| No. 47 | |||||||||
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| Position | Cornerback | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1970-10-04)October 4, 1970 (age 55) Fort Pierce, Florida, U.S. | ||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||
| Listed weight | 210 lb (95 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Fort Pierce Westwood | ||||||||
| College | Miami | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1993: 2nd round, 33rd overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Ryan Darrell McNeil (born October 4, 1970) is an American former professionalfootball player who was acornerback for 11 seasons in theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for theMiami Hurricanes, and earnedAll-American honors. He was selected by theDetroit Lions in the second round of the1993 NFL draft, and also played professionally for theSt. Louis Rams,Cleveland Browns,Dallas Cowboys,San Diego Chargers andDenver Broncos of the NFL.
McNeil was born inFort Pierce, Florida.[1] He attended Westwood High School,.[2] where he was a two-time offensive player of the year. As a seniorfree safety he registered 61 tackles (47 solo), six interceptions and 5 fumble recoveries. As awide receiver he had 23 receptions for 323 yards and 4 touchdowns. In track, he won the district title in thelong jump,triple jump and440-yard dash.
McNeil accepted anathletic scholarship to attend theUniversity of Miami. As a freshman, he was named the starter atcornerback after Kenny Berry was injured, finishing with 15 tackles (9 solo). The next year although he was platooned at the "field" cornerback position with Roland Smith and registered 34 tackles (19 solo), 6 passes defensed and one interception.
As a junior, he recorded 38 tackles (21 solo), 5 interceptions, 17 passes defensed, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. In his last year he was recognized as a consensus first-teamAll-American atcornerback, after finishing with 34 tackles (23 solo), 10 passes defensed and 2 interceptions. He was a member of the Hurricanes' national championship teams in 1989 and 1991.
TheDetroit Lions selected McNeil in the second round (33rd overall) of the1993 NFL draft. TheNew York Jets originally held the second round pick, but agreed to trade it to the Detroit Lions in return for their second (36th overall) and fifth round (120th overall) picks in the 1993 NFL Draft.[3][4]
He became the starter atleft cornerback in his second season.[5] In1995, he recorded 86 tackles and 2 interceptions.[6] The next year, he had 5 interceptions.
In1997, he was declared afree agent and chose to sign theSt. Louis Rams, after an offer from the Lions was pulled after the firing of head coachWayne Fontes.[7] At the end of the year, he led theNFL ininterceptions with nine and also had 71 tackles.[5] The next year his statistics dropped to one interception and 54 tackles.
With theCleveland Browns in1999, he registered 81 tackles and recovered four fumbles.[8]
On March 2,2000, he signed as afree agent with theDallas Cowboys reuniting with his formerUniversity of Miami secondary coachDave Campo. He replacedDeion Sanders atright cornerback, who was waived in a salary cap move.[9] Although the team wanted to keep him, the salary cap situation forced them to waive McNeil on February 28,2001.
On March 3,2001, he was signed by theSan Diego Chargers.[10] In September, he was named theAFC Defensive Player of the Month. At the end of the season, he finished with 8 interceptions and was named to thePro Bowl to replace an injuredSam Madison. In2003, he was moved tofree safety during training camp and was eventually released on August 12.[11]
On November 11,2003, he signed with theDenver Broncos to play as a nickel corner, but injuries limited him to 4 games.
After McNeil retired from professional football, he founded the Professional Business & Financial Network, an organization designed to provide professional athletes with the fundamental tools they need to succeed in business. He is also the publisher ofOT MagazineArchived April 26, 2010, at theWayback Machine, a lifestyle magazine dedicated to helping professional athletes manage their money. His numerous business interests are managed by David Cornwell and Don West, Jr.[12][13] Ryan is active in the sports technology industry as the Founder & CEO of SportsID.[14] He also advises and invests in football technology businesses, such as FanWide.[15] His father playedtight end in theCanadian Football League with theOttawa Roughriders.
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