Donald Brown (running back)
{{Short description|American football player (born 1987)}}
{{For|other gridiron football people named Donald or Don Brown|
Donald Brown (disambiguation)}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name = Donald Brown
| image = Donald Brown (running back).JPG
| caption = Brown with the San Diego Chargers in 2015
| current_team =
| number = 31, 34
| position = Running back
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1987|4|11|mf=y}}
| birth_place = Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, U.S.
| height_ft = 5
| height_in = 10
| weight_lbs = 207
| high_school = Red Bank Catholic
(Red Bank, New Jersey)
| college = UConn (2005–2008)
| draftyear = 2009
| draftround = 1
| draftpick = 27
| pastteams =
- Indianapolis Colts ({{NFL Year|2009}}–{{NFL Year|2013}})
- San Diego Chargers ({{NFL Year|2014}}–{{NFL Year|2015}})
- New England Patriots ({{NFL Year|2016}})*
| highlights =
- First-team All-American (2008)
- Big East Offensive Player of the Year (2008)
- First-team All-Big East (2008)
- Second-team All-Big East (2006)
- 2009 International Bowl MVP
| statlabel1 = Rushing attempts
| statvalue1 = 695
| statlabel2 = Rushing yards
| statvalue2 = 2,829
| statlabel3 = Rushing touchdowns
| statvalue3 = 18
| statlabel4 = Receptions
| statvalue4 = 120
| statlabel5 = Receiving yards
| statvalue5 = 1,066
| statlabel6 = Receiving touchdowns
| statvalue6 = 2
| pfr = BrowDo00
}}
Donald Eugene Brown II (born April 11, 1987) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Indianapolis Colts. He played college football for the UConn Huskies, becoming the school's all-time leading rusher and earning first-team All-American honors in 2008. He was selected by the Colts in the first round of the 2009 NFL draft. Brown was a member of the Colts for five seasons and spent his last two seasons with the San Diego Chargers.
Early life
Brown attended Red Bank Catholic High School in Red Bank, New Jersey, where he played football and ran track. During his senior season, Brown rushed for 2,032 yards and 27 touchdowns. In track, Brown was timed at 11.3 seconds in the 100 meters and 23.2 seconds in the 200 meters. Considered a three-star recruit by Rivals.com, Brown was listed as the No. 53 running back prospect in the nation in 2005.{{cite web | title=Rivals.com Running backs 2005 | url=https://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/viewrank.asp?ra_key=872 | work=Rivals.com | date=January 22, 2005 }} He picked Connecticut over Wisconsin on December 8, 2004.
College career
Brown signed a national letter of intent to enroll at UConn on February 2, 2005. He would conclude his collegiate career as the all-time leading rusher for Connecticut with 3,800 yards. After rushing for over 2,000 yards in his junior year, Brown decided to forgo his senior year to enter the 2009 NFL draft.
=2006 season=
Brown entered his redshirt freshman season in 2006 as a kickoff returner and second string running back behind senior captain and incumbent starter, Terry Caulley. Brown showed flashes of his running ability in the first game of the year, when he rushed for 118 yards on only 9 carries, including a 53-yard touchdown run, against Rhode Island. He would play primarily on special teams for the first half of the year. However, when Caulley went down with an injury before Connecticut's game against Rutgers on October 29, Brown was asked to make his first career start at running back. He made the most of this opportunity, as he rushed for 199 yards on 28 carries and 2 touchdowns. This performance proved to be too good to ignore, as he was awarded the starting job for the rest of the season. Brown had his best outing of his freshman campaign in the next game when he rushed for 205 yards on 43 carries with 3 touchdowns (1 receiving) in Connecticut's 46–45 double overtime win over Pittsburgh. Brown would average 134 yards per game in the five Big East games that he started. He finished the year with 896 yards and 9 touchdowns (2 receiving), which was good enough to award him with a 2nd team All Big East nomination.[http://www.bigeast.org/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=92485&SPID=11215&DB_OEM_ID=19400&ATCLID=1194089 Big East Announces 2006 Postseason Football Awards]{{Dead link|date=May 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
=2007 season=
Brown began his sophomore season with heightened expectations brought on by his very successful rookie campaign. However, nagging injuries combined with the emergence of fellow sophomore Andre Dixon would hamper his sophomore season. He would finish the year with 821 yards and 8 touchdowns, which was good for second on the team, behind Dixon. Twice, Brown ran for 100 yards in a game (against Rutgers and West Virginia) and just missed two more by rushing for 99 yards against Duke and Syracuse.
