Damiere Byrd (born January 27, 1993) is an

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 ...

wide receiver for 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. T ...

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 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 ...

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the

in 2015. Byrd has also been a member of the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

, and

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 ...

College career

Byrd played wide receiver for the

South Carolina Gamecocks football The South Carolina Gamecocks football program represents the University of South Carolina. The Gamecocks compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern ...

team as a true freshman in 2011. After his senior season in 2014, Byrd had amassed 1265 yards on 68 receptions (18.6 yards/catch) with 10 touchdowns. Byrd was considered the fastest player on the team while at South Carolina and also competed for the South Carolina track team.

Professional career

On the South Carolina Pro Day, Byrd only ran the 40-yard dash once, since his left calf muscle tightened up on him. Byrd, having a track & field background, was able to put up impressive numbers, completing the short shuttle in 4.03 seconds, the three-cone in 6.6 seconds and the 60-yard long shuttle in 10.90 seconds, faster than any other time posted at the 2015 scouting combine.

Carolina Panthers

On May 8, 2015, Byrd was signed as an undrafted free agent by the

. On September 5, 2015, he was released by the Panthers. On September 7, 2015, Byrd was signed to the Panthers' practice squad, where he spent the rest of his rookie season. On February 7, 2016, Byrd's Panthers played in

Super Bowl 50 Super Bowl 50 was an American football game to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2015 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos defeated the National Football Conference (NFC) cha ...

. In the game, the Panthers fell to the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

by a score of 24–10.

2016

Byrd signed a reserve/futures contract with the Panthers on February 9, 2016. Byrd made the initial 53-man roster in

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

but was inactive for the first five games before being released on October 14, 2016. He was re-signed to the practice squad the next day. He was promoted back to the active roster on December 29, 2016.

2017

On October 1, 2017, during the second quarter of a game versus the

, Byrd broke his left arm on a reverse play. He was subsequently placed on the injured reserve two days later. He was activated off injured reserve to the active roster on December 2, 2017. In Week 16, Byrd returned a kickoff 103 yards, a franchise record, and scored the Panthers' first kickoff-return touchdown since 2011 which was crucial in the 22–19 win over the Buccaneers, earning him NFC Special Teams Player of the Week. However during the second half of the game, Byrd suffered a lower leg injury and subsequently was placed on injured reserve on December 26, 2017.

2018

Byrd entered the 2018 season as the Panthers primary punt returner. He played in eight games before suffering a broken arm in Week 12. He was placed on injured reserve on November 27, 2018.

Arizona Cardinals

On March 26, 2019, Byrd signed with the

. He played in 11 games with three starts, recording a career-high 32 catches for 359 yards and one touchdown.

New England Patriots

On March 23, 2020, Byrd signed a one-year contract with the

. In Week 11 against the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...

, Byrd recorded six catches for 132 yards and a touchdown during the 27–20 loss. Byrd finished the season playing in 16 games with 47 receptions, 604 receiving yards, 1 receiving touchdown, and 2 rushing attempts for 15 yards.

Chicago Bears

On May 4, 2021, Byrd signed with the

. In the Week 14 game against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

, Byrd caught a 54 yard

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

pass from

Justin Fields Justin Skyler Fields (born March 5, 1999) is an American football quarterback for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). Following a stint with Georgia, he played college football at Ohio State, where he twice won Graham–Ge ...

Atlanta Falcons

On April 1, 2022, Byrd signed a one-year contract with the

Carolina Panthers (second stint)

On April 14, 2023, Byrd signed with the

References

External links

New England Patriots bioCarolina Panthers bioSouth Carolina Gamecocks bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Byrd, Damiere 1993 births Living people Players of American football from New Jersey American football wide receivers African-American players of American football People from Gloucester Township, New Jersey Sportspeople from Camden County, New Jersey South Carolina Gamecocks football players South Carolina Gamecocks men's track and field athletes Carolina Panthers players Arizona Cardinals players Atlanta Falcons players New England Patriots players Chicago Bears players 21st-century African-American sportspeople