft The 2013 NFL Draft was the 78th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall ...

on April 30. After competing for a roster spot during training camp, he was waived/injured (undisclosed) on September 5.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On October 16, 2013, Cleary was signed by the

to their practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 6, 2014. He was released on June 17.

Oakland Raiders

On June 18, 2014, he was claimed off waivers by the Oakland Raiders. He was released on August 24.

Cincinnati Bengals

On September 16, 2014, he was added to the Cincinnati Bengals practice squad.

New York Giants

On January 13, 2015, Cleary signed a reserve/future contract with the New York Giants. He was waived on September 5. On September 6, he was signed to the Giants' practice squad. On November 16, he was elevated to the active roster. On September 6, 2016, he was waived/injured (finger).

Dallas Cowboys

On September 28, 2016, Cleary was signed by the

to be the reserve swing tackle and replace an injured Chaz Green. He played only on

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

until Week 16 against the Detroit Lions, where he replaced an injured

Tyron Smith Tyron Jerrar Smith (born December 12, 1990) is an American football offensive tackle for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at USC where he won the Morris Trophy, recognizing the best offensive ...

in the third quarter. He started at

in the season finale against the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...

in place of an injured Smith. In 2017, he was passed on the depth chart by

Byron Bell Byron Michael Bell (born January 17, 1989) is a former American football offensive tackle. He played college football at New Mexico, and was signed by the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent in 2011. Early years Bell attended Greenv ...

during training camp and was waived on September 2.

Detroit Lions

On September 12, 2017, Cleary was signed by the Detroit Lions. Cleary announced his retirement from the NFL on April 10, 2018. On May 13, 2018, he announced his plans to attend medical school in fall 2018 at USC.

Professional career - Medicine

USC Keck

Mayo Clinic

References

External links

*
Boston College bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cleary, Emmett 1990 births Living people Players of American football from Compton, California American football offensive tackles Boston College Eagles football players Indianapolis Colts players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Oakland Raiders players Cincinnati Bengals players New York Giants players Dallas Cowboys players Detroit Lions players