=2008 season=
A pre-season ankle injury to Dixon would cement Brown as the Huskies starting running back for the start of his junior season. It would be a position that he would not relinquish. Brown would begin the year with eight straight 100 yard games and would twice eclipse the 200 yard mark (against Temple and Virginia). He arguably had his best performance in the second game of the year as he rushed for 214 yards on 36 carries and the game's only touchdown against Temple, in a game played in a monsoon due to Tropical Storm Hannah.[https://web.archive.org/web/20170228164644/http://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=282500218 ESPN – Brown key as UConn stops Temple in overtime] Included in his 214 yards was every one of Connecticut's 25 yards in overtime. Brown rushed for 150 yards in the eighth game of the season at home in a 40–16 Connecticut victory over eventual Big East champion Cincinnati. These 150 yards increased his season total to 1,324, which set a new Connecticut single-season record.[http://www.uconnhuskies.com/AllStories/MFootball/2008/10/25/20081025.html UConnHuskies.com Game Recap]{{Dead link|date=May 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} The old tally of 1,262 had been set by Tory Taylor in 1995. Brown needed only eight games to break Taylor's record. Brown continued his record-breaking season in the tenth game at Syracuse. In that game, he rushed for 131 yards on 31 attempts. A 49-yard touchdown run in the second quarter would allow Brown to surpass Caulley as Connecticut's all-time leading rusher.{{Cite web |url=http://www.uconnhuskies.com/AllStories/MFootball/2008/11/15/20081115a.html |title=UConnHuskies.com Game recap |access-date=December 15, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090108031255/http://www.uconnhuskies.com/AllStories/MFootball/2008/11/15/20081115a.html |archive-date=January 8, 2009 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }} Brown would finish the regular season with 1,822 yards, which placed him first for rushing in the NCAA Division I FBS. His performance awarded him the Big East Offensive Player of the Year.[http://www.bigeast.org/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=92485&SPID=11215&DB_OEM_ID=19400&ATCLID=3631151 Big East Announces 2008 Postseason Football Honors] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090508115858/http://www.bigeast.org/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=92485&SPID=11215&DB_OEM_ID=19400&ATCLID=3631151 |date=May 8, 2009 }} On January 3, 2009, Brown was named Player of the Game in UConn's 38–20 victory over the University at Buffalo in the 2009 International Bowl in Toronto. He finished the game with 261 yards rushing (208 in the first half) and a touchdown. He finished the season with 2,083 rushing yards, becoming only the 14th player in FBS history to rush for over 2,000 yards in a single season.[http://www.sportsline.com/collegefootball/gamecenter/recap/NCAAF_20090103_BUFF@CT Brown rushes for 261 yards as Huskies win International Bowl]{{Dead link|date=October 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} On January 8, 2009, Brown was named Eastern College Athletic Conference Player of the Year.{{cite news|url=http://www.uconnhuskies.com/AllStories/MFootball/2009/01/08/20090108.html|title=Donald Brown Named ECAC Player of the Year|date=January 8, 2009|publisher=UConn|access-date=January 8, 2009}} {{Dead link|date=October 2010|bot=H3llBot}} Following the International Bowl, Brown announced his intention to enter the 2009 NFL Draft.[https://web.archive.org/web/20121024182531/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/ncaa/scoreboards/2009/01/03/39559_viewcast_recap.html UConn Takes International Bowl's Brown to the NFL]
=College statistics=
| class="wikitable" border="1" style="text-align: center" | ||||||||
| |Year
!|Rush Att !|Rush Yds !|Rush Avg !|Rush TD !|Rec Att !|Rec Yds !|Rec Avg !|Rec TD | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | colspan=8 align=center | Redshirted | |||||||
| 2006 | 161 | 999 | 5.6 | 7 | 13 | 66 | 5.1 | 2 |
| 2007 | 170 | 821 | 4.8 | 8 | 14 | 85 | 6.1 | 0 |
| 2008 | 367 | 2,083 | 5.7 | 18 | 21 | 125 | 6.0 | 0 |
| Career | 698 | 3,800 | 5.4 | 33 | 48 | 276 | 5.8 | 2 |
Professional career
=Pre-draft=
Brown was considered one of the top three running back prospects available in the draft (alongside Knowshon Moreno and Chris Wells) and drew comparisons to Willie Parker.{{Cite news |last=Pompei |first=Dan |date=April 12, 2009 |title=2009 NFL Draft: Dan Pompei's top running backs |newspaper=Chicago Tribune |url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/chi-12-nfl-draft-running-backs,0,5208805.story |access-date=August 11, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090814124154/http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/chi-12-nfl-draft-running-backs,0,5208805.story |archive-date=August 14, 2009 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}{{Cite news |last=Lande |first=Russ |date=April 24, 2009 |title=2009 NFL Draft: Best of the running backs |newspaper=The Sporting News |url=http://www.sportingnews.com/nfl/article/2009-04-24/2009-nfl-draft-best-running-backs |access-date=August 11, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090814162005/http://www.sportingnews.com/nfl/article/2009-04-24/2009-nfl-draft-best-running-backs |archive-date=August 14, 2009 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}{{Cite web |publisher=SportingNews.com |date=April 25, 2009 |title=Pro Football War Room: Donald Brown |url=http://warroom.sportingnews.com/nfl/draft/2009/players/8936.html }}
{{NFL predraft
| height ft = 5
| height in = 10 1/4
| weight = 210
| dash = 4.51
| ten split = 1.62
| twenty split = 2.66
| shuttle = 4.10
| cone drill = 6.93
| vertical = 41.5
| broad ft = 10
| broad in = 5
| wonderlic =
| arm span = 31 1/2
| hand span = 9
| note = All values from NFL Combine{{Cite web |url=https://www.nfl.com/prospects/donald-brown/32004252-4f39-8445-94bb-7ffe292ae825 |title=Donald Brown Draft and Combine Prospect Profile |website=NFL.com |access-date=April 5, 2023}}{{Cite web |url=http://draftscout.com/dsprofile.php?PlayerId=67975&DraftYear=2009 |title=2009 NFL Draft Scout Donald Brown College Football Profile |access-date=April 5, 2023 |website=DraftScout.com}}
}}
=Indianapolis Colts=
Brown was selected with the 27th pick in the 2009 NFL draft by the Indianapolis Colts.{{Cite web |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/2009/draft.htm |title=2009 NFL Draft Listing |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en |access-date=2019-02-25}} Brown became the first Connecticut Husky ever to be picked in the first round of an NFL Draft.{{cite web |url=http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/042509aaa.html |title=Donald Brown Goes in NFL Draft First Round |date=April 25, 2009 |publisher=UConnHuskies.com |access-date=April 26, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131015053303/http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/042509aaa.html |archive-date=October 15, 2013 |url-status=dead }} He signed a five-year contract with the Indianapolis Colts on August 2, 2009.{{Cite news |date=August 3, 2009 |title=After Signing, UConn's Donald Brown Hits Practice Field |newspaper=Hartford Courant |url=http://www.courant.com/sports/football/hc-nflup0803.artaug03,0,4998203.story |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090807052957/http://www.courant.com/sports/football/hc-nflup0803.artaug03,0,4998203.story |archive-date=August 7, 2009 }} In his first action as a member of the team, Brown ran for 58 yards on five carries against the Minnesota Vikings in the first week of the preseason.[http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/recap?game_id=54729&displayPage=tab_recap&season=2009&week=PRE1&override=true Donald Brown Will Be a Big Part of Indy's Offense] He scored his first touchdown on September 21, 2009 against the Miami Dolphins in a 27–23 Colts win.
On December 19, 2010, Donald recorded his first 100+ yard game in a 34–24 win against the Jaguars.
Brown saw increased playing time during the 2011 regular season. He had his best game as a professional in a Week 15 27–13 win over the Tennessee Titans when he rushed 16 times for 161 yards and scored a touchdown on an 80-yard run in the fourth quarter to seal the first victory of the season for Indianapolis.
Brown's 2012 season was hampered by some nagging injuries and the showing of rookie back Vick Ballard. He wasn't very effective the entire season, posting no 100 yard games and only one rushing touchdown.
Brown was originally not a starter for the Colts in the 2013 season. However, due to injuries and lack of production from other running backs, Brown was named the starting running back against the Tennessee Titans in Week 13. He ran for 54 yards and a touchdown. He would remain the starter for the remainder of the regular season.
=San Diego Chargers=
On March 11, 2014, Brown signed a three-year, $10.5 million contract with the San Diego Chargers. $4 million of the contract is guaranteed.{{cite web|url=http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/11/donald-brown-bolts-the-colts/|title=Donald Brown bolts the Colts|last=Florio|first=Mike|work=NBCSports.com|date=March 11, 2014|access-date=March 11, 2014}}
He was released on October 3, 2015,{{cite web|work=NFL.com|url=http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000548070/article/chargers-cut-rb-donald-brown-sign-g-michael-ola|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151004082942/http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000548070/article/chargers-cut-rb-donald-brown-sign-g-michael-ola|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 4, 2015|title=Chargers cut RB Donald Brown, sign G Michael Ola|first=Kevin|last=Patra|date=October 3, 2015|access-date=October 3, 2015}} but re-signed two days later.{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/blog/san-diego-chargers/post/_/id/13047/chargers-bring-back-rb-donald-brown|title=Chargers bring back RB Donald Brown|last=Williams|first=Eric D.|work=ESPN|date=October 5, 2015|access-date=January 3, 2016}} On March 3, 2016, Brown was released.{{Cite web|url=http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2016/mar/03/chargers-donald-brown-donald-butler/|title=Chargers release Donald Brown, save $3.5M|website=The San Diego Union-Tribune|access-date=March 19, 2016}}
=New England Patriots=
On March 16, 2016, Brown signed a one-year contract with the New England Patriots worth $965,000 with $300,000 guaranteed.{{Cite web|url=http://www.patriots.com/news/2016/03/18/patriots-sign-veteran-rb-donald-brown|title=Patriots sign veteran RB Donald Brown|website=New England Patriots|access-date=March 19, 2016}} On August 23, 2016, Brown was released by the Patriots.{{cite web|title=Patriots release RB Donald Brown; Release two players|url=http://www.patriots.com/news/2016/08/23/patriots-release-rb-donald-brown-release-two-players|website=Patriots.com}}
NFL career statistics
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Regular season ! rowspan="2"| Year ! rowspan="2"| Team ! colspan="2"| Games ! colspan="7"| Rushing ! colspan="6"| Receiving ! colspan="2"| Fumbles | |||||||||||||||||
| GP | GS | Att | A/G | Yds | Avg | Y/G | TD | Lng | Rec | Yds | Avg | Y/G | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | IND
| 11 || 1 || 78 || 7.1 || 281 || 3.6 || 22.5 || 3 || 45 || 11 || 169 || 15.4 || 15.4 || 72 || 0 || 1 || 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | IND
| 13 || 8 || 129 || 9.9 || 497 || 3.9 || 38.2 || 2 || 49 || 20 || 205 || 10.3 || 15.8 || 25 || 0 || 0 || 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2011 | IND
| 16 || 2 || 134 || 8.4 || 645 || 4.8 || 40.3 || 5 || 80T || 16 || 86 || 5.4 || 5.4 || 17 || 0 || 0 || 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | IND
| 10 || 4 || 108 || 10.8 || 417 || 3.9 || 41.7 || 1 || 19 || 9 || 93 || 10.3 || 9.3 || 39 || 0 || 0 || 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2013 | IND
| 16 || 5 || 102 || 6.4 || 537 || 5.3 || 33.6 || 6 || 51T || 27 || 214 || 7.9 || 13.4 || 33T || 2 || 0 || 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | SD
| 13 || 3 || 85 || 6.5 || 223 || 2.6 || 17.2 || 0 || 16 || 29 || 211 || 7.3 || 16.2 || 24 || 0 || 1 || 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | SD
| 9 || 2 || 59 || 5.9 || 229 || 3.9 || 22.9 || 1 || 53 || 8 || 88 || 11.0 || 8.8 || 31 || 0 || 1 || 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| colspan="2"| Total | 88 | 25 | 695 | 7.9 | 2,829 | 4.1 | 31.8 | 18 | 80 | 89 | 1,066 | 8.9 | 12.0 | 72 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Postseason ! rowspan="2"| Year ! rowspan="2"| Team ! colspan="2"| Games ! colspan="5"| Rushing ! colspan="5"| Receiving ! colspan="2"| Fumbles | ||||||||||||||
| GP | GS | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | IND
| 3 || 0 || 16 || 46 || 2.9 || 13 || 0 || 3 || 26 || 8.7 || 11 || 0 || 0 || 0 | |||||||||||||
| 2013 | IND
| 1 || 1 || 11 || 55 || 5.0 || 13 || 1 || 4 || 47 || 11.8 || 25 || 1 || 1 || 0 | |||||||||||||
| colspan="2"| Total | 4 | 1 | 27 | 101 | 3.7 | 13 | 1 | 7 | 73 | 10.4 | 25 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
See also
References
{{reflist|30em}}
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20090913050338/http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/brown_donald00.html Connecticut Huskies bio]
- {{commons category-inline}}
{{2009 NFL Draft}}
{{Indianapolis Colts 2009 draft navbox}}
{{ColtsFirstPick}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Donald}}
Category:People from Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey
Category:Players of American football from Monmouth County, New Jersey
Category:American football running backs
Category:Red Bank Catholic High School alumni
Category:UConn Huskies football players
Category:Indianapolis Colts players
Category:New England Patriots players
Category:San Diego Chargers players
Category:21st-century African-American sportsmen
Category:21st-century American sportsmen